Does anyone know where I can get free information about a family tree?

Question

My parents are Italian, and came to Canada by ship from Italy to work on the railroad. My grandparents died many years ago, and my father is getting older and I would love to surprise him with some family history. Does anyone know where I could start to find some info on past family history?

Answer 1

Here's the best place to start:

Canadian Genealogy Centre - National Archives of Canada
http://www.collectionscanada.ca/genealogy/022-205-e.html

Railways

"Labourers involved with the construction of a railroad were the employees of the contractor who built the railroad, not railway company employees."

http://www.collectionscanada.ca/genealogy/022-913.005-e.html

Italian Canadian Heritage Exhibit
http://www.civilization.ca/cultur/presenza/pszamnue.html
more info
http://www.genealogytoday.com/ca/connect/040730.html

National Congress of Italian Canadians - Italian Canadian Bibliography
http://www.canadese.org/ncic_about_italian_canadians_biblio.html

Italian Genealogy Links
http://www.cyndislist.com/italy.htm


You can see if your father's surname pops up in any of these search engines - A good way to see if anyone else is working on the same tree

Rootsweb
http://www.rootsweb.com

LDS Mormon Church
http://www.familysearch.org

Answer 2

Your grandparents may have gotten their social security numbers through the railroad. Look up your grandparents names on the social security death index and it will tell you by saying "long time rail road worker or retired rail road worker".
(I have a grandparent who got their number though the rail road)
You can then send off for their application information which may include personal info like their parent's names place of birth and the like. I think there is a fee of $27.

Good Luck with this Project!

Answer 3

Truthfully, the best free place to go to is the LDS Church (Mormons.) Look in your phone book under Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints for family history centers and give them a call. They will not try to get you to join, they just want you to learn how to investigate your genealogy. You can also get in contact at www.familysearch.org. Ask them about the "Gift of Family History."

Answer 4

The Mormons are really the best place to go. And they aren't all scary- it's actually part of their church's social structure, they go and collect records of people's deaths and stuff at graveyards and public records places (i have mormon friends). I found out when my grandmother died through their website. Check it out!