Finding Your Ancestors, Basic Genealogy Tips

Find those ancestors of yours and prove the facts and put flesh and names on those dusty old pictures. This is an exciting time for doing genealogy. More and more records are going on-line and more and more people are getting involved and helping each other.

Genealogy is a fascinating hobby, however it's easy to jump in and get information overload. Start slowly using basic genealogy methods that are shown here and obtain accurate documents and cite sources of those documents.

Start with yourself and your own family and then branch out to grandparents and their siblings. Find your and your familily's birth certificates, marriage licenses and death certificates. Start in your homes and then look in your local courthouse or archives or churches to find your basic certificates and those of your family. You can then branch out to use the internet to find ancestors on-line. To save time and money you will want to use the best genealogy web sites that are listed on this site.

Start out with a method of organization that is easy for you. A pain, I know, but you will be glad after you have found many records, documents and people that you had filed them in logical order. You could use different colored files and folders for different families.

In order to save your genealogy and family tree for your children and grandchildren and their children, you must use acid and lignin-free paper, folders and plastic report covers. Also, use acid free ink and pens.

You will meet friendly people all over the world while you search ancestors and help others find their family. You will also find cousins and other family members you never heard of and that is so exciting.

What an opportunity to travel! You will want to visit your family's native lands and their original homes in the USA. Join a group doing research in Salt Lake City at the Mormon Church Family History Center. The Mormons have been collecting records for years from all over the world and the people working there are extremely helpful and gracious.

Many excellent genealogists have written genealogy books. Use caution however, as you want to buy the ones that really pertain to your family. Many records, as for a certain state on a CD will not have all the counties included.

Many family genealogists have web sites. Be careful you have the right family and there are many errors in such sites. More blogs are being written daily by amateur genealogists.

Real genealogy is verifying all your information with proof. Send to the right churches, courthouses, societies for the original baptism, birth and marriage and death records.

Use proven research techniques and avoid the pitfalls of the inept and inexperienced who think any old person is in their family.

Cemetery research, taking photos, using scanners and computers will help with your research.

There are many useful tools to help with your search and lots of tips are included on this lens to help you narrow your search.