How to Uncover Your Family History |
Posted: March 21, 2017 |
For many, researching their family history and building a family tree is an exciting process. They often come across amazing stories from their ancestors and sometimes even find long-lost relatives that are still alive. If you're interested in learning how you can uncover your family history, keep reading for some helpful tips. Start at Home FirstYour best source of information to start your family history search is also your closest. Begin by interviewing family members to see if you can get names, birthdays, places of birth, and any other information about relatives they remember. Next, start looking around your home for scrapbooks that might contain information that can help fill in the blanks. Old yearbooks, family bibles, letters, diaries, and photographs all have a wealth of information you can use to start your family tree. Search One Family at a TimeIf you try to tackle your entire family tree at once, you might get overwhelmed by the amount of information you find and give up too soon. Instead, begin your search on either your mother's side or father's side. From there, focus on either your grandmother or grandfather and start building one branch of your family tree. Once you've thoroughly researched that one branch, or if you hit a dead end, go back to the beginning and start over on another branch. Don't Assume Unusual Names Are UniqueOne common mistake that many amateur genealogists make is assuming that a name that sounds unusual by today's standards means it was also one-of-a-kind during their ancestor's lifetime. However, there have been cases where people with matching unique names are living in the same area at the same time. If you don't take care to separate identities, you might accidentally merge two different people or even start researching the wrong family tree. Consider Background Check SitesFor some, researching family history has more to do with finding relatives who are currently alive than reading about stories from the past. For those who are adopted, this can mean finding their biological parents by tracing their blood relatives. In cases like this, background check websites are a good place to look. They offer access to public records such as property history, phone numbers, addresses, and more. Use Other Online ResourcesOn the other hand, if you're trying to trace your heritage, the government offers plenty of websites with online records that can help you in your family research. The Ellis Island Foundation has over 51 million passenger records for those who came through this famous port. If there was a veteran in your family, the nationwide gravesite locator run by the Veteran's Administration can help you locate it. Finally, there are state archives that can help you find census information, pioneer certificates, Native American records, and more. Whether you want to build a family tree you can pass down through the generations or you're interested in connecting with others who share your ancestors, following these tips can help you have a successful search as you uncover your family history.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|