• Blog
  • About Are You My Cousin?
  • The “Everything” Page
  • Upcoming Events
  • Speaking
  • Contact Me
Menu
  • Blog
  • About Are You My Cousin?
  • The “Everything” Page
  • Upcoming Events
  • Speaking
  • Contact Me
  • How to research and find an illegitimate ancestor is challenging for the most seasoned genealogy researcher. Explore these tips and types of records for clues to your ancestor's parents.
    Female Ancestors,  Genealogy Research,  How To Trace Your Family Tree

    How To Research Your Illegitimate Ancestors

    / 30 Comments

    Researching illegitimate ancestors is challenging for genealogy researchers. Explore these tips and resources for clues to your ancestor’s parents. Are you researching an ancestor born out of wedlock? Do you suspect your ancestor was illegitimate? If your answer to either question is “Yes”, then you have encountered the difficulties in researching an illegitimate ancestor. Is it possible to determine the parents of an illegitimate child?  Sometimes. Sometimes you know one parent (typically the mother, but not always). Sometimes you only find circumstantial evidence pointing to the potential parents. The challenge is finding which records hold the clues you need. What Types of Genealogy Records Should You Pursue When Researching an…

    Read More

    You May Also Like

    Looking for a Mother's Day gift for the family historian? Check out the Mother's Day Genealogy Gift Guide! #Mother'sDay #giftguide #genealogy

    Mother’s Day Gift Guide – Genealogy Style!

    April 12, 2017
    Tracking down our female ancestors requires thinking "outside the box". Always focusing on her may not yield our desired results. By taking our focus off of our female ancestor, we can be sure of exhausting all possibilities of finding her in the records.

    How To Track Females in the Family Tree Using the Children’s Records

    February 13, 2017
    1920's photo of women in history

    Women In History – Overcoming the “Just a Housewife” Myth

    August 31, 2020
  • Looking for a Mother's Day gift for the family historian? Check out the Mother's Day Genealogy Gift Guide! #Mother'sDay #giftguide #genealogy
    Female Ancestors,  Genealogy Resources

    Mother’s Day Gift Guide – Genealogy Style!

    / 3 Comments

    Mother’s Day is coming soon!  I don’t know about you, but I am looking forward to honoring all the women in my family. But let’s get down to the burning question….. What do you get the mother who has everything? I am here to help. Your Mother’s Day Gift Guide – Genealogy Style! 1. Ancestors – Maybe you cannot literally give your mother an ancestor(s), but you can give her the tools to find them. A subscription to a genealogy focused database could be just thing.  Suggestions include Ancestry.com , FindMyPast, MyHeritage, GenealogyBank or Fold3. 2. DNA Testing – Yes, your Mother’s Day present is an opportunity to spit! Order your mother (or…

    Read More

    You May Also Like

    Title photo with early 1900's bride and groom

    Can’t Find A Marriage Record For Your Ancestor? 3 Reasons Why!

    June 8, 2020
    1920's photo of women in history

    Women In History – Overcoming the “Just a Housewife” Myth

    August 31, 2020
    Using pre-1850 records to trace your ancestors as children is tough. Resources for finding evidence of your ancestor's minor children!

    Using Pre-1850 Records To Find An Ancestor’s Children

    December 3, 2018
  • Tracking down our female ancestors requires thinking "outside the box". Always focusing on her may not yield our desired results. By taking our focus off of our female ancestor, we can be sure of exhausting all possibilities of finding her in the records.
    Female Ancestors,  Genealogy Research,  How To Trace Your Family Tree

    How To Track Females in the Family Tree Using the Children’s Records

    / 5 Comments

    Explore an unusual genealogy research strategy to find the females in the family tree. Elusive female ancestors may be hiding in their children’s records. Tracking down our female ancestors requires thinking “outside the box”.  Always focusing on her may not yield our desired results.  By taking our focus off of our female ancestor and shifting that focus to other family members and even friends in her life, we can be sure of exhausting all possibilities of finding her in the records. Today, we are going to focus on your elusive female ancestor’s children. Uh oh….I can see that questioning look on your face! Grab a cup of coffee or tea…

    Read More

    You May Also Like

    Using pre-1850 records to trace your ancestors as children is tough. Resources for finding evidence of your ancestor's minor children!

    Using Pre-1850 Records To Find An Ancestor’s Children

    December 3, 2018
    1910's photo of young woman

    Women In the Family Tree – Everything You Need To Know

    September 21, 2020
    Trouble tracing your female ancestors? Do not overlook them in those early pre-1850 census records.

    How To Use Pre-1850 Census Records to Find Your Female Ancestors

    February 6, 2017
  • Trouble tracing your female ancestors? Do not overlook them in those early pre-1850 census records.
    Female Ancestors,  How To Trace Your Family Tree

    How To Use Pre-1850 Census Records to Find Your Female Ancestors

    / 8 Comments

    Genealogy researchers can struggle to find female ancestors in pre-1850 census records.  We are familiar with  the US census records,  and they are often some of the first records we search when looking at a family line. In those early census records, we pay more attention to the male ancestors listed. We (you can read that as “I”) can fail to see our female ancestors in these records. I used to dread the point in my census research when my ancestors preceded the 1850 U.S. census.  (The truth is, I still do sometimes!) I especially dreaded those pre-1850 census records when I researched anyone other than the head of household.…

    Read More

    You May Also Like

    How to research and find an illegitimate ancestor is challenging for the most seasoned genealogy researcher. Explore these tips and types of records for clues to your ancestor's parents.

    How To Research Your Illegitimate Ancestors

    October 16, 2017
    Della Thomas

    Researching Female Ancestors? You Can Overcome Those Research Roadblocks!

    January 6, 2020
    African American women from early 1900's

    How To Start Researching Your African American Female Ancestors

    November 23, 2020
1234
Lisa Lisson - Genealogist

Welcome! I’m Lisa. I believe researching your genealogy does not have to be overwhelming. All you need is a solid plan, a genealogy toolbox and the knowledge to use those tools. Read more….

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Looking for Something Specific?

RootsTech 2020 Speaker Lisa Lisson
RootsTech 2020 Ambassador

Resources & Tools To Confidently Research Your Genealogy

Privacy Policy
Disclaimer
Facebook-f Pinterest Instagram Twitter Youtube

Subscribe & Stay in the Know

Receive weekly emails

© Are You My Cousin - 2012-2022

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.OkRead more