Genealogy Helps Lesson 1, "Building a foundation for your Family Research"

Genealogy Helps Lesson 1

"Building a foundation for your Family Research"

© August 30, 2006 M. Emmett Townsend

         (Copies may be printed by Gather.com members for personal incidental use, all other rights reserved)

          This is the first in a series of lessons (I will try to do one a week.) that I am creating as I go. I felt strongly impressed that this would be a good way to help/teach and remind those who have done family research before, what the process is like and how you can make a system for doing the research. This is NOT the gospel of Genealogy, except if you think it is Matthew Townsend's Gospel of Genealogy… I will make mistakes and I will correct them when I am made aware of them and or realize what I might have done incorrectly.

            This first section beginning with what you know is the foundation of your research. Why you might ask? Well quite simply family research is different then topical research, because in family research you're looking for actual real connections between people from generation to generation and even across the millenniums.  Without a basis for those connections you would be lost, just looking at a ton of information about people who may or may not be your direct ancestors.  So like planting the seed we begin our family tree small with just what we know and in fact ourselves.

            When you first start this do it on paper, just plane paper as a brain storming tool, don't worry too much about organization yet... (The exception is if you're not going to do this on a computer, then start with a spiral notebook with some pockets in it maybe a two subject so you can separate info about a spouse's family from your own.) We will organise the info later but just let's get into the meat of the subject first.

1. Beginning with what you know.
2. 1. Who are you?

                                                              i.      Name

                                                            ii.      Place of Birth

                                                          iii.      Date of Birth

                                                          iv.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

                                                            v.      Occupation

                                                          vi.      Hobbies

                                                        vii.      Nick name

                                                              i.      Name

                                                            ii.      Place of Birth

                                                          iii.      Date of Birth

                                                          iv.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

                                                            v.      Occupation

                                                          vi.      Hobbies

                                                        vii.      Nick name

                                                              i.      Names

1.      child1

2.      child2

3.      child3

                                                            ii.      Place of Birth

1.      child1

2.      child2

3.      child3

                                                          iii.      Date of Birth

1.      child1

2.      child2

3.      child3

                                                          iv.       Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

1.      child1

2.      child2

3.      child3

                                                            v.      Occupation

1.      child1

2.      child2

3.      child3

                                                          vi.      Hobbies

1.      child1

2.      child2

3.      child3

                                                        vii.      Nick name

1.      child1

2.      child2

3.      child3

1.      Who is your mother?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

2.      Who is your Father?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

3.      Who is your Spouses Mother?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

4.      Who is your Spouses Father?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

1.      Who is your mother's mother?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

2.      Who is your Mothers Father?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

3.      Who is your Spouses Mother's Mother?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

4.      Who is your Spouses Mothers Father?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

5.      Who is your Fathers Mother?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

6.      Who is your Fathers Father?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

7.      Who is your Spouses Fathers Mother?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

8.      Who is your Spouses Fathers Father?

a.      Name

b.      Place of Birth

c.       Date of Birth

d.      Date of christening or baptism (or circumcision or any other religious right of passage worthy of remembering)

e.      Occupation

f.        Hobbies

g.      Nick name

 Are you beginning to see the pattern here? Yes well, remember this is the seed of all the research you're going to do, it will give you something you know so you are confident enough to look for what you do not yet know. With this seed will grow a Mighty Oak (and I am not talking a Texasok here but a Great New EnglandWhite Oak) one that will inspire and shade your family in times of trouble, and delight you in times of joy.

            I will be posting a form called a "Family Group Sheet" this is the kind of form you will need to organize things.  I will suggest everyone keep a notebook handy, because you will find at the oddest times and places you will find out bits and pieces of family information and might want to jot down the source and the info for later inclusion. Speaking of sources, you will need to keep track of them because you may want to double check some information and you will need to know where or who you received it from. The first source will be of course your self and your spouse… after that it will be people websites, books, histories, churches, genealogy societies, genealogical index's and town records, and perhaps letters from the past. All of these sources and records will help you when you begin to write the "history side of your family" something important to do if you're to think of these people you're connected to as more then just names…

Well enough for Lesson.1, please forgive its length, and if you need me to tell me to cut one like this into part one and part two etc… even if just for ease of reading.