| You have probably spent a lot of time doing | | | | in your family and circle of friends in stories is a |
| family genealogy research. I'm sure you have | | | | great way to jog their memory. Sometimes with |
| tried many ways to locate the genealogy | | | | story telling they remember something they may |
| information you need to find someone in Mexico, | | | | have otherwise forgotten. |
| from searching the Internet and visiting free | | | | Story telling is an incredible tool to get people to |
| genealogy web sites to speaking to friends and | | | | tell you the information you want. It will also give |
| family. You may have been searching online for | | | | you an idea of who this person was and what |
| hours and hours. You may have talked to | | | | they were doing and may lead you to other ideas. |
| relatives or friends of the person you are | | | | Here is a key. Talk to every relative you have. |
| searching for, but you just have not gotten the | | | | There is always one relative in every family who |
| information you need and are not able to find this | | | | knows a little bit about everyone. And it does not |
| person living in Mexico. | | | | matter if they are your third cousin or they are |
| Let's start with the fundamentals of what | | | | four times removed. They could be an |
| genealogy information you should be searching for. | | | | ex-mother-in-law, a fifth cousin. It does not |
| Your first goal should be to have the complete | | | | matter. You would be surprised at how much |
| name of the person you are looking for. Let's use | | | | information distant family members have about |
| the name Juan Carlos Garcia Gonzalez as an | | | | your side of the family. You may think that your |
| example. | | | | immediate family should know everything about |
| If you have a friend who has a name like Juan | | | | the family, but that is not always true. I urge you |
| Carlos, that is his name. In English we might | | | | to go talk to every possible relative. |
| separate out two names. Someone named Billy | | | | Maybe they talked to someone from another |
| Bob may also be called Bob or Billy. However, in | | | | group, such as a priest or teacher. Go after as |
| Mexico Juan Carlos is this person's name. It's not | | | | many leads as you can. You should plan to |
| correct to call him Juan or to him Carlos. His name | | | | interview several people to get all the facts. |
| is Juan Carlos. Be aware of this because having | | | | The second key piece of information that you |
| the complete and full name is very important in | | | | need to have is the city and the state of where |
| your search and will help you to more quickly | | | | they are or where they were living. |
| locate this person. | | | | Finding out where they did live can be helpful if |
| The complete name is not only their first name(s) | | | | you do not know where they are living right now. |
| but also both of their last names. In Spanish a | | | | If someone has lived in Guadalajara and they |
| person has two last names. The first last name in | | | | came to the United States for, say, ten years, |
| Spanish is the name of the father (for example: | | | | there is a very good possibility they may be going |
| Garcia). Gonzalez is the second last name and this | | | | back to Guadalajara at some point. Also finding |
| is the equivalent of our mother's maiden name. By | | | | where they did live is very helpful because their |
| putting the two together, you have a complete | | | | family and friends may still be there. This is |
| name. Doing Mexico family genealogy is often | | | | especially true for someone who wants to find a |
| easier because the Spanish style of two last | | | | birth father or birth mother still living in Mexico. |
| names minimizes the chance of accidentally | | | | Why do you need to know the city and state? If |
| researching someone else's family lineage. | | | | you tried to go to an Internet search engine site, |
| You can also discover this information by talking | | | | maybe one that specialized in genealogy research |
| to every relative this person has. You want to | | | | and put in only a person's name without the city |
| ask questions such as where did this person | | | | and state you are not going to get any |
| come from. Ask how they ended up in the United | | | | information. Why? Even in the United States you |
| States. Ask where they went to school or where | | | | have to tell the site where this individual is |
| they vacationed as they were growing up. | | | | presently residing. If you do not have that basic |
| Different questions can help trigger memories and | | | | information, you are not going to get an answer. |
| details that will help you find the information and | | | | It is virtually impossible to locate a person if you |
| the person you are looking for. | | | | do not have the city and the state where they |
| A great way to get family genealogy information | | | | are living. |
| is to get a person to tell you stories using | | | | These two key pieces of information will go far in |
| questions like, "So how did you and my father | | | | helping with your search and Mexico family |
| meet?" or "What did he/she like to do during the | | | | genealogy research. In the next article, we will |
| weekends?" Engaging the people that you talk to | | | | organize all the information you have collected. |