where should i start my genealogy search?

Question

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Answer 1

I am assuming your family is in the U.S. If it isn't then disregard my answer.

First, ancestry.com does have a 14 day free trial-BUT you must cancel before the end of 14 days or they will charge your credit card. Also, don't be suprised if they ask you to put your cancellation in writing and fax it to them. I have had friends tell me that they had to do it this way to cancel.

Here is a list of some of the free ones.

www.rootsweb.com -This is a good one that is free. It is run by Ancestry.com but shouldn't be confused with Ancestry.com- the pay site.

www.cyndislist.com

www.familysearch.org website for the Church of the Later Day Saints.

www.genforum.com This is a site that is full of individual message boards. You can search and post by last name, state, country, or county. This is a great one. Simply post your question on the respective board, and when people answer you will get a notification on your E-mail. I have had a LOT of success on GenForum.

I must say, however, that a good genealogy query, doesn't just say. " I need information on John Smith" Try to provide as many dates, places, and details as possible. One little thing can make the difference as to the answer you get.

a good query has

1) the persons name
2) all of the biographical information you know to date and
3) asks a specific question

The reason it is so specific is because people won't waste your time and theirs telling you what you already know. Also, by providing ALL of your known information (for example, the childrens names) it gives people alternate people to research to help arrive at your answer.

http://www.usgenweb.org/ -When you get to the main page, you can get to the state and individual locality pages by clicking on the appropriate links. Keep in mind that some towns are going to have more information than some smaller obscure towns. It all depends on what kinds of volunteers contribute information to their sites. Genealogy is very much a hobby that depends on people.

Check your LOCAL LIBRARY. Many libraries have subscriptions to Ancestry.com or hertiage quest that you can Access from home with your library card number. Heritage Quest is geared mostly toward the US records.

www.interment.net or www.findagrave.com These are cemetery sites that have grown by leaps and bounds.

http://ssdi.genealogy.rootsweb.com/cgi-b...

This is the link to the Social Security Death index. This is a very helpful resource to finding death dates of people who died in recent years (since about the 60's)

If your family immigrated to the US in the last 100-125 years you can try
www.ellisisland.org
This one is cool because you can actually have a look at the ships manifests!!

Good luck in your search. It is a satisfying and rewarding hobby with lots of twist and turns. Remember, you are not going to just find your entire genealogy in one search. It is an ongoing puzzle. I tell people, if you can find one thing every time you are searching, you are doing GREAT. If you find any more than that at any given time you are LUCKY!! Blessings.

Answer 2

Get a No Cost Background Check Scan at https://bitly.im/aNES3

Its a sensible way to start. The site allows you to do a no cost scan simply to find out if any sort of data is in existence. A smaller analysis is done without cost. To get a detailed report its a modest payment.

You may not realize how many good reasons there are to try and find out more about the people around you. After all, whether you're talking about new friends, employees, doctors, caretakers for elderly family members, or even significant others, you, as a citizen, have a right to know whether the people you surround yourself with are who they say they are. This goes double in any situation that involves your children, which not only includes teachers and babysitters, but also scout masters, little league coaches and others. Bottom line, if you want to find out more about someone, you should perform a background check.

Answer 3

Here are a few more sites:
rootsweb.com,
familytreemaker.com,
familysearch.org.

Or do a yahoo search for genealogy.

Answer 4

Family Search
http://www.familysearch.org
Search the Family History Library's database, which contains millions of names from thousands of family trees.

GenCircles
http://www.GenCircles.com
Searching the global tree and viewing results is free to everyone. In addition to first and last names, the database is searchable by dates and places of birth, baptism, marriage, death, and burial, as well as by the names of an individual’s father, mother and spouse.

GeneaNet
http://www.geneanet.org
A database that indexes all the world's genealogical resources, whether Net-based or not and whether free or fee-paying.

Free On Ancestry
http://www.freeonancestry.com/
A directory of all the FREE records and resources available on Ancestry.com.

Ancestor Hunt
http://www.ancestorhunt.com
Index of Free Genealogy Search Engines

Find Your Family Tree
http://www.findyourfamilytree.com
A free genealogy web site designed to help you find missing branches of your family tree using Pedigree Resource File (PRF), a rapidly expanding collection of family trees submitted by people worldwide to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

GenealogyBuff.com
http://www.genealogybuff.com
Search for your surname in dozens of family history databases with one click. Though you still have to visit each site to see the results (or find out your search came up empty), GenealogyBuff.com can be a good starting point for online research.

USGenWeb
http://www.usgenweb.org
The USGenWeb is one of the premier sites for US researchers. Here you'll find Web pages for every US state and county.

AncestralFindings
http://www.ancestralfindings.com
AncestralFindings may not own every database you're interested in, but its collection is impressive. Holdings include CD-ROM records of births, deaths, marriages, census indexes, land records, passenger lists, immigrations and Genealogy.com's entire World Family Tree collection.

Answer 5

Talk to the guy in the mirror. You. Write down your own information (name/date/place/event), and do the same for your parents. Keep writing what you know, or can find at home.
Take time to go to www.cyndislist.com, and look for one of the tutorials for beginners. Rootsweb.com is another great (free) place. When you start seeing gaps that you don't have information, start asking where to find that.
Don't expect it all at one time, but then, that would spoil the fun of the hunt.

Answer 6

i don't know how much info you've got ,so this is what i did first talk to the OLDEST living link to you they have the most information about the family . second only go back ! {ONE} generation at a timeor your going to get confused third make sure you have both birth and death dates as well as where they were born it does make a diffrence. Well thats where you start if you need any help please let me know ,I am now going into the 8th generation and we are still in the U.S.... MAYBE WE CAME ON THE MAYFLOWER wouldn't that be a hoot.....

Answer 7

This is where I started.............

http://free-genealogy-info.zoomshare.com/

and I am still using it.

Answer 8

there are lots of good websites, but most of them charge. You
could start at your public library. Also talk to older family members to see what kind of info. they may have on your
deceased relatives. Its a lot of work, but well worth it.

Answer 9

The best way to get started is to ask your oldest living relatives about themselves and their parents. You may find great-grandpa's death date and burial place on the web, but only his children, your grandfather and grandaunt, can tell you what sort of man he was.

These questions come up every day.

Where can I find my family tree for free?
Does anyone know the {Surname} family?
What are good sites for ancestors / genealogy?

They are all about tracing your family tree on the Internet. The fourth time I typed in my favorite beginner's links I realized I should save them in a text file and paste them in. This is long and general. Because it is general, not all the links will apply to every question or questioner.

These may help get you started. They are large and free. Many of them, however, have subtle ads for Ancestry.com in them - ads that ask for a name, then offer a trial subscription. Watch out for those advertisements.

http://www.cyndislist.com/
(240,000+ links, all cross-indexed. If you want Welsh or Pennsylvania Dutch or Oregon or any other region, ethnic group or surname, chances are she has links for it.)
http://www.familysearch.com
(Mormon's mega-site. Click on "Search")
http://worldconnect.genealogy.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi
(460,000,000+ entries, of varying quality)
http://www.ancestry.com/learn/facts/default.aspx?ln=
Surname meanings and origins
http://www.tedpack.org/begingen.html
My own site: "How to Begin"

United States only:
http://www.usgenweb.net/
(Subdivided into state sites, which all have county sites.)
(The Canadians have Canadian Gen Web, by province)
http://ssdi.genealogy.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/ssdi.cgi
(Social Security Death index - click on "Advanced". You may find your grandparents.)
http://find.person.superpages.com/
(US Phone book, for looking up distant cousins)


United Kingdom Only:
http://www.genuki.org.uk/
(Biggest site for United Kingdom & Ireland)
http://www.freebmd.org.uk/
(Free Birth, Marriage & Death Records)

(If you posted your question in Genealogy, ignore this paragraph. If you posted it in the "Family" category, read on.)
Tracing your family tree is called genealogy. YA has a category for genealogy,
Home > Arts & Humanities > Genealogy
There are hundreds of more links in the resolved answers there.

In the USA, some public libraries have census image subscriptions. Many Family History Centers do too. FHC's are small rooms in Mormon churches. They welcome anyone interested in genealogy, not just fellow Mormons. They have resources on CD's and volunteers who are friendly. They don't try to convert you; in fact, they don't mention their religion unless you ask a question about it.


Notes:

You usually have to do some research. Sometimes you get lucky. Don't give up if your Great grandfather with your surname isn't there. Try all eight great-grandparents.

You won't find living people on any of the sites except the phone book one. You won't find many people born after 1920 on any of the sites except the SSDI one. Genealogists hide the birth dates, birth places and other facts of living people to protect their privacy. You will have to find your grandparents' or great grandparents' birth dates and maiden names somewhere besides the Internet.

The free sites are supported by advertising, just like TV. You can't watch the Super Bowl without seeing a beer commercial, and you can't surf for dead relatives without seeing an Ancestry advertisement. Many people complain about advertisements. Please don't. They bring you the "free" sites. There's no such thing as a free lunch.

If you get serious you'll need a genealogy program. They are to family research what "Word" is to writing a novel. I like Roots Magic. Family Tree Maker is the market leader. Both cost around $29. The Mormons will let you download PAF for free. It is clunky, but it is free. You can sometimes find old versions of FTM or Family Origins (FO is the predecessor of RM) in bargin bins at CostCo.

This is a general hint. Even though you go in through YA Canada, YA Australia, YA UK or YA USA, all of the questions go into one big "pot" and get read by everyone in the world who speaks English. Most of the people here are in the UK and USA, but you sometimes get questions and answers from people who worry about kangaroos eating their roses. So - put a nation, or, better yet, if you are asking about a specific individual, a nation and a state / province in all of your questions. It will help people help you.

Answer 10

start by asking you parents, and grandparnts. you could get some good info just by doing that. Then go tothe liabrary. type in some names and get the petagree chart.