Research (page 1 of 3)

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Search Engines:

Before we start shelling out money, it's a good idea to obtain as much information for free. There are websites out there that enable you to search for references to your ancestors. Family Search (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) is a great website and is free to search. They also have an extensive microfilm collection that can be instrumental in your research. Another useful, but limited without a subscription, website is Ancestry.com. There are also many other great websites out there that enable you to search for you ancestors. To keep your research from getting too confusing we recommend sticking with just a few favorite websites. Most of the information that they index are the same.

When searching these websites, keep your search limited to one ancestor at a time and keep notes of what you find and where. This will help keep your information organized and prevent you from getting confused or overwhelmed. You may need to look very closely t the search results. The name of your ancestor may be spelled incorrectly, making it harder to locate them. This was normally caused by the person taking down the information of your ancestor made a mistake, misheard, or just didn't understand. This is routinely the case regarding U.S. census information and immigrant passenger information. Try variant spellings of the name of your ancestor if need be.

Message / Query Boards:

Message / query boards are great for posting concise family information or questions for others to view. If posted on a board specialized on location or surname, you will most likely receive replies to your query. Your replies can vary from folks who have answers to folks who are hoping you have their answers. Either way, you should always reply and be courteous. There are many boards available on the internet. We recommend RootsWeb Message Boards.

Mailing Lists:

Mailing lists are great for just about anything regarding genealogy. Make sure when you subscribe to a mailing list, that you subscribe to one that's the most relevant to your research. We are very partial to RootsWeb Mailing Lists. You will want to be polite and be as specific as you can when posting. These mailing lists also have searchable archives of past posts that may already have information you are looking for. Most of the people that are frequently posting on these lists are very knowledgeable in their area of expertise. Through the use of mailing lists you can find out all sorts of information that may help you. DO NOT start or partake in an argument on these mailing lists! If you do, you run the risk of being booted off the list, thus leaving you without an important genealogy tool. If you absolutely have to make your point or get in the last word, e-mail the offending person privately. Be advised that there are a few screwballs out there that can drive you absolutely nuts, but reacting to them is usually what they want you to do. Just don't do it.

Sourcing:

Source everything! A source is simply a reference to where you found or how you can prove your genealogy data. For example: If you found out that your uncle was in the military, write down who told you that or on what document it is listed. Without source information you can't verify that your information is correct.

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