National Genealogical Society

Have you ever scaled a tree and sat to enjoy the view? Well, get ready to climb your family tree for a fascinating view of your family history. To make it easy for your family and descendents to climb … Read More

Have you ever scaled a tree and sat enjoying the view? Well, get ready to climb your family tree for a fascinating view of your family history. To make it easy for your family and descendents to climb the tree someday, it's important to carefully record your findings in a permanent place for everyone to enjoy long after you have become their ancestor. Linking generations, setting each in its unique historical perspective, brings them to life again. Hide

Begin at home, start with yourself. Personal knowledge can form the first limbs of your family tree. First, make a simple chart or list beginning with … Read More

Begin at home, start with yourself. Personal knowledge can form the first limbs of your family tree. First, make a simple chart or list beginning with you, your parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. Ask family members for birth, marriage, and death certificates and other documents that might provide names, dates, and locations. Then look at your family’s religious records, old letters, photographs, and memorabilia. Keep a notebook with records, names and dates you find.  Note sources carefully, you will need to find them again when you want to double check information as your tree develops. Label everything as you go.  Now you are well on your way to forming the branches of your family tree—and it will begin to bud.

Contact family members to ask questions about their lives and those of other relatives. Where did they live? What part of the country? What kind of dwelling? Did they move around while growing up? When were their relatives born; when did they die? Take along some of the old photos and attic treasures to jog their memories. And be sure to ask if you may see their old family records, letters, and memorabilia that might help you expand your search.

Listen to family stories and make notes. Relatives often have different versions of the same story since each person remembers an event in his or her unique way, but these differences make it interesting! Share what you already know with them. Use a tape recorder or video camera if your relative feels comfortable with it, and make your initial visits short with someone you are just getting to know. Hide

After collecting family information, it is important to record and source it correctly on forms referred to as family group sheets and ancestor charts. Read More

After collecting family information, it is important to record and source it correctly on forms referred to as family group sheets and ancestor charts.

Be sure to indicate a source for each fact and then file the information in an organized way so that you can locate each individual in your ever-expanding collection. Include old photos (of people, homes, and cemetery markers) and record stories, both those you heard as a child and those your family members tell you. Hide

Before you begin your climb, you should have the right gear for the trip. Be smart and learn the basics of genealogical methodology. Look for "how-to" books … Read More

Before you begin your climb, you should have the right gear for the trip. Be smart and learn the basics of genealogical methodology. Purchase "how-to" books, such as the NGS publication, Paths to Your Past, which explains research techniques and sources. Or watch our free videos like Getting Started and How I Became a Genealogist to help you get started. Hide

Pick an individual about whom your information is incomplete. For example, if you are missing information about one of your four grandparentss … Read More

Pick an individual about whom your information is incomplete. For example, if you are missing information about one of your four grandparents, start with her or him. Try to obtain death, marriage, and birth records, if available. Always work backward from the known to the unknown. Focus on one research goal at a time. Hide

Your first step should be to obtain vital records, if they exist, because these give more exact information and often contain the names of the person’s parents and … Read More

Your first step should be to obtain vital records, if they exist, because these give more exact information and often contain the names of the person’s parents and their birthplaces too. Vital records include birth, marriage, death, and divorce records. Most US states have kept modern vital records since the beginning of the twentieth century. Publications such as The International Vital Records Handbook and the booklet titled Where to Write for Vital Records, or a website for the state archives in a particular state provide addresses and other helpful information.

Other free or subscription websites may have actual vital records of interest to you: start your search with the free site listing of vital records at https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Special:Search?fulltext=true&search=Vital+records&searchbutton=Search or just use their search box at familyseach.org. Subscription sources of vital records can be searched at ancestry.com, and myheritage.com. Hide

Another great tool to find your ancestors and a basic foundation for genealogical research involves searching all available federal census records to … Read More

Another great tool to find your ancestors, and a basic foundation for genealogical research, involves searching all available federal census records to glean personal facts about individuals and to assemble family groups. Federal census records and indexes for 1790–1940 are available online at Ancestry.com with a paid subscription (currently the 1940 census is free) and many local libraries subscribe to this service for their patrons. FamilySearch has digitized many vital records, state and Federal censuses, including the newly released 1940 census, and access is free from your computer https://familysearch.org/. Full census records are also available online through Heritage Quest at libraries, academic institutions, and related organizations across the United States. Many even offer free access to these census records to patrons logging in from their own home computers, so check with your local library. Census records can also be viewed on microfilm or computers at the National Archives and its branches, through a local Family History Center, at many large public libraries, and through interlibrary loan. Hide

Having collected the basics about your ancestors, you are now ready to visit or contact the courthouse in the locality where your ancestor(s) lived. Read More

Having collected the basics about your ancestors, you are now ready to visit or contact the courthouse in the locality where your ancestor(s) lived. At the courthouse itself, in the town or county archives, or in a local library, you may discover wills, deeds, and other records. The Handybook for Genealogists and Red Book: American State, County & Town Sources provide addresses. If you can’t go to the locations in person, search the Internet; many town or county offices have digitized at least some of their records and made them available online. Another option is to borrow microfilm of the courthouse records at a local Family History Center (see below). Hide

Libraries or genealogical and historical societies with genealogical collections are an important way to develop your family history, particularly once … Read More

Libraries or genealogical and historical societies with genealogical collections are an important way to develop your family history, particularly once you have traced your ancestors back four generations or more. Such collections include compiled family histories and genealogies, local histories, and reference materials, which can be extremely helpful in your research. In addition, these repositories may have unique collections of unpublished materials such as Bible records and surname files. Hide

If you can’t get to a genealogy collection or your library doesn’t have the book you want, ask if interlibrary loan is available. The NGS Book Loan Collection … Read More

If you can’t get to a genealogy collection or your library doesn’t have the book you want, ask if interlibrary loan is available. The NGS Book Loan Collection, held by the St. Louis (Missouri) County Library, offers interlibrary loan for sending books in the collection to your local library for your use. Learn more at http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/cs/library_book_loan_collection. Hide

FamilySearch has microfilmed vital, land, probate, tax, and military records; state and federal censuses; family and local histories; and numerous special … Read More

FamilySearch has microfilmed vital, land, probate, tax, and military records; state and federal censuses; family and local histories; and numerous special collections, all housed in the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. These vast holdings are available in microfilm form for loan through the more than 4,500 Family History Centers located throughout the world. Find a center near you at https://library.familysearch.org/locations. FamilySearch has also been busy digitizing this vast microfilm collection and millions of records for families are already online at http://www.familysearch.org. Hide

Newspapers are another excellent resource for finding information about family. Read More

Newspapers are another excellent resource for finding information about family. They are particularly important for obituaries that can provide not only a date and place of death for a family member or ancestor, but may also provide a date and place of birth, parents names, maiden names, siblings, children and their spouses plus other relatives. Newspapers, whether local to a community, or regional or national in scope, contain all kinds of information about ancestors: birth, deaths, and marriages; real estate transactions; building permits; political candidacy and offices won; criminal activities; tragedies and accidents; travel abroad; family reunions and parties; sports participation; and more.

The Library of Congress created the Chronicling America website to provide access to information about historic newspapers. It offers a U.S. Newspaper Directory, 1690-Present (http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/search/titles/) which can be used to identify newspapers that covered the area your ancestors lived in. Parts of the collection from 1836-1922 have already been digitized and are fully searchable at http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/. Another important newspaper resource is ProQuest Historical Newspapers ™ a collection that covers 1764-2010 but is only available through libraries and universities. This collection includes American Jewish, Black American, International, and Civil War Era newspapers (http://www.proquest.com/en-US/catalogs/databases/detail/pq-hist-news.shtml). A subscription website that offers a good selection of newspapers and obituaries is GenealogyBank at http://www.genealogybank.com. Hide

At this point you have been working mostly on your own. You’ll probably benefit greatly from taking a genealogy class. If you prefer to work at home, Read More

At this point you have been working mostly on your own. You’ll probably benefit greatly from taking a genealogy class. If you prefer to work at home, the NGS online Family History Skills course—free to NGS members—is a good starting point.

To continue your learning experience beyond that of a beginner, consider taking one of the NGS online courses or the in-depth NGS American Genealogy: A Home Study Course on CD ROM. For details go to http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/cs/educational_courses.

Check back with us on this page often. We will be adding new content and tips to help you learn more and be even more successful searching for ancestors and creating a solid family history. Soon your family tree will be a mighty oak. Hide