A number of years ago, my mother gave me the files and documents she had amassed during her 50+ years of family research. I ended up with a computer file in Family Tree Maker Version 4, a file drawer of research notes, and several boxes of old family photographs and documents. Thus began my obsession.
Somewhat overwhelmed at the charts tracing my ancestors back to the 1600s in Scotland, Ireland, and France, I decided instead to work on my husband’s family, who were all recent immigrants from Poland and Russia. I read books and articles, and searched the web for information. Cyndi’s list was invaluable. I discovered the Ellis Island database. I learned to use the online censuses at my local public library, which has subscriptions to Ancestry.com and Heritage Quest.
And then I decided I needed to know how to do it right, so I enrolled in the National Genealogical Society home study course, American Genealogy. After completing the course, I just can’t imagine trying to learn all this information on my own.
So what did I learn? The first thing I realized was that even though I had an extensive tree already built, it wasn’t genealogy, nor was it family history. It was just data, and since I didn’t know where much of it came from, I had no way to judge its accuracy.
I learned to write correct citations for my sources. This is a critical skill, and I quickly understood its importance. The computer file I inherited was wonderful, but it contained very little source information. The paper file folders were extremely frustrating, as they often had just an author’s name or even no citation at all. I still find myself digging up “new” information, only to discover that it’s already in the files, though I had no idea where it came from. When the notes included two conflicting sets of data, I had no idea why my mother chose to use the one she did.
Closely connected with source citations are research logs, which help you keep track of sources you’ve consulted, whether or not they were useful. This is critical, because if you don’t keep track, you’ll forget and find yourself checking the same sources again later. My inherited notes occasionally cited sources, but there were no organized research logs. Once again, I am probably looking at the same documents my mother consulted, with the same lack of results. Now, although I can’t pretend that I religiously list each and every document or source I’ve looked at, I’m trying to do so.
I’ve learned what kinds of records are useful in genealogy – land ownership, legal, military, vital records, church records, immigration, personal documents and photos, etc. For each of these there are almost innumerable varieties and a myriad of places to look for them – it will take a very long time to exhaust all the possibilities for all my families.
And I’ve learned to be suspicious, not only of family lore, transcriptions, and other people’s research, but even of original documents. I’ve had some personal experience with the unreliability of what should be good sources. My maternal grandfather was an enigmatic man, who had seven children with his first wife. Shortly after her death he married again. This poor woman was only aware of four of his children when they married – she found out about the other three (who were staying with relatives or had been adopted) later. She never knew her husband’s true age, which was a great deal older than she was led to believe. Thus she was unable to provide accurate information for his death certificate and the inscription on his tombstone – the birthdates on both are wrong. His death certificate also shows incorrect birth places for himself and his parents.
Of course, family lore is also notoriously unreliable. I was told emphatically that my husband’s grandmother’s first two children died in the 1918 flu epidemic. But when I obtained the 1916 birth certificate of her third child, it’s noted that she had two previous children, both already dead by 1916. No flu epidemic, just the hazards of the time. There may be an element of truth in family stories, but it’s easy to get the details wrong.
Other things I’ve learned: what to take on a trip to a country cemetery, how to draw a land plat, and to read range and township lines to find a homestead. I’ve obtained and read my great-grandfather’s Civil War service record. I’ve discovered the maiden name of an ancestor, when none of her grandchildren knew it. I’ve visited libraries, courthouses, county archives, tiny out-of-the-way cemeteries, and land record offices. I’ve corresponded with Catholic Diocesan archivists and parish secretaries, historical society volunteers, and kind souls willing to do cemetery lookups.
I’ve tracked a family’s migration westward across the United States. The trip from Scotland to Pennsylvania, to Ohio, and then Missouri, with a final leap to California, only took three generations. I’ve gleaned information from old photos, deed abstracts, Bible pages ripped from their bindings long ago, and censuses in which only the head of household is named. I’ve analyzed the reliability of all sorts of documents, determined whether they are primary or secondary sources, derived or original. I’ve learned how to interpret what I find.
One of the most important things I’ve learned is that genealogy is far more than names and dates. I’m getting to know people I can never meet – to understand how they lived, and what their lives were like. There are so many questions, and sometimes we can find the answers. Why did my ancestors from Scotland come to America? What was happening in Poland in 1913, when my husband’s grandparents left to come here? I’m delving into personal history and social history, and learning more about the history of nations to try to understand the actions and motives of people who have become real to me.
I’ve learned that the genealogy community is full of volunteers. Some of the most useful information on the Internet has been provided by volunteers scanning or transcribing records, and so I’ve been inspired to add my small contribution. I joined a team of volunteers in my home town that created online indexes of county marriage records. Although none of my own ancestors lived in this area, I know that someday, some other researcher will be thrilled to find an ancestor in the index that I helped transcribe. It’s a good feeling.
