(This post is the second in a series about the different places you can find records. See Part I here.) In my last post in this series I discussed some of the more obvious and easy to find records that contain genealogical information. In this post we will dig a little bit deeper, looking atContinue reading “The Record Exists! Part II: Families, Collectors, and Everything Else”
Tag Archives: Family History
Researching Civil War Ancestors, Part I: Did Any of Your Ancestors Fight?
(This post is the first in a multi-part series that will outline how to research your Civil War ancestors.) No war in US history caused more American deaths than the Civil War. Hardly a family survived it without being touched by it in a profound and painful way. I have a number of ancestors whoContinue reading “Researching Civil War Ancestors, Part I: Did Any of Your Ancestors Fight?”
The Record Exists! Part I: The Internet and Repositories
(This post is the first in a multi-part series about the different places you can find records.) I teach an online genealogy class for BYU-Idaho. I grade a lot of genealogy research papers. One thing that new students often write in their research papers is the phrase, “all the records were searched, but nothing wasContinue reading “The Record Exists! Part I: The Internet and Repositories”
Healing Through Stories
I have ancestors on both sides of my family tree who fought against each other in the American Civil War. My Dad’s family was from the South, my mom’s family was from the North. My ancestors fought against each other in this gruesome, brutal war. Stories about wars often paint one side as heroes andContinue reading “Healing Through Stories”
5 Tips for Using Online Family Tree Sites
The existence of online family tree sharing sites such as Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org has made family history research easier than it has ever been before. I wrote a post earlier about how sharing your family tree online can help you find your ancestors. Online family tree sharing sites have helped many people make amazing discoveriesContinue reading “5 Tips for Using Online Family Tree Sites”
When Your Family History Connects with History
First flight, 120 feet in 12 seconds, 10:35 a.m.; Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Source: Library of Congress On this day in 1903, the Wright brothers successfully flew an airplane for the first time in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The following year, after repairing their airplane, they conducted flight tests in Huffman Prairie, just outside theirContinue reading “When Your Family History Connects with History”
Mary’s Links for August
Today is my first in a series of monthly posts that will list several interesting genealogy-related links I have found recently. I hope you enjoy! Want more genealogy links? Take a look at my Pinterest Boards.
Caroline Gile’s Scrapbook
This is my great-great grandmother, Caroline Jane Webber Gile, as a new mother with her first child, as an old widow with her grandson, and a scrapbook with poems and jokes she collected from newspapers, no doubt to help her smile and carry on in her widowhood and old age. She experienced much tragedy inContinue reading “Caroline Gile’s Scrapbook”
Organizing Research Digitally
Here’s one thing I am doing to organize my research: I used TreeSeek.com to generate two 9-generation PDF pedigree charts. One chart is from my FamilySearch Tree, the other is from my RootsMagic file, which originated from my Ancestry tree. Both trees are large with plenty of errors, so I highlighted where there are discrepanciesContinue reading “Organizing Research Digitally”
3 Ways to Preserve Old Family Artifacts
A while back I wrote a post about what you should not do with old family artifacts such as photos, documents, and heirlooms. Today I will tell you three things you can do with them instead to preserve them.