Heritage Album - How do I start to trace my family tree?

How do I start to trace my family tree?

I want to trace my family tree back as far as I can, but I have no idea on how to start. I can't afford to sign up to any websites, so how do I start??

Public Comments

Try all of these: You should start by asking all your living relatives about family history. Then, armed with that information, you can go to your public library and check to see if it has a genealogy department. Most do nowadays; also, don't forget to check at community colleges, universities, etc. Our public library has both www.ancestry.com and www.heritagequest.com free for anyone to use (no library card required). Another place to check out is any of the Mormon's Family History Centers. They allow people to search for their family history (and, NO, they don't try to convert you). A third option is one of the following websites: http://www.searchforancestors.com/... http://www.censusrecords.net/?o_xid=2739... www dot usgenweb dot com/ www dot census dot gov/ http://www.rootsweb.com/ www dot ukgenweb dot com/ www dot archives dot gov/ http://www.familysearch.org/ http://www.accessgenealogy.com/... http://www.cyndislist.com/ www dot geni dot com/ Cyndi's has the most links to genealogy websites, whether ship's passenger lists, ancestors from Africa, ancestors from the Philippines, where ever and whatever. Of course, you may be successful by googling: "john doe, born 1620, plimouth, massachusetts" as an example. Good luck and have fun! Check out this article on five great free genealogy websites: www dot associatedcontent dot com/article... Then there is the DNA test; if you decide you want to REALLY know where your ancestors came from opt for the DNA test. Besides all the mistakes that officials commonly make, from 10% to 20% of birth certificates list the father wrong; that is, mama was doing the hanky-panky and someone else was the REAL father. That won't show up on the internet or in books; it WILL show up in DNA. I used www.familytreedna.com which works with the National Geographics Genotype Program.
My answer is lengthy and I apologize for that but I want to warn you of the advantages and the pitfalls of genealogy on the internet. We get your question many time a day. So I have cut and am pasting an answer. Here is a link to various websites, some free, some not. http://www.progenealogists.com/top50genealogy2008.htm Websites that only have family trees are not worth a tinker's curse unless you are willing to verify the information with documents/records. They are subscriber submitted, very seldom documented and if they are they are poorly documented. You frequently will see the different info on the same people from different subscribers. Then you will see the absolute same info on the same people from different subscribers but you would be very foolish if you thought for one moment that that means it is correct. A lot of people copy without verifying. The information can be useful as clues only as to where to get the documentation. Right before Christmas of 2008, I found out I was dead. So was my sister and my brother-in-law. We died in New Jersey. Since the only time my sister and I were ever in New Jersey is when our family drove through it coming from New York in 1957. It was the same year Hurricane Audrey hit in our part of the world. Hey! we had been dead for 51 years. It says so on the internet. It has to be right if it is on the internet! I found out that family on both sides married and died in New Jersey. Since my ancestry is mostly southern American colonial with some exceptions and those exceptions came in through southern ports, I was surprised. This tree would have been accepted by any genealogy website. You can make up an entirely fictitious family tree and it will be accepted. You disagree with something someone has on one of your family members, the websites will tell you that it is between you and the other subscriber. This subscriber had almost 150,000 names in her family tree. There are too many people with trees on the internet that think it is more important to get as many names as possible rather than have a good verifiable family tree. They copy info from other family trees, perhaps on their inlaws. Then they find inlaws of their inlaws and go crazy. One website, genealogy.com use to encourage people to merge other people's family trees into theirs. That is downright sloppy genealogy. Now the best for the total amount of records online isn't free but your public library might have a subscription to it. That is Ancestry.Com. Still be careful about the information in their family tree, particularly their One World Tree program. If you have been into Ancestry.Com, you might have an option at the top to "switch back to old search." I find it much better, then to the right when you are under search you can pick categories to search under. CyndisList.com is a website with links to many other websites, some free and some not. Many people involved in genealogy find it helpful. Not all records are online but the ones you will find will save you time and money traveling to courthouses, libraries etc. However your first free source is your own family. Get information from them. Tape your senior members if they will let you. People who do this state they go back and listen to the tape again after doing research and hear things they didn't hear the first time around. I am not saying they won't be confused or wrong on some things. Find out if anybody in your family has any old family bibles. Ask to see and make copies of birth, marriage and death certificates. Depending on the religious faith, baptismal, first communion, confirmation and marriage certificates from their church can be helpful. A good free source is a Family History Center at a Latter Day Saints(Mormon) Church. They have records on people all over the world, not just Mormons. In Salt Lake City, they have the world's largest genealogical collection. Their FHCs can order microfilm for you to view at a nominal fee. They won't try to convert you, at least they haven't done so to me or anyone else that I know. Just call the nearest Mormon Church or visit their free website, FamilySearch.org, to get their hours for the general public. Rootsweb and FamilySearch.org are 2 free sites but remember verify information in family trees with documents/records. If you don't you don't know whether it is accurate or not. Also be wary of any website, merchant in a mall or at airport selling so called "family crest." A crest is part of a coat of arms. Coats of arms do not belong to surnames and in British countries they do not belong to families. There are clan badges in Scotland. However, any coat of arms granted by the Lord Lyon of Scotland or the College of Arms in London belongs to one man and one man alone. The family history that comes with them will not be the family history of everyone with the same surname.
Look at your birth certificate.. which lists the name of your father and your mother (using her maiden name). Yes.. I hear you laughing. Yes, there is a reason for what I said. Genealogy ALWAYS ALWAYS uses a record, even if you believe you know the info. You still start by getting the habit to confirm what you "know". Trust me .. a couple geneations back, and no one will know.. or what they "know" will be faulty. You have now started. The 2nd thing that is critical, is to make sure you have the RIGHT persons, which you always will have, as long as you use records, and don't try to skip. Your parents birth records will show their parents, and etc on back. I give you the birth certificate, because it is the easiest to understand as a proof of a relationship. There are many more sources for the same info, and as you go back, they will change. Census, death records, tombstones, photos, Bibles, wills, land records.. there are many of them. Would it surprise you that pre 1900, most states did not require birth certificates? Last.. I am hoping you think FIRST in terms of the record needed, and the website, second. You won't find your birth cert online, nor should you. These are records that must be within the family.. or that you can order legally. And since those are a govt record.. they will cost. Genealogy isn't free.. but that does NOT mean you must sign on to websites. Costs can include things like travel expense, copy fees, etc. You often find that ancestry.com is cheaper than the alternate. However.. many libraries have subscriptions you can use. You just have to make time to go there when they are open. Also.. WE are free, and can help as you go.
try an online people search as well.
Start with yourself and work your way backwards. get a 3 ring binder and some loose leaf paper. make a page for each person. Start with yourself on the first page, write down your birthday, birthplace, parents' names, and siblings then move on to your parents. make a page for you mother with the same information and your father. Also make note on here any children they had (you and your siblings) along with their wedding date, and their brothers and sisters. then move backwards once again to your grandparents. You should have 4 sheets for grandparents, your mother's side and your father's side You can print free pedigree charts and begin to fill them in as well. visit www.cyndislist.com and go down to "freebies" they have many charts there you can print for free Once you have the basics you can try searching www.familysearch.org they also have free charts and lots of useful information. they have family history centers in many states that can help you with information as well. if you have a local library that has a subscription to the HeritageQuest program you can use that to search census records for free! Another helpful tip, if you have itunes, you can download genealogy podcasts for FREE! go into the itunes store and type genealogy into the search box. I listen to the Genealogy Made Easy podcasts and they are amazing...with lots of information. Hope this helps and happy hunting! it may take a while, but don't get discouraged. Ask living relatives for information that they can give you. interviewing living grandparents and their siblings is a great way to get started