My goodness it has been awhile! I promise you all I haven’t forgotten about my genealogy community, I’ve just been busy with two things: parenting a teen (argh), and tackling my goal to write up almost 30 years of research. I have tons of topics to blog about, but only so many hours in the […]
You are browsing archives for
Category: General Research
A Master Class in Genealogy
Melvin Collier’s powerful new book, From Fragments to Foundation: Uncovering a Buried History of Tragedy and Triumph, is officially out. When I received my book, I asked my son to answer the door for trick-or-treaters, grabbed a hot tea, and curled up with the good read I knew it would be. Melvin does not disappoint […]
6 Big Mistakes Genealogists Make
At the beginning of our genealogical journey, we all make mistakes—I certainly have. Mostly, it’s because we are new and simply don’t yet have the experience we need. Genealogy is a skill and like all skills, it improves with training. Notice I didn’t say it improves with time. Of course, we grow and learn […]
History in the Freedmens Bureau Records
I’ve been neck deep in Freedmens Bureau research the last few months! Most genealogists know about this extraordinary collection of records, and their importance to all researchers and not just African-Americans. I’ve blogged about them many times before, for example here and here. However, I’d like to illustrate how to utilize these records to uncover […]
Using Ledgers and Account Books
Recently, I got re-acquainted with the joys of a little utilized genealogical source: the store ledger. A wonderful local historian in Somerset County, Maryland shared ledger pages of a store in the community where my Eastern Shore ancestors lived for over 150 years. Here is a ledger page showing the 1859 purchases of “John Waters […]
A Terrific Newspaper Table
The fact that I still read actual newspapers every day marks me as over a certain age, for sure. I suppose old habits die hard. But the joy of newspaper research never gets old. My problem is that they are also being digitized at a rate much faster than I can keep track of easily. […]
Recharge Your Genealogy Research in 2024
I’m starting off this year filled with gratitude, and hope all of you enjoyed the holiday season with your friends and family! I’ve got several genealogy research goals I’m excited to start work on this year. As reviewed my own plans, I thought I’d share five ideas and thoughts for all researchers looking to upgrade […]
Proving Relationships: One Strategy
Part of the joy of researching my family has always been the challenge of proving relationships once the “easy” records that state relationships don’t exist anymore. (In genealogical parlance this means once we don’t have direct evidence.) When we don’t have birth and death certificates that name parents, marriage records that provide maiden names, or […]
Never Trust Only One Source
Webinar Note: My next webinar is a two-hour lecture + workshop on Deed Records. It will be held on August 20, 1-3:30 pm EST, and is $20. It includes a free PDF guide to Using Deed Records which is a $12 value for every attendee. Click this link to register. When we first start […]
A Genealogy Research Checklist
The beginning of the year is always a good time to reassess and track progress in genealogy. Below, I offer a checklist of questions that you can apply to any line of your family. My hope is that this list can help frame some of the goals for your research this year. Research Checklist 1. […]