Including Family Tree Research In a History Curriculum

Submitted by levyzoo on Saturday, July 19, 2003 - 17:33

My disclaimer: The Bible tells us to not be tied up with "endless genealogies". I personally don't think researching my family history falls into that category, but some families may. Use your own discernment & enjoy the endless history you uncover about your family tree.

My sister began our family tree research years before the computer was commonly used. She interviewed relatives, mailed off payments for vital records, and wrote her research by hand. As I picked up where she left off, my job was much easier...most records can be obtained free from the Internet or swapped among cyber-relatives via genealogy message boards. I've dug into the Mayflower branch we have on my mother's side, finding wills, relationships to Presidents, and even arrests! My father's family came to Vermont from Canada, and many French-Canadian records are on the web, unfortunately not always in English. My husband's Jewish family emigrated to NYC from Russia in the early 1900's, and is my most challenging tree to date. Doing research, I've met unknown or long-lost relatives, discovered historical facts I never knew (or cared to!), and developed a respect for these old families who wanted to make the best life possible for their children.

You should begin with any information your family already has...Don't waste your time starting from scratch, collect the easy stuff & then dig deeper. Begin locally and use the web before you use time & gasoline to travel to far away archives. Use family vacations "back home" to dig while you visit. Use that time to have the children interview relatives, especially older ones who carry a priceless oral history in their heads. My children like searching cemeteries for our family gravestones when we visit Vermont each year. Last summer I had a meeting with a cyber-cousin who has compiled our family history from Canada to France!

Some words you may encounter:
Genealogy...the study of family histories (or family trees)
Immigration...leaving your homeland
Emigration...entering a new homeland
Naturalization...citizenship application
Ancestors..."branches" before & after the specified person
Descendants..."branches" after the specified person
Gedcom...a format to save & transfer genealogy files between computers

Your family tree will probably never be finished, as names & dates just keep appearing. Work on it for a while, put it away for a time, pass it on to another relative, etc. A family tree scroll makes a wonderful gift to enclose in a family member's greeting card. I've made scrapbooks for my mother, my husband, and many others. You're discovering, sharing, and preserving your family history. And don't be too surprised if you turn up some amusing or embarrassing skeletons!

To begin on the web, do a search on:
"Genealogy & ... " Your last name, Your mom's maiden last name, The state your family originated from, Your ethnic background, etc. Use an advanced search option if your family is concentrated in one area.
"Ancestry & ... " Your last name, Your mom's maiden last name, The state your family originated from, Your ethnic background
Then do the same topic searches again, but with a different search engine such as:
www.mamma.com
www.about.com
www.hotlinks.com
www.aol.com
www.dogpile.com

(For example, I might do a search on my maiden name: "Coutermarsh & Canada". The search engine would look for both words to narrow my results. Another search I might try my ancestor John Doty: "Doty & Mayflower". Anytime I hit unsatisfactory results, I change a word or the search engine.)

Each website offers something different. Some share their personal family genealogy; many are free while others are subscription based; sites like Cindi's List are a compilation of 1000's of web links to search; some sites are name specific while others allow you to search by the sound of the surname; thousands of records have been copied from public records; the records can be in your state, the US or worldwide; research may be recent or from hundreds of years ago.

www.Ancestry.com
www.Rootsweb.com
www.Familytreemaker.com
www.Genealogy.com
www.Genweb.net
www.Hotlinks.com
www.Genealogylibrary.com
www.Surnamesite.com
www.Ourtimelines.com
www.Knowx.com
www.Cyndislist.com
www.Searchforancestors.com
www.Hamrick.com www.Jewishgen.com
www.Worldgenweb.org
www.genealogylinks.net
www.Blm.gov/
www.Myfamily.com
www.Familyhistory.com
www.Headstonehunter.com
www.Ushm.org
www.Nara.gov/
www.Loc.gov
www.KindredKonnections.com
www.Vitalrec.com
www.Genforum.com
www.censuslinks.com
www.censusonline.com
www.myhistory.org
www.Usgenweb.com
www.european-archival.net
www.mayflowersociety.com
www.Wallofhonor.com
www.surnameweb.org
www.francogene.com
www.histology.to/directory.html

Other areas to look for information are in Libraries (Local, state, & federal); Town/City Hall Vital Records (birth, death, & marriage); Religious Records; Census Records; Immigration & Naturalization records; Ship passenger lists; Social Security Administration; Military records; Cemeteries; Ethnic or Historical Period groups; Historical & Genealogy Societies; Internet Family Archives; Genealogy magazines; Newspapers - obituaries, articles about a person; Book stores-new & used; Family Bibles; Land Records; School & College Records; Your relative's memories & photos; Mormon Church Family History Centers; & the National Archives.

Some computer programs you might choose are Family Tree Maker (the most widely used), Generations Family Tree, The Genealogist's All-in-one Address Book; or Everton's Computerized Family File Vol. 1, 2, 3. The programs compile your info, call your attention to duplicates or errors, print out family tree charts, and can be loaded onto discs for sharing.

Books & magazines relating to genealogy are abundant...Finding Your Roots by Jeane Eddy Westin; Family Fill-In Book, Discovering Your Roots by Dian Dincin Buchman; My Family Tree Workbook, Genealogy for Beginners by Rosemary A. Chorzempa; First Steps in Genealogy, A Beginner's Guide by Desmond Walls Allen; The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy by Val Greenwood; The Complete Idiot's Guide to Genealogy; Do People Grow on Family Trees?, Genealogy for kids & other beginners by Ira Wolfman; Netting Your Ancestors, genealogical Research On the Internet by Cyndi Howells; In Search of Your Roots by Angus Baxter; Filby's List...passenger lists from the 1800's, available locally at W & M Swenn Library; They Came In Ships by John Phillip Colletta; The Famine Immigrants; & Everton's Genealogy Helper Magazine.

Have fun discovering your family's roots!