Why Do I Geek Genealogy?

Charity RouseJuly 31, 2012

Why research your family tree?

What do you need to start?

• Names of parents & grandparents

• Birth dates/places• Marriage date/place• Death date/place (if

applicable)• Names of siblings & their

relative ages• Places these people may

have lived

Where do I find this information?

• Ask family members what they know• Look at the family Bible or other documents• Listen to family stories• Look at family photographs

Have info, now what?

• What do you do with the information you get?• Decide how to record it– Paper forms– Computer software• Legacy (Free)• Family Tree Maker (pay)

– Websites• Ancestry.com• RootsWeb.com

Starting Your Research

Print Resources• Family Bible• Historical Society• Public Library• Newspapers

Digital Resources• Ancestry.com

– Some features are free, others require subscriptions (TSCPL has a LibraryEdition)

• FamilySearch.org• HeritageQuest

– Online census records. Can be accessed for free from the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library with your library card.

How do I search?Start with one family member for whom you know a name, a date (birth, marriage or death) and one location they lived

How do I evaluate search results?

Look at the index …

… and the image

Types of Records to look for

• Census• Vital Records• Obituaries & newspaper articles• Cemetery stones• City directories & phone books• Photos

More records …

• Immigration• Court records • Land records

… and even more records• Military• Church

• School• Business

I have lots of information. Now what?

• Organize your information – on paper or on-line

• Find ways to pass it on – blog, write a book, make a scrapbook, send out a family newsletter, tell stories, etc.

I found the easy stuff, what’s next?

• Family History Library in Salt Lake City• Courthouses & micro-local resources• Classes & Conferences (Topeka Genealogical

Society, Mid-West Genealogy Center, Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research)

• Hire an expert. Association of Professional Genealogists

Now Have Fun

• This is only the tip of the iceberg.• Genealogy can be lots of fun and lots of work.• You might find evidence to support some

family stories, or learn that others were just ‘tall tales’.