5 Tips To Research Family Tree Genealogy Effectively
by Ellis Keith
When doing genealogy to research family tree ancestors, there are a few tips that will help you get the best results and have the most fun. Incorporate these tips into your research and you will build your family tree at a much quicker pace.
Tip 1: Start with a Free Family Tree Search to make sure you are not spending time doing research that has already been done. One of the best places to do this is with the resources made available online by the LDS church. They have bee collecting and merging family trees of millions of people for many years. If you are a member of the LDS Church you can access the members only database (which will likely be open to the public eventually) called new.familysearch.org For everyone else, go to familysearch.org and start searching for your deceased ancestors and relatives.
Tip 2: Before they get any more forgetful or pass on, contact and interview the older family members who you can find. These interviews can be done best in persona but the phone, email or even regular mail can still yield a lot of family history that just will not be there if you wait too long. Use a good list of questions that you think through before the interview.
Tip 3: Keep your information well organized … either with good online software or else with good files. Your key tools of the trade are the pedigree chart (sometimes called the ancestral chart) and the family group sheet. Free ones are readily available online. Get familiar with them and use them faithfully.
Tip 4: Find out how you can access census records and then take some time to learn the ins and outs of following a family through several decades of census records. The census indexes and the underlying digital images of the actual census are some of the most powerful tools available if your ancestors were in a country where they were taken. Most of the prominent countries of the world have at least some census records available online.
Tip 5: Locate and if possible visit, the nearest Family History Center of The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Be sure to take your records with you. Take your jump drive with your files in gedcom format – if you’re using a genealogy software program, or your paper files with your pedigree charts and family group sheets. If you don’t have those yet, take whatever notes you do have because you can almost always get help there in expanding your family tree or finding your best next step to discover your ancestors.
Note: These centers are free of charge and they are run by volunteers. If the individual on duty is not very knowledgeable, find out who the family history center director is and when they are scheduled to be on duty. Come back or call when they are on duty and they will almost always be able to help you. The LDS Church has over 3000 of these amazing genealogy resource centers throughout the world and if you are in North America, there is almost certainly one near you. Go visit this gold mine of information today… and have fun!
How To Get Started: Find My Family Tree – Step By Step
by Ellis Keith
Who else has ever wondered: How do I find my family tree? Discovering about famous or ordinary ancestors can be a lot of fun. If you take it a step at a time it’s really rewarding and very easy to start growing your own family tree.
Step 1. Get a notepad and pencil and then grab an ancestral chart (sometimes called a Pedigree Chart or work sheet). If you have a computer, do a Google search for “free ancestral chart” then find one you like (they’re all about the same) and print it out. This is the first of 2 basic worksheets you will refer to over and over as you build your family tree. You can also get a copy here: http://www.ancestry.com/charts/ancchart.aspx
Note: If you don’t have internet access at home or at a close library, then contact or go to the nearest Family History Center of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (locate them in your phone book or at your public library) and ask them for the pamphlet : “How Do I Start My Family History?”. That pamphlet has a blank Pedigree Work Sheet in it and a blank Family Group Work Sheet.
Step 2. Go through the same process as in step one to get a form called a Family Group Sheet or a Family Group Work Sheet. You can get one free here: http://www.ancestry.com/trees/charts/familysheet.aspx
Step 3. Make a copy of each of these worksheets and save the original to make more copies. These two worksheets will be copied and used over and over to help you keep all of the information and discoveries about your family organized.
Step 4. Start with a blank Ancestral Chart (or Pedigree Work Sheet – they are the same thing). Write in the information you know about yourself in spot one. Enter your full legal name, the date of your birth, the place of your birth, your marriage information if you are married (put multiple marriages data on the back)
Step 5. Now fill out as much information as you can about your parents and grandparents and even further back if you have it. At this stage, just put down what you remember. If you only know of a first name, a nickname or a last name that’s OK. Just enter what you know or can remember. Estimate birth, marriage and death dates and enter them on the chart in pencil with a ? behind. The question mark beside the data will remind you later it is just an estimate.
Step 6. Now that you have a few names on your Pedigree or Ancestral Chart, make a copy of the blank Family Group Work Sheet for each couple that are on your Pedigree Chart. Fill in their names and what information you have. It is a good idea to enter it in pencil if you are uncertain about the information and in ink if you are certain. Start with the Family Group Sheet for your parents family with you and your siblings as a child. If an ancestor was married more than once (and especially if they had children from that marriage), create and fill out a separate Family Group Work Sheet for that couple as well.
Step 7. Decide which of the questionable or missing information that you’d like to learn more about. A good way is to mark with a colored pencil or circle each field where you’d like to get more detail.
Step 8. Now take one family at a time and start digging a little deeper. Start with your parents family and then go back from there. Determine which family members might have information about the family you are researching and then prepare for an informal visit with them or if possible a scheduled personal interview. Use good judgment and be considerate of other peoples time and feelings and most family members will be excited to share information with you. They may have stories or information that they remember or they may also have pictures, certificates, journals, family Bibles or other records that may be of interest.
Step 9. Contact the family member. If possible try to set up a personal interview with the person. If that is not practical, then you might just contact them by phone, by email or even by a letter. Here are some helpful hints when you contact the family member.
a. Tell them who you are and how you are related to them if you’re not sure they already know.
b. Let them know that you’re trying to learn more about your family tree. Explain which family member(s) that you’re focusing on and with which data you’d appreciate their help.
c. Try and set-up a time when you could interview them in person if possible or else on the phone.
Step 10. Prepare for your visit with a family member. Write down the questions that you want to ask them. It’s usually most effective to ask questions that cannot be easily answered with just a yes or a no … you want them to build rapport with you and then share the details they remember or have in their possession. Prepare to be kind, thoughtful and considerate and they will learn to trust you, like you and share things that you might otherwise never discover. Check out this list of Questions to Ask Family Members While Building Your Family Tree. Use this list to give you ideas and help you formulate the best list for the interview you are about to conduct.
Step 11. Visit with and get the details you are looking for from your relatives. After preparing as noted in the last step, just go have fun visiting with the relative you have prepared to get to know better. As you go through your list of questions, be sure to take some of your time to build or strengthen your relationship with family member. They will likely appreciate it and probably will have more information to share with you again at a later date. As you get information from them, if possible make copies of photos, documents, letters or journals they may have. If they offer for you to take any of their documents etc to copy and return later – BE SURE to make the copies and get the originals back to them in a very timely manner along with an appropriate note or token of thanks and appreciation. Always offer to share with your family members the information that you are able to find. When you have an attitude of generosity, friendliness and love, you will maximize your success and your enjoyment as you grow your family tree.
Well there you have it. You are now well on your way to building your family tree. Repeat this process with other family members and for other ancestors and relatives. This step of gleaning all you can from and connecting with, your living relatives, is the most critical of all the steps. These sources of information may not be there for you in a couple of years so do it now. Become a catalyst within your family for expanding a sense of familial bonding and caring and your will have a treasure that lasts more than a lifetime.
Questions to Ask Family Members While Building Your Family Tree
By Ellis Keith
These questions are here to stimulate your thinking when you’re wondering how to start your family tree. When gathering family data, always be kind and considerate and seek to strengthen family ties and support. Doing so will increase other peoples cooperation, make you a more likable and trustworthy person and significantly increase both the quality and quantity of cooperation you get as your build your family tree. If you plan to use a tape recorder or video camera for your visit, be sure to get the permission of the person well ahead of time.
Note: When asking questions, if they don’t know the answer ask them if they could give you an “approximate” or “best guess” answer. Often that will stimulate their thinking – and remembering.
1. What is your nickname, legal name and name by which you prefer to be called?
2. What is your birth date and in what City, State/Province and Country were you born?
3. What is your mother’s maiden name and what name did she go by?
4. Where was your mother born and what is her birth date?
5. What is your father’s full name and what name did he go by?
6. Where was your father born and what is his birth date?
7. What are the names of each of your full siblings?
8. What is the birth date and location for each of your siblings.
9. Who did each of your siblings marry and where and when did that happen?
10. What memories do you have about each of your siblings?
11. What are the full names, birth dates and locations for each of your children?
12, Whom did you marry and what is their birth information?
13. Whom did your children marry?
14. What can you tell me about your mother’s parents and ancestors?
15. What do you know about your father’s parents and ancestors?
16. What do you know about your aunts, uncles and cousins from your mothers family?
17. What do you know about your aunts, uncles and cousins from your fathers family?
18. What can you remember about where these extended family members lived?
19. What can you remember about the births, marriages, deaths or burial places of your mother’s siblings?
20. What can you remember about the births, marriages, deaths or burial places of your father’s siblings?
21. Where are family members buried ?
22. What fond memories do you have about your childhood and life with your parents and siblings?
23. Are you aware of any of the family members on your mother’s side of the family that are involved in genealogy or building their family tree or saving family photos and stories?
24. Are you aware of any of the family members on your father’s side of the family that are involved in genealogy or building their family tree or saving family photos and stories?
25. Are there any of the relatives that you know of that served in any of the major wars?
26. Are there any of the relatives that you know of that immigrated from other countries?
27. Do you know of anyone in the family that has an old family Bible or old family documents?
28. Do you have any old pictures of the family that you’d be willing to show me?
29. What are some of the best memories you have had in your life?
30. If there were one lesson that you’ve learned in your life that you’d like to pass on to your children and grandchildren, what would that be?
How To Trace Scotland Family History Using Online Resources
If you have Scottish roots, an extended trip to the Scottish motherland to trace family history and discover ancestors would be the most fun but for most of us, because of the time and expense involved in fulfilling that dream, it just isn’t very much of a practical alternative. Fortunately however; Scotland family history research and finding those elusive clansmen ancestors can be quite effectively handled from abroad once we learn about some of the Scottish genealogical resources that we have available.
In both Canada and the United States, and some other countries in the world, one of the best family tree building resources that are accessible are the microfilm archives of the Family History Center from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. This church has over 3000 local Family History Centers throughout the world. If you are in North America, Great Britain, Australia and a few other countries, it is likely that there is a center close to you. Find them by doing a search for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, in the local phone book or by doing a search on Google, Yahoo or Bing.
These LDS Family History Centers, are available free of charge to all denominations and you can visit them and get assistance from the volunteers who man the centers. If you know what locality and type of records you are looking for, the volunteers can often help you find out if there are microfilms or microfiche records readily available. Over many decades, The LDS Family History Center has microfilmed many church, parish and government records from hundreds of countries worldwide. They keep their master records in granite mountain vaults in Utah and make copies on request to send out to the satellite centers. When you find a microfilm nor microfiche that may have the information you are looking for, you can order it from your closest LDS Family History Center for a small charge. As of early 2010, the fees are $5.50 for a microfilm and $.15 per microfiche sheet. They have readers at these centers that you can use free of charge.
There are also many additional on the world wide web for tracing your Scotland Family History. One of the most helpful of the Scottish online resources is the Scottish Archive Network (do a search engine inquiry for their current site). One of resources they offer is the SCAN online catalog which helps you get information and operational detail about more than 20,000 different collections of historical record archives that are in Scotland.
This catalog is set up to help you find out if a particular Scottish archive has the records you need for your particular family tree research. It tells you what archives are held in Scotland and the location where they are held. The catalog also gives a brief summary of the archive collection, who created the records and then it gives you links to where you can find more detail. It also tells you what language the archive is in (usually English) and what the access restrictions are on the archive if there are any.
Still another valuable Scottish genealogical and family history research resource is the online website at scotlandspeople.gov.uk . There, they have one of the largest online genealogical collections of Scotland original historical and genealogical information. This site has around 80 million records to help you build your Scottish ancestral charts. These records include census records, birth, death, marriage, probate and will records, as well as other records.
When you start exploring the online search engine results as well as the above mentioned online and Family History Center resources ( all of which are readily available to most folks), you will find a large array of information to help you discover those Scottish ancestors and relatives and build more branches on your Scottish family tree. Happy hunting and much success!
Finding Historical Deaths In Your Family Tree From Vital Death Records
For those loved ones living at the time of your ancestors death, it was a time of sorrow and solemnity. For those of us who are searching to find that same ancestor, finding historical deaths as a result of the vital death records, funeral home records, obituaries or cemetery records can be an exciting event as we gain the details we’ve been searching for about that elusive relative.
Death records can provide plentiful detail about an ancestor’s life, including date, place and cause of death. They may state the decedent’s address, how long they had lived in an area, their birth date and sometimes even where they were born, what their occupation was and the names of other living relatives as well as those that preceded them in death.
Some of the various death related records may contain the maiden name of a woman or of the decedent’s mother. You also might find details about other relatives that were buried with or near your ancestor. When siblings were born and died between census years, the tombstones in a cemetery may be the only way you find of their existence. Armed with that information, more exploration of vital birth and death records may give you a much more complete record of these individuals. Tombstones and cemetery records also might contain references to the individuals membership in various fraternal societies, military services, church membership and even occupations.
Sometimes, when a family member was away from home at the time of death, there were burial transit permits issued – which allowed the body to be moved from one place to another. Don’t forget to check out that remote possibility if you’re otherwise stumped.
Death notices and obituaries are often a source of rich historical information about the family (including maiden names and married names – for women). Frequently an obit also has details about parents, siblings and children. If the ancestor had immigrated, sometimes the town and/or country of birth is included along with other information about events or activities in the individual’s life.
When searching for clues, don’t forget to check out the death records of all the family members. Many times in the obituary or death records of a close relative, you’ll find details than were heretofore unknown about your ancestor.
Here are some additional tips to keep in mind concerning death record searches. When you are following the lives of your ancestors through successive census records and through city directories, they may just seem to disappear. When that happens, it may help you narrow down their death date. Also be sure to check the census records of the children as it was not uncommon for an aging parent to live to a ripe old age in the home of a son or daughter (or even a nephew or niece). It is also possible that rather than having died, they were moved into an infirmary or a boarding house.
When checking death records, once you find one, be sure to use that date and information to locate the other kinds of death records that may be available and shed light of more details about the relative. If you know the places your relative previously lived, that newspaper may have also run obituary notices that can give additional family information.
Starting your ancestral search with a hunt for the death record is often the fastest way to get many clues for further research. Often the death records indicate the cemetery where they were to be buried and the date and place give you data to go looking for a helpful obituary. If you don’t know the death date, you might start with the cemetery.
Which cemetery is the best place to start looking? Begin close to where they lived. Some churches and religions had their own set of death and burial records and cemeteries. It is also worth doing an online search for possible cemetery indexes. One excellent site that has a large number of cemetery records is findagrave.com.
It’s very possible that your ancestor is buried further away from where they lived than you might think. Sometimes as cities and towns grew and development took place, the dead were moved to more remote areas near the outskirts of the community.
At times, an ancestor may have been moved to a different city or state for burial where other relatives lived or where they could be buried in a family plot. Because the transportation of bodies was regulated, you might be able to locate burial permits or body transit records. Check with the Family History Center of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints as they have many of these records microfilmed. Also check with the city, county and state vital statistics departments to locate these records.
Begin at the end. Start with the death of your lost ancestor and you often will find the fastest route to discovering a large amount of interesting detail about their life. Have fun in the hunt and build a lasting family history legacy that your extended family can enjoy for generations yet to come.
How To Find My Ancestor’s Family History Using Census Records
by Ellis Keith
Who else has wondered: How can I use census records to find my ancestors and go about finding family history details about their lives that were previously unknown? Well that is a great question because as you may have heard or suspected, the federal census records of the USA, Canada, England as well as some other countries can provide a real treasure chest of hidden family members and details about their lives.
At first glance, the process of searching census records can be almost overwhelming, but these days, with the indexes that have been created (largely by thousands of genealogy buff volunteers), finding relatives using these indexes is usually very rewarding, easy, fast and productive.
Let’s talk a little about the Canadian and the US Federal Census records. “Every individual” census records (where information on each member of the household was gathered) began in 1850 in the US and 1851 in Canada. Every ten years a new census was taken and information on each member of the family was collected. Finding family history by using multiple year indexes of the census records can be amazingly productive. Right now for the US, there are available very well done indexes for the 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, (not the 1890 which was destroyed by fire), 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930 and in 2012 the 1940 records will be released for indexing. For Canada, good current indexes exist for much of Canada for the years 1851, 1861, 1871, 1881, 1891,1901 and 1911.
These indexes are digitized and available online – some for free, some only available for a fee. The great thing about using these online census records when I want to find my ancestors, is that in many cases, an online search can quickly identify a whole family over a multi-decade time span. It is not unusual to be able to find an ancestor born in 1848 for example, in the 1850, 1860, and 1870 census while they were still at home with their parents and then find them in the 1880, 1900, 1910 and if they lived long enough, the 1920 and 1930 census as well. Now that is possible, but for a variety of reasons an individual may not show up on some (or even any) of the census indexes.
One of the common reasons is that the individual who was reading the original census record (and then transcribing them so they could later be indexed), might not have been able to decipher the poor handwriting or the faded or marred original record. Often times a Harold James may have ended up indexed as a Harry Jones. Because of this transcription problem, it is helpful to know where the individual for whom you are searching lived. When you know their location and can’t find them in the name index, you can find all of the people in that county and manually look through the original records. That is a time consuming process that I recommend only after trying a wide variety of searches in the indexes but the manual search method often finds the elusive family.
One of the best ways to use the index is to find a public library or a free to use Family History Center located in one of your neighborhood chapels of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (look them up in the phone book or to find the nearest location go here: http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Library/FHC/frameset_fhc.asp ). Ancestry.com is a “for profit” public company that has an excellent array of very well done census indexes world wide. Ancestry.com is not inexpensive to subscribe to but for the serious family tree hunter it is worth every penny. They also have a free 14 day trial that gives you full access to many of these records. If you are just starting or on a tight budget, I would highly recommend you gather as much information as possible from your own records and from the records and memories of your close living relatives. Then if you go to a public library of go visit the very helpful folks in the Latter Day Saint Family History Centers you can learn more about Ancestry.com and how to use it. After you have done that, you’ll be ready to really get the most out of your free trial that Ancestry.com offers.
By doing a google search you can also find some free indexes available online. One of the best free census resources for those that have Canadian ancestors is http://automatedgenealogy.com/. This site takes a little bit of time to learn how to use effectively but once you do, it is easy and quick to use and the indexes are highly reliable. Whatever country you are looking in for records, be sure to use the search engines like google.com to search for terms like: US Census Ohio or Canada Census New Brunswick.
One last note of great value is to know that the 1900 census in the US and the 1901 Census in Canada both have a great amount of information in them. They both give (in most cases) the individual’s month and year of birth, sex, what their relationship was to the head of family, occupation, where they were born, how long they had been married ( if they were married), if they were widowed or divorced, for the wife in a family – how many children she has had and how many are still living, when they immigrated if they did, and where both the individual’s mother and father were born. These records are a gold mine of clues for further family tree sleuthing.
Learn about the census records and become familiar with them. Ask questions of librarians or volunteers in the Family History Centers and you will find that the census records of many many countries provide a tremendous amount of information for you to use in taking the next step on your genealogical hunt. Have fun, much good luck and happy hunting!
Finding Your African or American Roots Using Free Family Tree Search Methods
by Ellis Keith
Whether you’re African American or any other race, it can be really fun to track ancestors and find out what your roots are – who your ancestors were, where they came from and what kind of lives they lived. One of the best free family tree search tools to help in that process is the internet. Even though you may think you know who you are, by using the internet to do a little digging you can find out some of your family history and start growing your own family tree. Think about the sense of connection you gain when you start to find out about your family’s past – the places they lived, what their occupations were and how many relatives you have that you didn’t even know existed.
There are a large number of genealogy sites on the internet where you can discover details about who you are related to and in many cases what kind of personalities they had and what health issues they faced. Knowing your family history helps you understand yourself better. This discovery process can be motivated for a number of different reasons. Some want to discover answers to health or personality questions but the vast majority just want to find out more about both the princes and the paupers that they may be related to. It could be quite a thrilling experience and usually a big surprise to find out that you’re related to Martin Luther King, Barak Obama or one of your favorite sports heroes.
Many family’s history become obscured or lost with the passing of time. Many reasons can account for not knowing much about your heritage. Sometimes family quarrels and disagreements kept one generation from sharing family history with the next generation. Often economic or historic events caused a family to become separated from other family members. Many, many people find it fun to trace their family tree and find out what happened in the lives of lost relatives and where they live now. It can be very rewarding to become united with lost or forgotten relatives.
While the internet doesn’t give you access to all the information that you might desire about your family, there are more and more essential records becoming available on it every year. There are a vast array of records that can save you time and help you fill in the gaps and point you to where to find their vital records like birth and death certificates, marriage licenses and divorce decrees.
If you are an African American and are searching to discover your roots, the internet is an indispensable tool. African Americans can be proud that they have played a very important role in much of the world’s history. That is significantly the case here in the United States. These ancestors came from a variety of places including Africa and many suffered the pains of slavery and humiliation. Many of the early and contemporary African Americans provided heroic support to this nation in our wars. If you use the internet carefully, you can find treasures of historical information and detail that used to be unobtainable.
Almost everyone has a family history that includes both terror and triumph, noble kinfolk and usually some renegades. Sometimes in sleuthing out you family’s past, the path gets rough and you can come across roadblocks, but the thrill of discovery outweighs those temporary frustrations. There is a sense of deep pride in learning of the sacrifices and contributions of family past who all helped make us who we are today.
Learning about and discovering your own unique family history and seeing your family tree grow is fun and rewarding. In addition it takes away the uncertainty that nags at one who doesn’t have any idea about their family lineage. There is a sense of pride that comes when we discover we’re related to someone famous or maybe just to the many good human beings that worked hard and struggled to help us all have the better world that we enjoy today. Yes, dig deep my friend. Now, go find those family roots, record them and then pass your own family history on as a legacy for the next generations to enjoy.
