Getting Started in Genealogy
OK, you've decided to look into genealogy. How do you get started on your great-grandparents, when all you know is a name and a place?
Don't assume you can just search the web. While thousands of genealogists do spend their time loading files up, they usually load up their own personal histories. Most of the time, unless you're lucky, you'll need to do some old fashioned research to dig up your own family!
Find the Death Certificate!
Most of the time you don't know exactly where someone came from. Or when they were born. But you can find out where they died! Write the town/city hall where they died and ask for a copy. Usually it's $5. It'll tell you their birthplace, age, maybe parents, maybe how they died or who survived them.
Then find the marriage/birth certificates
Those have tons of information. Get them from the same place - the town or city hall. In Ireland, churches keep that kind of information. Write the church in the area you're interested in!
Now get Birth Records
Between the death certificate and marriage certificate, you should know exactly where this person was born, and what year. So write that town hall! Ask for a copy of their birth certificate. Their birth certificate will have the names and birthplaces of the person's parents - and now you have another link!
If you have trouble with the particular town, use the State Archive Records to find the information you need.
Check NARA for census and shipping records
NARA, the National Archives, has 13 sites set up across the states with census information from the states taken every ten years - with everyone who was in the household. Later census records have more information than earlier ones, but most have "country of origin". NARA also has shipping records from most ships that came in to the country.
Check your local LDS center
The Latter Day Saints have family research centers in most areas, open to the public. Find out when they're open and go in. They have tons of records, either on site or available to order.
Check web sites
This should be one of your last options, because even if you did find information on the web, you'd want to double check it with the "real source". If you do find information on the web, it'll usually just be of the nature of "where to write for information", but not the actual information itself. You usually have to get a couple of generations back before you start running into people tracing the same family line!
Main Listing Page
All Genealogy Articles
Note - Lisa Shea wrote this content for the genealogy site at BellaOnline.com - you might still find this content there as well. That's fine :) I gave permission!
| Follow @LisaSheaAuthor | Tweet |
You Can Get Free Gift Cards For Shopping, Searching and Discovering What's Online at Swagbucks.com