Genealogy Resources
You are getting started in the search for your ancestors and beginning to wonder, "Which genealogy resources do I need?" Well, that's why I'm here.
A large variety of genealogy resources ranging from general to specific are available to you. Resources might be one of the big genealogy databases. Or vital records found at the county government level. Or private collection papers. Or..... you get the idea.
Taking the time to learn what type of resources are available to you for your specific research project will make you a more efficient and successful researcher.
If you need someone to help you determine your best resources, I can help. CLICK here to check out my genealogy consultation services. The links below will also help you explore available resources.
Check out the Are You My Cousin? Facebook page to keep learning!
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Searching For Ancestors in the Catholic Heritage Archive at FindMyPast
Are you researching Catholic ancestors? The Catholic Heritage Archive at FindMyPast is THE resource to include in your genealogy research. When researching ancestors – particularly my brick wall ancestors, I turn to the religious records in the hope I can find them mentioned there. Sadly, many of my ancestors belonged to small rural churches which rarely kept records or the church records have long since been lost. Twice I tracked down church records only to discover the records had been removed to a church member’s home for safe keeping ….. only to be lost to fire! Twice! I sometimes find myself “jealous” of my genealogy friends with Catholic ancestors. Oh,…
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Searching For Irish Genealogy Records – Where Do You Start?
Searching for Irish genealogy records can be daunting, but is worth the effort! Learn how to start finding your Irish ancestors! Searching for Irish ancestors is tough, or at least, it can be! I discovered my one Irish ancestor – my great-great-great grandmother Joanna Barrett. She is one of the first brick walls I came across, and unfortunately, that wall stands firm. I have not been able to advance this line back further. One day…… Why are Irish ancestors hard to research? Researching Irish ancestors is a bit of a sub-specialty in genealogy. Like genealogy research in most areas, it presents with its own unique challenges. A few reasons can…
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Worth a Thousand Words: How to Find and Use Image-Only Collections on FamilySearch
If you’ve entered your family names in databases like Ancestry.com and didn’t find the answer you needed, your search is not done! Did you know there are millions of pages of records digitized online at FamilySearch that don’t show up when you conduct a general search? FamilySearch runs a massive crowdsourced indexing program where volunteers like you or I can spend time transcribing records. These transcriptions can then be queried by the website’s search engines, and that process is how you are able to locate an image by searching for a name. These indexing projects are organized by record type, time period, and language. Some collections are larger than others,…
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Tutorial: The Ancestry.com Member Directory
Researching our ancestors often requires collaboration from other researchers. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Have you had the experience of attending a genealogy event in person? If you have, then you know some of the best learning and inspiration comes from talking with other researchers. You compare notes. You share your successes and your brick walls. And often….. Your next research inspiration comes from something another researcher says. Outside of a conference, where do you find other genealogy researchers with the same interests or researching the same lines? How to Use the Ancestry.com Member Directory Note: Most of the large genealogy databases have a type of member directory to facilitate research…
