i need to trace back my family for free (but dont know how will someone please help)?

Answer 1

Always start with all of your living relatives and obtain as much info about them and their parents, their parents' parents, etc., as they can provide. Write everything down. Be sure to categorize things so you know who said what (sources).
Go to your library. Ours has both www.ancestry.com and www.heritagequest.com available for free usage, as well as a volunteer who helps people trace their genealogy.
The biggest expense will be TIME; I have spent hundreds of hours and have so much left to compile.
Remember, no matter where you obtain the information, there are mistakes (yes, I include "official" documents, such as birth certificates, marriage licenses, death certificates, whatever). My maternal grandmother's tombstone doesn't even have her name correct!
Anyhew, as to searching, try these:
Free sites: there are several to choose from. Start with:
http://www.searchforancestors.com/...

http://www.censusrecords.net/?o_xid=2739...

http://www.usgenweb.com/

http://www.census.gov/

http://www.rootsweb.com/

http://www.ukgenweb.com/

http://www.archives.gov/

http://www.familysearch.org/

http://www.accessgenealogy.com/...

http://www.cyndislist.com/

Assuming they emigrated from Europe, start with Ellis Island and the Battery Conservancy sites:
http://www.ellisisland.org
http://www.castlegarden.org

For Scotland, check:
http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk/

For ship’s passenger lists, try:
http://www.immigrantships.net/
www.cyndislist.com/ships.htm
www.geocities.com/Heartland/5978/Emigration.html
www.immigrantstips.net/
www.searchforancestors.com/passengerlists/
www.archives.gov/genealogy/immigration/passenger-arrival.html

For those with native American ancestry, try:
http://www.tribalpages.com/
http://www.cherokee-nc.com/geneology.php...
http://www.archives.gov/genealogy/herita...

Netherlanders: http://www.genlias.nl

For a fee, try a DNA test:
When you really want to know where your ancestors came from, try such sites as: www.familytreedna.com, dnatribes.com, dnaancestryproject.com, and, of course, the National Geographics Genotype program, https://www3.nationalgeographic.com/geno...
For Jewish ancestry, try:
www.israelgenealogy.com

For people from India, try:
http://www.fibis.org/

Have a look at these sites these are South African ones,
http://genealogy.about.com/od/south_afri...
http://www.rupert.net/~lkool/page2.html....
http://www.jewishgen.org/safrica/website...
http://southafricanfamilyhistory.wordpre...

Meaning of names:
http://www.winslowtree.com/surname-meani...

http://www.familysearch.org/eng/search/f...

Here are some general sites with lists of African names:
http://www.swagga.com/fname.htm
http://www.behindthename.com/nmc/afr.php
http://www.familiesonlinemagazine.com/ba...

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/...

Military:
www.military.com
http://www.familymilitaryrecords.com/

http://www.archives.gov/veterans/militar...

http://websearch.about.com/od/peoplesear...

http://genealogy.about.com/b/2007/05/24/...

http://userdb.rootsweb.com/ww1/draft/sea...

Finding live people:
Two good places I use are www.zabasearch.com and www.peoplefinder.com

Keep good notes on where you find what: sources are very important.

Be sure to check books such as those by Burke (both father and son, notable genealogists) and Martin.

Answer 2

for starters... totally free is not realistic.
IF all 4 of your grandparents are living, and on good terms, and they can tell you who both their parents were, when and where they died (and maybe you all still live in the same town, and you can walk to the cemetery)... that will save you money. If your 8 gr grandparents were all born before 1930.. they should be in census records. Your library may subscribe to ancestry, and if you work it right, you will know which state/county to search, and can find them quickly. You MIGHT luck out, and find that someone else has already worked each of those families (or some) and posted it online.
If not, then the best way is to start with a tutorial somewhere such as http://www.cyndislist.com/beginner.htm
I love cyndis... she is the best collection of sources that I know of. You may not know until next week that you want civil war records from Alabama.. when you do, come back and see what she has to offer.
SHIFT thinking from a ready made family tree, to starting with you, and working each generation at a time as individuals. That is what they are, and the relevant records will keep shifting as you go.
Get some paper (and coffee if you are so inclined) and start writing what you know of names/dates/ places. When you see a blank or question mark, then focus on learning what record would answer it.
Remember that living persons have the right to privacy, so don't expect them to be online. When you get past that, it opens up.

Answer 3

Well, Joey, free won't do it.

First of all start with your living family and get as much information from them as possible, particuarly your senior members.
Tape them if they will let you. What might seem to be insignificant story telling might turn out to be very significant. See if any family has any old family bibles.

Go to your public library and find out what all they have. They might have a subscription to Ancestry.Com you can use.
Ancestry.Com has lots of records. They have alll the U.S. censuses through 1930. The 1940 and later are not available to the public yet. They also have U.K. censues.

Now, you can't take as absolute fact everything you see in family trees on any website, free or paid. The information is user submitted and mostly not documented or poorly documented. Even if you see the same information repeatedly by many different submitters that is no guarantee it is correct. A lot of people copy without verifying.

A Family History Center at a Latter Day Saints(Mormon) Church has lots of records, not just on Mormons. In Salt Lake City, they have the world's largest genealogical collection. Their Family HIstoryCenters can order microfilm for you to view at a nominal fee.

I have never had them to try and convert me or send their missionaries by to ring my doorbell. I haven't heard of them to that to anyone else either.

Good Luck!

Answer 4

There is a lot of free help on the Internet. Check out Rootsweb.com; FamilySearch.org; and also "lessons" at Genealogy.com. In addition, you can also receive free help at a Family History Center near your location. Find out more about Family History Centers at www.familysearch.org. Most genealogical societies put on educational programs and/or conferences. Family History Centers also sponsor seminars (free), sometimes.

I will be glad to help you get started and point you in the right direction. For "Beginner" Genealogy help, put criteria in the yahoo or google search box.

Answer 5

I keep keep getting Reply 999 when I try to paste my stock answer here.

We'll lend you a shovel and show you where to dig, but you'll have to do the digging yourself. Start by asking your granparents who their grandparents were. That will give you 5 generations. That should be enough of a tree for any homework assignment. Continue by asking them about their lives and their parents' lives.