Transcript Getting Started & Treasures in the Attic http://ancestry.com/library/view/ancmag/2082.asp Step 1 & 2 Fewer hobbies anywhere offer the reward of genealogy. This hobby can and.

Getting Started &
Treasures in the Attic
http://ancestry.com/library/view/ancmag/2082.asp Step 1 & 2
Fewer hobbies anywhere offer the reward of genealogy.
This hobby can and will take you on a journey of discovery of
your ancestors and their lives.
This journey can:
• Take you to places you have never been
• Learn who you ancestors really were and their personalities
• Every journey begins with a single step. This first step is you!
We will discuss some of the areas that you can collect and
things you can do to start on this journey.
Where do I start?
•
At your own home
1. Collect all the birth certificates, ordinations,
baptisms, education, marriage certificates,
military records, and anything else you can find.
2. Write down on a family group or pedigree any
information you find in these records
3. Remember the Who, What, When, Where, and
Why questions.
Who
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Write the persons full name, including any middle
names, and titles. Spelling does matter here.
1. You can find the name spelled several ways,
make note of all the spellings.
• For females you always use their maiden name.
You can write her married name like this (Jones) if
all you have is a married name.
• If they have a nick name or go by something else,
you can do the following. William “Billy”.
Nicknames can serve as a clue.
What
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Identify every event as clearly as possible.
Examples:
1. Graduation – tell what level of school they
graduated from
2. Schools – list the city, county, and state
• Abbreviations should be standard ones IF
used. Such as b = birth, bap = baptism. Use
as little abbreviations as possible. Someone
coming after you might not know what you
mean, so it is better to write it all out.
Where
• Record everything you know about the locations.
Keep looking for further information. If a birth
happened at a hospital, then record the hospital
name, city, county, and state.
• Do not abbreviate places, Temple Ready will not
recognize them
• Learn as much as you can about the areas your
ancestors came from. Did the city names
change, did the boundaries change
When
• When writing dates use the standard form for
genealogy. Example 4 Mar 2003
When you use 04/03/03, it can be interpreted
several ways.
• Always include all four digits of the year
Evidence
• This is the most important area of our research.
• Record your sources as thoroughly as possible.
Could someone find your source by what you have
given?
• If you have recorded your sources thoroughly, it
could save you from retracing your steps, it can lend
reliability and accuracy to your work.
• Maintain a list of your sources that could serve as a
bibliography for a finished book. PAF can store these
sources for you.
Record your Research
• 3 x 5 cards – can be used to record information that
needs to be input into your PAF program. Record all
that you can find
• Pedigree Charts – place you as number one. You
could color code these to go with your filing system.
• Family group sheets – document all information that
is on your sheet. Do you have a source to prove
every event?
• Research logs – this is a most valuable tool in your
research. This can track the Who, What, Where,
When, and Why’s. These are also helpful at the
libraries. Please use pencils at the libraries.
The Attic, The Basement,
or Where Ever!
•
Where do you or other family members store their
treasures?
1. The Attic
2. The basement
3. An extra room
4. A storage unit
• Use these storage places and go through the
treasures.
Do you have Pack Rats in your Family?
• This could be a very valuable find!
– Journals
– Letters
– Histories
– Photos
– Diaries
– You name it, it could be there!
Example: Bob and Barbara
Other Items
• Old family bibles, with names and dates
• Certificates of all kinds – birth, death, marriage,
blessings, christenings
• Funerals and funeral cards
• Wills
• House property papers
• Report cards
• Old news papers
• Naturalization papers
• Any of these documents could give names, dates, and
family names, occupations, and places.
Letters
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Can give you a glimpse into the past
Important dates and events
Feelings of the person writing the letter
Place they have lived or visited
Scrapbooks
• These can have some interesting facts about a family
• Mementos – what was important to the individual
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Athletics
School
Work
Entertainment
Vacations
• While these might not have much genealogical
information you can find out about your ancestors
Military memorabilia
• This is a major source for genealogical data
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Group photos
Weapons
Uniforms
Unit histories
These can put a person in a particular place and time, could
lead you to further information
School Records
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Report cards
Registration papers could show names of parents
School year books
Student essays
Certificates of achievement
Diplomas
All give a glimpse into the lives of our ancestors
Licenses
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Drivers licenses
Professional licenses
Hunting/fishing licenses
Social Security cards
All of these could give you valuable information and
documentation to your research.
Family History Do’s & Don’ts
Church News March 23, 2002
• Concentrate on your own lines
• Check your names for duplication against Temple Ready
by using the update, then use the search function, then
check against the IGI at www.familysearch.org After
these steps you are then ready to complete a
TempleReady to take the names to the temple
• Do not submit names for celebrities, historical
personalities or persons of European countries prior to
A.D. 1500
• Do not “invent” ancestors by adding Mr. and Mrs. You
will get error messages on TempleReady
• Put the name descriptions in the “known as” area on the
input screen of PAF. Such as Jr., Dr., Reverend,
Colonel, General etc.
• When a name is unknown it is best to leave it blank
• Instead of putting names in quotes use the word,
Example William or Bill
• Do not estimate dates if there are exact dates
obtainable
• Submit only enough names that can be completed in a
reasonable time
• Proofread you records for accuracy
• Most ordinance duplication is caused when members
submit the same records more than once
• Consider the feelings of others when submitting
names that are not directly related to you
Journals & Life Histories
http://www.familytreemagazine.com/articles/aug01/journal.html
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You could have a journal and record what you are finding
and how you feel. Record your joys, frustrations and
feelings about your searches.
Journals vs Research Logs – Both can serve a very
important purpose
5 perks of journaling
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Analyzing and organizing - sort out what you find
Reviewing and planning – journals have room for you to write why
you feel the way you do about your searches
Recording and researching family histories – record those stories you
have heard many times
Sharing your search – good way to share your excitement
Telling the whole story – As you uncover new evidence of stories
you can document your finds
Web Sites
• Life Journal – software program for
journalers. http://lifejournal.com/
• Journal writing for You – Different stories
and helps http://www.journalforyou.com/
Learning how to Web Sites
• Center for Family History and Genealogy at BYU
http://261.byu.edu/ notice the other links along the
top bar at this site.
• Genealogy.com’s site for beginners with how to
lessons http://www.genealogy.com/genehelp.html
• This site was set up for Family History Consultants,
however there is a lot of great information here.
http://members.cox.net/fhconsultants/
• RootsWeb.com lessons –
http://rwguide.rootsweb.com
Family History Story web sites
• Creating a Family History Book http://www.genealogy.com/21_prze.html?Welcome=10467531
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• The Mechanics of Writing your Family History http://genealogy.com/202/lesson6/course6_02.html
• Biography Assistant - http://genealogy.com/bio/index.html
• “Fundamentals of Life Stories Writing” workshop –
www.writersonlineworkshops.com
• How to write a family history: the lives and times of our
ancestors – www.familychronicle.com/fitzhugh.htm
• Genealogy time line – http://home.netcom.com/~genealogy
• Time lines – http://dmarie.com/timecap/
• Perpetual Calendar Calculator http://www.searchforancestors.com/utility/perpetualcalendar.html
Web sites for Worksheets
• KBYU Ancestors http://www.byubroadcasting.org/ancestors/charts/
• Individual Data Compiler http://www.michiganancestry.com/files/individata.pdf
• Family Tree Magazine forms http://familytreemagazine.com/forms/download.html
• Ancestry.com charts http://ancestry.com/save/charts/researchcal.htm
• FamilySearch.org forms - Search/Research helps/Sort by
document type
http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/RG/frameset_rhelps.
asp?Page=./research/type/Form.asp&ActiveTab=Type
• Cyndislist.com forms http://www.cyndislist.com/supplies.htm#Online
• Rootsweb.com
http://helpdesk.rootsweb.com/get_started/charts_forms.html
Genealogy is all about clues. We are a
detective looking for what clues are out
there.
It is a hobby that provides great pleasure.
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Keep in mind that you have embarked on
a journey that could prove to be the most
memorable you have ever undertaken.
Defrag hard drives
• This should be done once a month. It takes parts of file
and puts them into one place. It helps your computer to
run faster and smoother.
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Steps:
Start
Programs
Accessories
System Tools
System Defragmenter
From here it varies with each windows version what you would
push to make it start.
– Windows XP you can analyze and then defrayment
• Always remember to keep your recycle bin emptied also.