Discover Your Genealogy

Have you ever wanted to discover ancestors and experience the thrill of discovering a lost or famous relative? When the “bug bites” you too may be up sleuthing into the wee hours of the night. I’ve found in the last 30 plus years of growing my family tree (doing genealogical research) and talking with others, that many of us have a passion to know more about our lives – knowing more than just the memories from our own experiences.

It’s natural when we want to know more about our family and research ancestry origins. One of our ancestors may have been a statesman, famous inventor or poet, a preacher or just a humble farmer with eleven children to feed and educate. All of our early direct line relatives had some contribution to our current life. But a common and reoccurring question is: “How do I go about finding the details and relative on my own family tree?”.

It is apparent that one main source of information is the internet. Luckily, information is there in plentiful abundance. Most folks know that almost anything can be found on the internet if you just know where and how to find it. Many web sites like Ancestry.com, Genealogy.com and Rootsweb.com focus on providing abundant genealogical research resources. They are filled with many different sources and kinds of data. You can find a large selection of vital records like marriage licenses, birth and death registers and certificates. Many other records are also available like census returns, wills, military records, past city directories, parish records and tax information.

One of the challenges we have, is just sorting through the numbers of people to find the ones that are ties to our own family tree. It’s amazing how many people had exact or similar names or as that ancestor you’re looking for. Often, the exact puzzle pieces you need to solve the question at will come from the memory of one of your living relatives or maybe even from things that you remember yourself about the event. To find the next bit of critical information may be as easy as doing a search on Google.com or one of the other search engines. The internet places an amazing amount of old and obscure information right at your fingertips.

Some newer resources like Ellis Island records often can help you find little known facts about your ancestor’s life in Europe prior to their arrival in New York. A great variety of original records or scans or microfilms of handwritten records may also be very accessible. An example is the archive of historical records from your local courthouse.

Remember that even the digitized indexes are online were transcribed from hand written records. That means that the transcriber may have misread or misinterpreted the details. Also, many of the individuals who wrote those original records didn’t spell correctly. It’s important to keep this in mind. When the trail gets cold, look for alternatives and variations in spelling.

By driving a short distance and by using the postal service, many original certificates and records may be readily available. Some of the richest resources of all might be neighborhood courthouses and libraries. County and family histories as well as records pertaining to births, marriages, divorces, adoptions and deaths may be found in the county archives or they may be available from the State Department of Vital Statistics. These agencies will often mail you copies of these vital records (for a fee) if they are not close enough to visit in person.

Vital birth, marriage and death records usually contain details and clues that fill in the gaps. Then you go back to online sources to pursue the next step. Microfilm or computerized records of historic newspapers containing stories and obituaries full of family details can be found at many libraries. Cemetery records and grave stones can also be a source of valuable information about both the individual and the family. A large number of cemetery records can be found online. Don’t forget or discount the details that are also kept in the records of funeral homes.

Digging into the family roots and growing your family tree can be a very rewarding hobby. For many, the “thrill of the hunt” and discovering a hard to find tidbit that ties you to some famous ( or infamous) ancestor peaks the interest level and becomes a driving force. For others of us, the drive is more in knowing that your records are providing a marvelous family legacy that can be enjoyed and appreciated by endless generations of future family members. Whatever your motivation, genealogy can be a thrilling and stimulating hobby. Take the next step today in discovering a hidden ancestor in your family tree.