Why does ansetry .com have a monoply?

Question

I have been looking for a sight that is free of charge to find out who my father was and all I get is ansetry .com, which you have to join
I can not afford to join anything I live on ss, Im 64 and before I die I would like to know, my mother is dead and she would never speak of him.

Answer 1

There is a great site out there called Family Search. This is a great way to find ancestors, and there is no charge. They actually pull from many of the same databases, but it's non-profit.

By the way: ancestry.com doesn't have a monopoly- they've just had the money to do research for many years. Believe it or not, geneology is expensive. But, familysearch.org should help you, and you won't pay any money to use the site.

Answer 2

The first step to finding out who your father was is to obtain a birth certificate from the county clerk in the county where you were born. Usually, the county will charge a nominal fee. Ancestry.com also lists birth certificates, but they may--or may not--be any help because sometimes only the mother and child's names are listed.

Provided you don't mind the publicity, reply to this message with your mother's first name and maiden name as well as your exact date of birth, and the city, state, and county where you were born. I'll try and look up this material for you, but I can't guarantee that I can find the birth certificate. If you were born at home, for instance, your birth may not have been officially recorded.

If you would like census material about your mother's family, you can probably find that free-of-charge on line or at a government document depository (usually at a public library or a university library). The already mentioned www.familysearch.com, which is affiliated with the Latter-Day Saints, is free-of-charge, but it isn't as extensive of a collection as Ancestry.com

Good luck!

Answer 3

Rootsweb is free. Anything that is in Ancestry World Tree in Ancestry.Com will be in Rootsweb's World Connect. However information in family trees on any website must be taken as clues not as fact as most is not documented. Even if you see the same information over and over by different submitters a lot of copying is being done.

Ancestry.Com has the most records on line and are obtaining more all the time. They
must charge because they have the cost of obtaining the records and hiring people to put the information on line. You can get a a temporary free membership to Ancestry.Com to check for records. They have all the censuses through 1930.

If you have a genealogical library or your public library has a genealogical section, they might subscribe to Ancestry.Com and
you can look up information there.

Answer 4

Can you go to your local Public Library?
Chances are you can see Ancestry.com for Free there.
Also Most cities have Family History Libraries that can assist you. FOR FREE.
In some cities like here in Independence our public library has a genealogy branch FOR FREE. Many Seniors go to and use all the time. Even older than you.
familysearch.org
rootsweb
genforum
cousinconnect
cyndislist
usgenweb
ahgp
There are tons of FREE help available all over the internet.

Answer 5

You have several choices. Unfortunately, we live in a world where everything costs money.
If you can go to a library, many of them have a genealogy section with access to www.ancestry.com and often have a set of c.d.'s from the Mormon's.
What information do you have? Most likely what info you do have is not entirely accurate (as in my own case). Hopefully you know his name, place and date of birth, place and date of death.
Another option is to contact the Courthouse where he was born, married your mother, or other such. Usually the death certificate provides such information.
Social Security has the SSDI, Social Security Death Index, but you would need a name or Social Security Number to search in it.
On the web, you can check www.cyndislist.com, www.rootsweb.com, check web sites maintained by genealogy websites in the state/county where he was born, or check on your mother's information, which should lead you to info on your father.
Good luck.

Answer 6

I still remember when Ancestry.com was free...wasn't that long ago. But they were smart and they built the best mousetrap...and it cost them a whole lot of money to obtain all those records...so they have to recoup their costs with membership fees. Genealogy was never free, it's just easier with the advent of the computer/internet than it was in the old days when we had to send away for all of the records and spend $15 for each record.

We'll make you a deal. Post everything you know about your father for whom you're searching and among this very talented braintrust, most of whom have subscriptions to several key services, we'll do our best to help you find him. No charge.

Answer 7

It does seem that ansestry does have a monopoly. Would you believe that during his governorship of California, Gray Davis sold our birth records to them. Before that they were free.

What you might do is try the county in which you were born. Google county birth records use your mother's maiden name to search county records.

You also might try going to rootsweb.com. Remember to use the rootsweb search engine and not ancestry's. I am not sure if that will help. Input your mother's maiden name and see if someone else has been working on your genealogy, or if there is any info that will help you there.

I would be happy to help you search, but I am reluctant to leave my e-mail address here. Let me know and if you want my assistance and I will try to help. I have 10 years of genealogy research experience.

Answer 8

It is not that they have a monopoly rather they have the most extensive and accessible records. Ancestry.com is affiliated with the Mormon church. The Mormon church has meticulously kept, sought, and have copied hereditary records for the past 100+ years. This has allowed them to amass such a comprehensive compendium of hereditary information. You can check public records if you know where your parents originated from and when they were married (if at all). I assume he is not listed on your birth certificate.

Answer 9

Ancestry.com doesn't have a monopoly. The records are free to anyone who wants to go look at them. Most of us can afford $20 a month to have access to Ancestry's computerized database a LOT easier than we can go to wherever the original documents reside. If you consider what they have done, and the sheer number of records that are online, $20 is a bargain, as far as I am concerned.

Since you are apparently limited in what you can spend, I recommend looking at http://www.rootsweb.com It's not as good as Ancestry, but it does have the virtue of being free.

You might also have a look at http://www.familysearch.org; it's run by the LDS church (of which I am NOT a member - I'm Jewish!); it is also free.

If you are close to an LDS family history center, those are likewise free and open to the public. Go to the LDS site (http://www.lds.org), click on Family History, and locate the one nearest you.