6 Steps for Researching Your Family's Genealogy

Many people are interested in researching their family history but hesitate because they are unsure how or where to begin.

These are 6 Steps, which will help the beginning family genealogist lay a foundation to build upon and see rapid progress.

Do not expect to answer all the questions all the time. The further back you go, the harder the information becomes to collect. You will continually add information as you conduct your research. Sometimes, it takes years to find out even the simplest answer.

Always, always, ALWAYS, document your findings with actual documents, copies of the documents, book references, etc. As you get into the Steps, you will begin to understand.



Step 1 - Beginning

You are the beginning.

The following are the basic questions you will ask of each generation as you work back wards from yourself, i.e. your parents, their parents, etc. You are "Generation 1", you are "ground zero".

A. When were you (they) born?
B. Where were you (they) born? Include city, county, state, and country if applicable.
C. Military Service? If yes, record as much information as you can.
D. Trade or profession.

Basically, you are trying to find out everything there is to know about the person you are researching.

Keeping the research you collect can be confusing. You will develop your own method once you have a better grasp of how research is conducted.

Step 2 - Organization

Organizing your data can be a challenge, especially if this is not a talent you have already. In genealogy research, there is a chart or form for just about every thing. These can be found on the web so there is no need to "re-invent the wheel" as they say.

Since so much information is available via the Net now, keeping your data in folders on your computer is one option.

Another is using a program such as Family Tree Maker or Legacy, or take advantage of trial offers to see if you like a particular program.

Step 3 - Where to Get Help

As stated above, there is so much information available now that much of your research can be done via the web, although not for free.

A the major part of documentation is census records. This use to entail going to a historical library, looking through the census index for a particular year, then going to the film room, hunting for the census sheet that may or may not be of the person you are researching.

Today, you can save hours and gasoline by joining one of my favorites sites, Ancestry.com .

With the Deluxe Membership, (what I use) you can view records for Census, Military Draft, Marriage, Birth, Death, Obituary, Social Security Death Index, Land Records, U.S. City Directories and so much more.




Step 4 - Hidden Treasure

Don't throw away those old collections of miscellaneous papers your grandparents kept without going through them first!

Old newspaper clippings can be obituaries, news articles from your grandparents days, tell stories of family members you didn't know of. There can be a wealth of information in these so looking them over before proceeding.

Step 5 - Census Records

Having census records for your ancestors is "Genealogy 101".
The first census was taken in 1790. Until the 1850 Census, only the names of the heads of households were recorded. The 1890 Census was about 99% destroyed by fire in 1921. Substitutes have been created from tax lists in some counties. The 1900 Census recorded month and year of birth. The last census available to researchers is the 1930 Census.

Step 6 - Cemeteries

Cemeteries can be a wealth of information. Learn to love cemeteries
Cemeteries have been referred to as "ancestor farms". Sometimes, you may find a headstone which will tell you the where the person was born, such as "Born in England". If you did not know this, then you have a wonderful piece of information. Genealogist and family history researchers love and respect cemeteries.

And remember, undocumented genealogy is only mythology

For more help, see my Squidoo lens on this topic!
Texas History Hunter on Squidoo