Family Tree Research - Uncover The Gems In Your Family

Tracing your family ancestry has been around forfound to date, during the interview. This
many generations. Originally, it was done by theinformation may help trigger new stories and
matriarch of the family, as she recorded theadditional details that will further enhance your
births, marriages and deaths of all of her relativesunderstanding of your family's past. Be sure to
and close friends. Frequently, these records wereask for any additional scrapbooks, articles, old
kept in the family Bible or a scrapbook.photographs that you might borrow to study in
Fortunately, many of these books have beenmore detail. Make sure you put this information in
passed down from generation to generation. Ifa separate file, carefully marked so that you can
you're lucky, you may be in possession of one ofreturn it to the original owner, exactly as it was
those rare books today. When we first start outprovided.
researching our genealogy, we frequently startAs soon as possible, after the interview, review
with these rare books as our initial source.the stories, documents, and photographs to try
These books provide an excellent source ofand incorporate this information into your family
information about our families. In many cases, wetree research files. Take copies of all of the
find not only important facts about our family wedocuments and photographs, and clearly mark on
also find newspaper clippings, old photographs,the back of each copy the source of the
wedding invitations, and family reunion invitationsdocument, the date it was obtained, and the
to name a few. These items provide us withcondition of the original document. These details
important clues and valuable stories that bring ourwill be invaluable when you revisit this information,
family history to life. Take the time to reviewmonths and even years from now.
each of these items to understand and properlyAs much as we would like to believe that
document them.genealogy is the discovery of important and
Once we have recorded all of the informationinfluential ancestors, it is in reality, a complex
that is contained in these books, we startprocess of uncovering and documenting historical
interviewing close family members for otherfacts and stories. However, as dry as that
information that they might have. It is a good ideasounds, it can also be a very rewarding and
to take your family tree charts and notes withchallenging hobby. Knowing that we are
you to these interviews. The notes you've madediscovering our family's history and heritage and
will help your family visualize the branch of theputting it into context for future generations
family tree that you are tracing. Be sure andmakes this a very worthwhile project that our
display all of the source information that you havefamily will be able to cherish forever.