Grab A Pen! You Don't Want To Miss This

Histories and journals of my ancestors are some of my most treasured possessions. Here are tips to get you started finding histories and journals-

• Go about 2-4 generations out in your tree
• Look at their profiles on FamilySearch- If a history/journal has been uploaded it will be under Sources or Memories. 
• Ask relatives for them - scan and upload to FamilySearch. (Example: my father has the histories of his parents)
• Google search using the name and adding life history and/or journal (Ex: Ryan Archibald life history)

Websites to start your search-

• FamilySearch Catalogue and Books 
• dupinternational.org
• sonsofutahpioneers.org
• history.lds.org

Put Your Family Tree in Your Pocket

Thats right, grab your phone and download the Family Tree App and the Memories App too.

• Update information on an ancestor and it automatically syncs to FamilySearch.com
• Take a picture of a grave with your phone and upload it to your ancestors profile
• The Memories App allows you to record the stories your living ancestors tell you - upload the recording to FamilySearch so you have it forever.
  

One Strategy You and I Overlook

A story to begin-

"I have searched everywhere for this ancestor and can't even get a hint of who he/she is! None of my past strategies have worked; I am starting to think they never existed!"

I feel your pain- I've been through this scenario far more than I'd like to admit but I have hope for you. My strategy for you is to alter the spelling of the last name.

Tips on how to change the spelling to increase the chances of finding them-

• Examine their FamilySearch Profile- their profile on FamilySearch may provide multiple insights.
• Research the history of the name- yes, pull up google and type in the last name your looking for and add "name" or "history of _" to it. Ex: "Parker name"

Changing the spelling of a last name is very helpful for the following reasons- 

• The ancestor could have changed the spelling (who knows why?)
• If they immigrated, the immigration officer may have spelled it differently accidentally. 

                           

A Last Resort

• Ancestry.com has nothing.
• FamilySearch has nothing.
• The people at the Family History Library have no idea. 
• Using Google is overwhelming

Do you give up looking for this ancestor?

No sir! If you find yourself stuck in the details, it's time to back up and look at the big picture. Some questions to ask-

• What was happening politically in this country?
• Birth and Death- are both events in the same country? If not, why?
• Do they show up in documentation in other members of the family?

Hopefully this will help challenge and change your thinking.

Example- 

• Your ancestor was born in Ireland and dies in U.S.
• You believe they must've immigrated around 1850 because, they don't show up in other documentation of their family who died in Ireland.
• Looking at the big picture- In 1850 Ireland was in the potato famine, on of the largest in history.
• You might ask- What was the "last straw" to make them leave? 

Never Forget Anything Again

• Under the Memories Tab on FamilySearch click Photos
• Shows every picture you've ever uploaded.
• Click the green plus sign to upload more photos 
• Once you've uploaded photos you can "tag" your ancestors in the photo and it will be linked to their profile

• Photos bring your ancestors "to life" and makes family history research a lot more enjoyable when you can put a face to a name. 
• Now is a good time to start work on your own history- your FamilySearch profile is completely private. Upload pictures, stories, documents, anything you want! No one will see your profile until you die. Ask yourself, "What do I want my family to know about me when i am gone?"

"I Read About it in the Newspaper Today."

Historically, newspapers included more than they do now. If someone had a party, you could expect an article about it in the paper- who hosted, the purpose of the party, who attended, what people wore.

Some newspapers were similar to a gossip column- who got a new job, who got married, who had a baby... you get the idea.

Helpful websites to get you started-

• ancestry.com
• utahdigitalnewspapers.org
• ProQuest Obituary Database (accessible through a Family History Library)
• 19th Century British Paper Archives (accessible through a Family History Library)

Feel free to comment on any of my posts- if you have questions, if I wasn't clear on something, if you're struggling with research, or if you had success on a certain strategy. 

It's What Brings Us Together

Marriage Records!

These can be a gold mine of information including- the name of the spouse, parents of the bride, and parents of the groom.

Websites that may be useful for U.S. marriages -

• abish.byui.edu/specialcollections
• utahdigitalnewspapers.org
• Older newspaper articles often give detailed information about the wedding (i.e. what the bride wore, who attended) 

If you have the time to go to a Family History Library/Center you can get access to more newspaper archives. 

Descendancy Research Will Never Be The Same

• Go to www.puzilla.org
• Sign in using FamilySearch login
• Shows up to 12 generations ancestors
• Red Circle = Female
• Blue Square = Male

• Hover over an ancestor - a box should appear with their information
• Click on the symbol to keep the box - click descendents
• It may take a few minutes to load, seeing the descendants all at once shows you were you need to focus your research.
• Sliders on the left side will help sort through the descendants. 

One Record Will Help You Find...

When searching for an ancestor not already on your family tree, start with the most recent event and
work backwards-

1. Death
2. Marriage
3. Birth

When finding a birth record, it will be easier to look for a Christening record first. It sounds odd I know; nevertheless, the christening record will often include a birth date on it. Churches have a more standardized process of recording new borns so it will be easier to find. 

In addition to christening records, you may want to look for midwife journals and family bibles- these may be online, a relative may have it, or it may be at a Family History Library.

Get the Tape Recorder!

• Maintain a list of relatives and their contact information (or know where to find their contact information)
• Be aware of ages and health conditions
• Arrange a time for you to visit them.
• Write a list of questions you might want to discuss with them.
• During the interview- follow the conversation. If you spend all your time on one or two questions don't rush your relative to get to the other questions.
• Prepare to record, copy, or photograph important discoveries.
• Focus on details
• Don't over-stay your welcome.
• Express gratitude appropriately

Obtaining Citizenship is Difficult but, Finding the Records are not

Naturalization is the process by which U.S. citizenship is granted to a foreign citizen or national after he or she fulfills the requirements established by Congress in the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Before 1906, naturalization records contained-

• Port of Arrival
• Date of Arrival
• Age
• Residence
• Last Foreign Address 

1906 - present, records now also include-

• Birth date & place of immigrant
• Spouse & Children
• Birth date & places for spouse and children
• Vessel of arrival
• Occupation
• Physical Description
• Marriage Date
• Marital Status

Websites to help you find naturalization records-

1. uscis.gov
2. germanroots.com/natualization.html
3. familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/United_States_Naturalization_and_Citizenship

Where Do You Come From?

Go back in your family tree and identify each ancestor who is born in a foreign country and dies in America (refer to Strategy 5). To help find the record you will need to find the last event in the foreign country and the first event in America.

Once you've done that, use the sites below to begin searching immigration records-

• castlegarden.org
• ellisislandrecords.org
• immigrantships.net 
• immigrants.byu.edu
• mormonmigration.lib.byu.edu
• mayflowerhistory.com

Have fun with it! 

Track Down Their Whereabouts

Maps are extremely useful in that you can track where your ancestors lived. Whether they immigrated to the U.S. or just moved to different parts of one country- tracking where your ancestors have been may help you find stories about them along the way.

• Login to Google (if you don't have a Google account -> create one)
• Google Search - My Maps (should be the first link to show up)
• Click Create New Map!
• Now- go track down where your ancestors have been (census records are helpful as well)

Now for a little fun-

• Go to RootsMapper.com
• Sign in using your LDS Account
• On the new screen that that emerges, the green box on the left side lets you load upto 10 generations.
• Takes a moment to load.

What this site does is plot each ancestor and each generation on a world map to show the massive movement your family took to get you where you are today.

Another site is epodunk.com - this shows the ownership of land. This site is very helpful when plotting points on your map. 

Bonus Strategy! Ancestry.com

This was not apart of my original strategies but it's too important to wait.

FamilySearch has made it so you can have free access to Ancestry.com, here is how you do it-

1. Sign into FamilySearch 
2. Click "Get Help" in the upper right hand corner of the screen
3. Click "Help Center" from the drop down menu
4. Under "Select a Help Topic" click "Partners"
5. Open the "Our Partners" menu
6. Click the Ancestry link
7. Click the red button that says Create Your Free Ancestry Account
8. Click the red button again (on the new screen that comes up)
9. Follow the steps to create your account! 

You have free access to the millions of records on Ancestry. If at any point ancestry asks you for money go to the help center for either Ancestry or FamilySearch. 

Browsing a Cemetery... Online!

Burial Records will tell you what Cemetery they were buried in and if they've got a headstone you could find out -

1. Last Name
2. Spouse's Name
3. Birth and Death Date
4. Birth and Death Date of Spouse
5. Marriage information 

Start Searching at the end of someone's life. A few websites to get you started include-

1. www.findagrave.com
2. www.billiongraves.com (set up a free account and you can request a picture be taken of a certain headstone. 

Using a Family Group Sheet

Click the link below and print off a Family Group Sheet


https://familysearch.org/sites/all/themes/frankie/documents/Step-2-Family-Group-Record.pdf

• Use it to log all documentation about a family
• Can you locate a document for each event line on the sheet?
• This will help remind you of the different documentation available. 

Merging Duplicates but Not Twins

Merging duplicates is important because often researchers like us, will create a new profile for an ancestor without looking to see if this ancestor is already on FamilySearch.

On each ancestor profile you'll find a link (right side) called "possible duplicates"- you'll click that link and choose review and merge on one (if any) people are listed. A screen will come up putting the two profiles side by side (the one you have on your Tree and the potential duplicate you clicked).

A few steps to get you started-

• What is on the left side will stay
• Evaluate each item and either replace, reject or ignore
• Check for sources that may need to be moved also
• If you click "not a match" the potential duplicate will not be associated with your ancestor anymore. (note- no one else can undo this)
• The merge can be undone if needed (in case of accidental merging)
• If the only difference is the first name, they might be twins. Search FamilySearch  and Ancestry.com using both names to make sure.

This is a slow process and some ancestors might have 30+ duplicates. Take your time. 

Buckle Up- We're Covering 40 Years

• Choose an ancestor
• Search for that ancestor in 4 consecutive census records
• Log the family information on a 40 year census form (found at familysearch.org)
• Make sure all information is on your Family Tree and all temple ordinances are complete. 

See Your Family like Never Before!

1. Choose the "Fan Chart" view on the black bar (left side).
2. On the right side of the screen hit Print.
3. You should end up with something like what is pictured above. 

Today's strategy is meant to help you 'get to know' your ancestors already on FamilySearch. The chart pictured above is what you can print from FamilySearch - a 9 Generation Fan chart is available at www.treeseek.com

Using your fan chart you can track events using symbols, here's a few examples-

• Ancestors that have all their temple work done (use a check mark)
• Which Ancestor immigrated from a foreign country (draw a ship anchor)
• Which Ancestor first joined the church (draw a star)

These are only examples of what you can track- come up with your own symbols too!

This is a great place to start if you still are not sure how to begin doing Family History work.

"I Never Thought of That!"

1. Log onto FamilySearch
2. At the top of the screen click 'Search'
3. From the drop down menu click 'Records'
4. Search all public records

See how many types of records you can find- see one you either haven't used or even heard of? Try it out and see what you find.

When I first started out I limited my search to birth and death certificates but you've got so much more to work with!

A Tool in FamilySearch that will Change Everything

Using the Descendancy View of your Family Tree-

• Click on the "Record Hints" icon 
• Click one of the records
• Using the "law of witnesses" determine if the record matches
• Attach record to each member of the family on the record. 
• Do it again 

Law of Witnesses - Was anyone else present at the event?

*If only one name is on the record use the dates and locations to determine if record is a match. 

Do not rush this - make sure its a match! 

Never Forget Where You've Been

Record every objective that comes to mind and hold yourself accountable to them.

An objective is what ever bit of information you are trying to find. This can range from finding a  birth certificate, census record, family picture, to a military registration card.

The key here is to keep a record of every success, every failure, and every step you take so you don't repeat what you've done in the past.

They Key to Success in Family History

Write everything you do, think, wonder, and learn as you research for your family.

Grab a journal, a notebook, or a paper and keep track of everything you do.

Purpose

Hello! My purpose in creating this blog is to share research strategies I have found during my time doing Family History (aka genealogy) work.

I've got 21 total strategies in my notes. That being said, if you have a strategy you'd like to share you can send it to me at ryan.archie22@gmail.com with Family History in the subject line. All strategies I receive will be posted on the blog.