Are you just starting your genealogy research? Are you going to write your autobiography or a bunch of family stories? Maybe you are going to write a biography of your grandmother? In any case, you are surrounded by genealogy-related items in your home (or in your grandmother’s home)! Here’s a list of the kinds of […]
Category: QuickSheets
Military records are yet another very useful set of records that will help you in finding more about your ancestors. There are a ton of records that are available for free online, and there are some very robust collections (such as Fold3 and Ancestry) that have sizable online military collections as well. Download the Quicksheet […]
Cemetery records and cemeteries in general are a very large part of our family history and are a significant pursuit for many genealogists. Sometimes, the information on a headstone is the only information available for certain ancestors. There are different types of cemeteries. Just being buried in a specific cemetery may provide a clue to […]
City and business directories are available online from all over the U.S. and Canada and are what I consider another important (and underutilized) set of information that can assist you in advancing your family history and genealogy research. Download the Quicksheet PDF I have put together a Quick Reference Guide that has websites where you […]
Does the thought of locating and searching through old probate records and wills turn you off, because you will need to go through some court’s smelly basement, where you have to pore through dusty old files of records? Let me tell you, whether you have to find them that way or online, they are incredibly […]
When researching our ancestors, one of the most important events is their marriage(s). Determining their spouse and the date and location of marriage is important as we document the major events in their lives. Most folks limit their search to the obvious repositories, whether online or not, focusing primarily on marriage certificates and licenses. There […]
When researching our ancestors, one of the most important events is their death (otherwise they wouldn’t be ancestors, they’d be relatives? – but I digress). Determining the date and location of death is important as we document the major events in their lives. Most folks limit their search to the obvious repositories, whether online or […]
Are you a DP.LA user? If not, you should. I find it to be “better than Google” for finding digitized resources owned by libraries, archives, and other similar institutions. In essence, it is like having online card catalogues from hundreds of institutions that I can search for digitized collections and items all at once. From […]
Google has several databases and functions that we can search and/or use, such as Google Books, Google Scholar, and others that are useful to us as genealogy researchers. This is an overview of some of these databases and functions: Download the Quicksheet PDF To obtain the one-page Quicksheet pdf for easy reference of what information […]
Generally, if you wish to find out information about an individual’s Social Security application, you will need to acquire that person’s SS-5 form, a photocopy of which can be obtained from the Social, Security Administration for a fee of $21.00. See SS-5 Form for the form itself and mailing instructions. The information included on the […]