GENEALOGY RESEARCH HINTS
BELOW ARE SOME PRINTABLE FORMS TO TAKE ALONG ON RESEARCH TRIPS
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(This article is taken from Columns, a bi-monthly publication of the Wisconsin Historical Society, page 10.)
Worldwide Genealogical Resource Available at the Society
HAVE YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO FIND your Italian ancestors in Boston or your Belgian relatives in Brussels but could not afford to travel? Do you have too many ancestors in too many places? Your genealogical research just got easier. In one place, the Wisconsin Historical Society offers access to its own unparalleled holdings, the microfilm holdings of the Genealogical Society of Utah (the largest genealogical collection in the world) and digital resources provided by the library edition of Ancestry and Footnote.com. If you want one-stop research, come to the Wisconsin Historical Society. During the last 160 years, the Society built one of North America’s premier genealogical collections. The library collection consists of published and microfilmed family histories, church and cemetery records, birth, death and marriage registrations, federal and state censuses, local histories, and military information covering the United States and Canada. The Society's archives holds original land, court and military records useful to researchers studying Wisconsin families. Now researchers who visit the Society library may order microfilm from the vast collections of the Genealogical Society of Utah, the world's greatest collection of family history source materials. German church records, land records from Ireland and military records from France as well as various records from Japan, India, Africa and other countries provide the connection to our forefathers' experiences. The Genealogical Society of Utah has been microfilming original records from around the world for almost 70 years. They have filmed in more than 100 countries and amassed a wide variety of primary historical documents such as civil registration, church, probate, census, land, tax and military records. The collection also contains numerous family and local histories. With the Society’s cooperation, the GSU has been filming Wisconsin records since the 1970s.
Ten Tips for Starting Your Family History Research
Worldwide Genealogical Resource Available at the Society
HAVE YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO FIND your Italian ancestors in Boston or your Belgian relatives in Brussels but could not afford to travel? Do you have too many ancestors in too many places? Your genealogical research just got easier. In one place, the Wisconsin Historical Society offers access to its own unparalleled holdings, the microfilm holdings of the Genealogical Society of Utah (the largest genealogical collection in the world) and digital resources provided by the library edition of Ancestry and Footnote.com. If you want one-stop research, come to the Wisconsin Historical Society. During the last 160 years, the Society built one of North America’s premier genealogical collections. The library collection consists of published and microfilmed family histories, church and cemetery records, birth, death and marriage registrations, federal and state censuses, local histories, and military information covering the United States and Canada. The Society's archives holds original land, court and military records useful to researchers studying Wisconsin families. Now researchers who visit the Society library may order microfilm from the vast collections of the Genealogical Society of Utah, the world's greatest collection of family history source materials. German church records, land records from Ireland and military records from France as well as various records from Japan, India, Africa and other countries provide the connection to our forefathers' experiences. The Genealogical Society of Utah has been microfilming original records from around the world for almost 70 years. They have filmed in more than 100 countries and amassed a wide variety of primary historical documents such as civil registration, church, probate, census, land, tax and military records. The collection also contains numerous family and local histories. With the Society’s cooperation, the GSU has been filming Wisconsin records since the 1970s.
Ten Tips for Starting Your Family History Research
- Start at home. Gather any records your family has collected. Diaries, journals, letters, photos and artifacts contain information that you won't find in public records. Interview your family and record their stories.
- Sort the birth, marriage and death dates and places of each person in your family. Use family group sheets to gather information about each single family, then use pedigree charts to document more than one generation. You will find free forms on ancestry.com.
- Document all research as you go. If information came from Aunt Tilly, make a note of who she is, when and where you interviewed her and what she said. If the source is a newspaper clipping, document the paper's name, and the date and place of publication. The source of each piece of information is vital to proving its accuracy.
- Use the U.S. Federal Census (found at ancestry.com) to put together a family timeline. Taken every 10 years since 1790, the census gives a snapshot of each family living in the U.S. Most censuses will provide basic information about each person in the family.
- Find vital records for each person in the family. Birth, marriage and death records may provide links from one generation to the next by listing names of parents, birthplaces of fathers and other identifying information. This is a common record to use when trying to identify the family's location in the old country before they came to the U.S.
- Newspapers can provide more details about births, marriages and deaths as well. They tell more of a story with details that would not make it into public records.
- Genealogists have published family histories for hundreds of thousands of families. If someone has researched your family, the Society may have a copy of that family history.
- Immigration records (citizenship papers and passenger lists) can provide insights into the experiences of your immigrant ancestors.
- Military, land, church, cemetery and other records will be easier to locate once you've done the work with the other records listed above.
Ancestry Weekly Journal - Sunday, February 10, 2008 8:15 PM
http://blogs.ancestry.com/circle/?p=2263&sssdmh=dm13.159415&o_iid=23560&o_lid=23560
Genealogy from A to Z by Michael John Neill
Accuracy. Are your records as accurate as possible? Have transcriptions been made correctly and in an honest effort to copy the original precisely?
Bibliographies. Have you looked at bibliographies and finding aids frequently shown on state archives websites and genealogical research libraries? Materials listed in these guides may assist you in your research. Bibliographies in historical or genealogical journal articles may also reference materials of which you were not aware.
Cited. Are you sources cited in such a way that you or someone else could easily find the record again if necessary? If not, consider expanding your source detail.
Documented. Do you have at least one source for each event or name in your database? Although one source does not imply accuracy and multiple independent sources are preferable, one is a start.
Errors. Remember that any record can contain errors. Never assume that one record is 100 percent accurate. Gather as many records as possible before drawing conclusions.
Faith. Have you searched for records of your ancestor's faith? Records of church membership may provide insights into your ancestor's life and family.
Google. Have you Googled all your relatives? I searched for a relative that died twenty years ago, entering in his name and last county of residence in the search box. I got several hits, including a post made by a granddaughter.
Home. Did your ancestor go back "home" to marry, have a child, die, or to be buried? Do not assume your ancestor never made any trips back home. In some cases significant events might have taken place "at home" after the ancestor had left that required his return.
Ignorance. We're all ignorant in some area or another. Being ignorant simply means you do not know something, and not knowing something can lead to misinterpretation. Remedy your ignorance. Attend a conference, read a journal article, read a book, ask questions, but do not let ignorance create additional research "blocks."
Journals. Have you searched genealogical society journals and quarterlies for information on your ancestors? Some have been published in online form, some are indexed in PERSI (Periodical Source Index), and some are unindexed, but these print materials may contain just the clue you are looking for.
Kith and kin. Have you researched all the kith and kin of your ancestor? Unless he was a Hoover, your ancestor did not travel in a vacuum and there's a good chance his neighbors and associates are people he knew back "home" or are related in some fashion.
Lifetime. Have you researched your ancestor for her entire lifetime? The gaps that result from an incomplete picture may be hindering your research.
Memorization. Are you using "facts" or concepts in your research that you have "memorized?" Are you certain you have remembered them correctly? Trusting your own memory should be done sparingly.
New. Have you kept up with new indexes and databases? Many times "new" databases or websites provide easier access to records that previously have been difficult to utilize.
Organization. Have you organized all your information in a way that makes sense and that others can understand? For some of us this may occupy the rest of our "genealogical lives."
Preface. Do you read the preface to published and online materials you use? Prefatory material should indicate if there were records gaps, omissions, or difficulties, or other issues encountered when compiling the book or database. Not reading the preface could create problems where none exist.
Quiet time. Do you give yourself "quiet time?" The ability to solve some problems or to be inspired can be enhanced when there are no distractions. If your research is done with constant interruptions you may be missing important clues.
Robotic. Has your research become robotic? If you are approaching each ancestral problem with the same process and the same set of assumptions, you may be making a mistake. Determine how this ancestor is different from others you have researched and change your approach accordingly.
Soundex. Do you know what alternate names are searched when a Soundex search option is chosen for your last name? If not, you may not be searching for all the names you think you are.
Terminology. Do you know what those "legal" words mean in a deed or a will? An incorrect interpretation could lead to wasted research time or inaccurate conclusions.
URL. When you print or save genealogical information from a website are you also printing or saving the URL (Uniform Resource Locator--the website address)? If you don't, you may waste valuable time re-locating the information online should that be necessary.
Variants. Have you considered variant spellings for first and last names? Variants can easily result from handwriting issues and how your ancestor pronounced his name.
Why? Are you asking "why?" The reason your ancestor moved, the reason he sold his farm when he did, the reason a child is left out of a will--all may have genealogical significance. There are times when you may really never know "why" but just asking the question may get you to thinking.
X-ray. Have you x-rayed your genealogical documents? Not literally, but rather have you looked beyond the surface of each record to see what less-than-obvious clues are included?
You. Have you written your life story? Don't leave behind piles of information on long dead ancestors and precious little on yourself.
Z. There is no Z entry on this list. It is done to make the point that not only does not every letter get a word, but not every question can be answered. Sometimes we all need to remember that.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Michael John Neill is a genealogical writer and speaker who has been researching his or his children's genealogy for more than twenty years. A math instructor in his "other life," Michael taught at the former Genealogical Institute of Mid-America and has served on the FGS Board. He also lectures on a variety of genealogical topics and gives seminars across the country. He maintains a personal website at www.rootdig.com
http://blogs.ancestry.com/circle/?p=2263&sssdmh=dm13.159415&o_iid=23560&o_lid=23560
Genealogy from A to Z by Michael John Neill
Accuracy. Are your records as accurate as possible? Have transcriptions been made correctly and in an honest effort to copy the original precisely?
Bibliographies. Have you looked at bibliographies and finding aids frequently shown on state archives websites and genealogical research libraries? Materials listed in these guides may assist you in your research. Bibliographies in historical or genealogical journal articles may also reference materials of which you were not aware.
Cited. Are you sources cited in such a way that you or someone else could easily find the record again if necessary? If not, consider expanding your source detail.
Documented. Do you have at least one source for each event or name in your database? Although one source does not imply accuracy and multiple independent sources are preferable, one is a start.
Errors. Remember that any record can contain errors. Never assume that one record is 100 percent accurate. Gather as many records as possible before drawing conclusions.
Faith. Have you searched for records of your ancestor's faith? Records of church membership may provide insights into your ancestor's life and family.
Google. Have you Googled all your relatives? I searched for a relative that died twenty years ago, entering in his name and last county of residence in the search box. I got several hits, including a post made by a granddaughter.
Home. Did your ancestor go back "home" to marry, have a child, die, or to be buried? Do not assume your ancestor never made any trips back home. In some cases significant events might have taken place "at home" after the ancestor had left that required his return.
Ignorance. We're all ignorant in some area or another. Being ignorant simply means you do not know something, and not knowing something can lead to misinterpretation. Remedy your ignorance. Attend a conference, read a journal article, read a book, ask questions, but do not let ignorance create additional research "blocks."
Journals. Have you searched genealogical society journals and quarterlies for information on your ancestors? Some have been published in online form, some are indexed in PERSI (Periodical Source Index), and some are unindexed, but these print materials may contain just the clue you are looking for.
Kith and kin. Have you researched all the kith and kin of your ancestor? Unless he was a Hoover, your ancestor did not travel in a vacuum and there's a good chance his neighbors and associates are people he knew back "home" or are related in some fashion.
Lifetime. Have you researched your ancestor for her entire lifetime? The gaps that result from an incomplete picture may be hindering your research.
Memorization. Are you using "facts" or concepts in your research that you have "memorized?" Are you certain you have remembered them correctly? Trusting your own memory should be done sparingly.
New. Have you kept up with new indexes and databases? Many times "new" databases or websites provide easier access to records that previously have been difficult to utilize.
Organization. Have you organized all your information in a way that makes sense and that others can understand? For some of us this may occupy the rest of our "genealogical lives."
Preface. Do you read the preface to published and online materials you use? Prefatory material should indicate if there were records gaps, omissions, or difficulties, or other issues encountered when compiling the book or database. Not reading the preface could create problems where none exist.
Quiet time. Do you give yourself "quiet time?" The ability to solve some problems or to be inspired can be enhanced when there are no distractions. If your research is done with constant interruptions you may be missing important clues.
Robotic. Has your research become robotic? If you are approaching each ancestral problem with the same process and the same set of assumptions, you may be making a mistake. Determine how this ancestor is different from others you have researched and change your approach accordingly.
Soundex. Do you know what alternate names are searched when a Soundex search option is chosen for your last name? If not, you may not be searching for all the names you think you are.
Terminology. Do you know what those "legal" words mean in a deed or a will? An incorrect interpretation could lead to wasted research time or inaccurate conclusions.
URL. When you print or save genealogical information from a website are you also printing or saving the URL (Uniform Resource Locator--the website address)? If you don't, you may waste valuable time re-locating the information online should that be necessary.
Variants. Have you considered variant spellings for first and last names? Variants can easily result from handwriting issues and how your ancestor pronounced his name.
Why? Are you asking "why?" The reason your ancestor moved, the reason he sold his farm when he did, the reason a child is left out of a will--all may have genealogical significance. There are times when you may really never know "why" but just asking the question may get you to thinking.
X-ray. Have you x-rayed your genealogical documents? Not literally, but rather have you looked beyond the surface of each record to see what less-than-obvious clues are included?
You. Have you written your life story? Don't leave behind piles of information on long dead ancestors and precious little on yourself.
Z. There is no Z entry on this list. It is done to make the point that not only does not every letter get a word, but not every question can be answered. Sometimes we all need to remember that.
___________________________________________________________________________________
Michael John Neill is a genealogical writer and speaker who has been researching his or his children's genealogy for more than twenty years. A math instructor in his "other life," Michael taught at the former Genealogical Institute of Mid-America and has served on the FGS Board. He also lectures on a variety of genealogical topics and gives seminars across the country. He maintains a personal website at www.rootdig.com
GERMAN RESEARCH LINKS
CLICK each link to open the website.
Germany Civil Registration
Meyers Orts Gazetteers (info) This is the Gazetteer: https://www.meyersgaz.org/ Ancestry Magazine - available on Google Books Ancestry.com Card Catalog |
German Archives on the Internet Waldmünchen, Germany website - English translation In German: http://www.waldmuenchen.de/de/buergerservice.html#tourismusbuero |
The following information is taken from genealogy.com website: http://www.genealogy.com/articles/research/16_cousn.html
What is a First Cousin, Twice Removed?
If someone walked up to you and said "Howdy, I'm your third cousin, twice removed," would you have any idea what they meant? Most people have a good understanding of basic relationship words such as "mother," "father," "aunt," "uncle," "brother," and "sister." But what about the relationship terms that we don't use in everyday speech? Terms like "second cousin" and "first cousin, once removed"? We don't tend to speak about our relationships in such exact terms ("cousin" seems good enough when you are introducing one person to another), so most of us aren't familiar with what these words mean.
Relationship Terms
Sometimes, especially when working on your family history, it's handy to know how to describe your family relationships more exactly. The definitions below should help you out.
Cousin (a.k.a "first cousin")
Your first cousins are the people in your family who have two of the same grandparents as you. In other words, they are the children of your aunts and uncles.
Second Cousin
Your second cousins are the people in your family who have the same great-grandparents as you, but not the same grandparents.
Third, Fourth, and Fifth Cousins
Your third cousins have the same great-great-grandparents, fourth cousins have the same great-great-great-grandparents, and so on.
Removed
When the word "removed" is used to describe a relationship, it indicates that the two people are from different generations. You and your first cousins are in the same generation (two generations younger than your grandparents), so the word "removed" is not used to describe your relationship.
The words "once removed" mean that there is a difference of one generation. For example, your mother's first cousin is your first cousin, once removed. This is because your mother's first cousin is one generation younger than your grandparents and you are two generations younger than your grandparents. This one-generation difference equals "once removed."
Twice removed means that there is a two-generation difference. You are two generations younger than a first cousin of your grandmother, so you and your grandmother's first cousin are first cousins, twice removed.
Relationship Charts Simplify Everything
Now that you have an idea of what these different words mean, take a look at the chart below. It's called a relationship chart, and it can help you figure out how different people in your family are related. It's much simpler than it looks, just follow the instructions.
Instructions for Using a Relationship Chart
What is a First Cousin, Twice Removed?
If someone walked up to you and said "Howdy, I'm your third cousin, twice removed," would you have any idea what they meant? Most people have a good understanding of basic relationship words such as "mother," "father," "aunt," "uncle," "brother," and "sister." But what about the relationship terms that we don't use in everyday speech? Terms like "second cousin" and "first cousin, once removed"? We don't tend to speak about our relationships in such exact terms ("cousin" seems good enough when you are introducing one person to another), so most of us aren't familiar with what these words mean.
Relationship Terms
Sometimes, especially when working on your family history, it's handy to know how to describe your family relationships more exactly. The definitions below should help you out.
Cousin (a.k.a "first cousin")
Your first cousins are the people in your family who have two of the same grandparents as you. In other words, they are the children of your aunts and uncles.
Second Cousin
Your second cousins are the people in your family who have the same great-grandparents as you, but not the same grandparents.
Third, Fourth, and Fifth Cousins
Your third cousins have the same great-great-grandparents, fourth cousins have the same great-great-great-grandparents, and so on.
Removed
When the word "removed" is used to describe a relationship, it indicates that the two people are from different generations. You and your first cousins are in the same generation (two generations younger than your grandparents), so the word "removed" is not used to describe your relationship.
The words "once removed" mean that there is a difference of one generation. For example, your mother's first cousin is your first cousin, once removed. This is because your mother's first cousin is one generation younger than your grandparents and you are two generations younger than your grandparents. This one-generation difference equals "once removed."
Twice removed means that there is a two-generation difference. You are two generations younger than a first cousin of your grandmother, so you and your grandmother's first cousin are first cousins, twice removed.
Relationship Charts Simplify Everything
Now that you have an idea of what these different words mean, take a look at the chart below. It's called a relationship chart, and it can help you figure out how different people in your family are related. It's much simpler than it looks, just follow the instructions.
Instructions for Using a Relationship Chart
- Pick two people in your family and figure out which ancestor they have in common. For example, if you chose yourself and a cousin, you would have a grandparent in common.
- Look at the top row of the chart and find the first person's relationship to the common ancestor.
- Look at the far left column of the chart and find the second person's relationship to the common ancestor.
- Determine where the row and column containing those two relationships meet.