Presentation: How Do I Start My Family History

It is so important to start out with a clear idea of what you already know about your family and what you want to learn.  Two simple resources can save you a lot of time and keep you on track in your research:

The Family Tree Worksheet

The Family Group Sheet

These are only two of the resources that are explained in the presentation, How Do  Start My Family History.  Most people that I provide assistance for have never filled out either of these two helps.  They are already searching for ancestors online without concrete details such as event dates and places.  Researching that way almost certainly lead you to a brick wall or to adopting people into your family that are really not related.  Beginning with a clear picture also makes it easier for those whom you turn to for direction.

Below is a brief selection from the genealogy presentation, "How Do I Start My Family History." The Family Tree Chart and the Family Group Sheet are helpful to keep them with you when you research at libraries and archives because they provide a snapshot of important details that can help you locate historical records.  To find out how to schedule a presentation visit Ask Me to Present.  See My Entire Social Presence.

Google Book Search Presentation

Google Book Search is a presentation where we demonstrate how to use the features of Google Books and the types of information that you can discover there to help you in your genealogical research:

Types of information

Biographical information:  You may find the actual name of an ancestor and vital information.

Historical events:  You can study the historical events that occurred during the lifetime of your ancestors and glean information about how events impacted their lives.

Local history:  It is possible to understand more about an ancestor's life from the local history available in an area.  This is a great place to turn when you have exhausted other avenues of research.  Research a contemporary of your ancestor and local history.  You may be surprised at what you may discover.

Viewing

Access to books varies on Google Books.  Some books are in the public domain, and you can view the entire book.  Other books have a limit as to how many pages you can view because they are still available for purchase.  Even some out of copyright books have limited viewing.  We discuss the best ways to gain access to information contained in each type of book.

Narrowing your search results

With so many resources available through Google Books, it is important to be able to narrow your search results.  In the example above, three out of four of the first results contained information about my ancestor, Beverly Vance.

For more information see Ask Me to Present.

One of the most informative marriage records

English: Screen capture of FamilySearch.org web site (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I was looking for more information on the McClure family from Birmingham, Alabama in the databases at FamilySearch.org.  You know when you notice a collection only has a few records indexed, you feel a heart drop because usually the people you are searching for are not included yet.

The Alabama County Marriages, 1809-1950 collection is only about 38% complete with 566,839 records so far.  When I have searched incomplete databases helping others, it gets a little disheartening at this point.  I start to feel guilty for not doing more indexing to help.  In the description of each collection above the search field is a link (Learn more) that will take you to an article that will tell you more about the particular historical record you are searching.

I have to say I was prompted to take a stab at searching anyway, and I was pleased to see many McClures had been indexed. Because there is a lot of information that we are unsure of, I figured I would be more successful searching the names of the parents hoping they would bring up the marriage records for the children.  This is a way around not knowing names of spouses and only having maiden names.

I was delighted to find one of the most informative marriage records ever, the marriage record for Essie and her husband, John Doyle.  According to my husband's oral history, Essie lived with her grandparents for a time.  The information in the marriage record included:

1.  The births and addresses of both spouses.
2.  The parent's names of both spouses.
3.  The certificate was signed by Essie's grandmother, Coreain, who all previously lived with her aged parents, Harry and Lula Bell Jackson after the death of Coreain's husband, Columbus.
4.  The name of the minister who married the couple.  Now we can search for the church.

Of particular interest is discovering the address where Essie was living because we can now visit this site.  We can now search previous census records for John's family too.

I am just amazed at all the information contained here.  My husband is busy now extracting all the data.

"Alabama, County Marriages, 1809-1950," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VZV1-VKN : accessed 25 Feb 2013), Columbus Mcclure in entry for John Doyle and Essie Mae Mcclure, 30 Oct 1947; citing Jefferson County; FHL microfilm 2409263.

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The parable of the lifeguard

One day there was a lifeguard that appeared along the shore.  He had arrived with his family on an errand to help save the drowning souls in the waters along the beach.  The lifeguard came equipped with the skills needed, and immediately waded into the water to cast the lifeline.

English: Lifeguard Post, Hove Beach King's Esplanade is to the left whilst the piers can be seen in the background. The flags indicate the wind direction. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The lifeguard waited for the chance to officially serve.  He decided to ask, and was assigned.  Unfortunately, soon people came forward to call the lifeguard to task.  He used different methods in search and rescue, and was asked to cease.

The lifeguard became frustrated.  Despite the souls drowning, he silently pulled a few to safety, and searched around for another beach.  He had promised his employer that he would save as many as he could, so he petitioned for beaches close by the place where he had moved his family.

Soon those responsible for the lives on the beaches close by learned of the credentials of the lifeguard, and he showed them all he had learned.  The knowledge of navigating the waves to steer souls to safety spread for hundreds of miles.

The lifeguard traveled further, but still yearned for the souls lost in the water along the beach where he lived.  One day, he received word that a beach was closing in a place where more family were drifting in the water and not able to see their way clearly to shore, so he left his family for a season to find people to help man this new beach.

He longed for family back home, but he found many who did embark in lifeguard training.  The future looked promising until the lifeguard received word that his family was now back home drowning and did not want to leave the water to join him where he now was.

Lifeguard at the Praia Grande ('Large Beach'). Porto Covo, west coast of Portugal (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Returning home, the lifeguard faced the glares for leaving and accusations of folly.  He eventually stayed home or in the water rather than wander among the crowd along the beach.  The lifeguard safety net was still viable, and became a protection for the lifeguard himself.  He yet continued the craft of soul saving only to realize the soul who benefited the most was his own.

With a strong arm, he directed his family to safety.  They had been baited out onto the water by gifts and acceptance without duties - with favor without faith.  They could not stand alone among the waves that came rushing in.

What a blessing the employer had equipped the lifeguard and had provided opportunities along the waters of distant shores so the lifeguard could be strong enough to help his family wade through the murky water back to the safety of home.

The story does not end here.  Word has it that the employer has promised the lifeguard employment along the ultimate beach where beauty and work and friendship will not cease.  He has been promised prosperity and protection and that his family will follow him this time too.

Lifeguard jumping into action in Ocean City, Maryland. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So if you are a steward along this new beach, be careful not to overlook the lifeguard.  He will be easy to spot.  You will find him already in the water and not sunning along the beach.  He will be pulling others to safety for that he has taken an oath to do.  Don't be offended, and be sure to sustain.  He is your servant, but you cannot employ him for he knows there is One who has already done so.

Genealogy: My quest to find the living, Part 1

An extended family: Eastpoint, Florida (Photo credit: State Library and Archives of Florida)

I really enjoyed creating this resource because it brought back so many fond memories of discovering extended family. The resources and methods described here have helped me to learn more about my ancestors (photos and stories) through many extended family members that I have discovered. This will probably take up more than one post.

One of the purposes for me in researching extended family was to discover what they could tell me about my ancestors so that I could preserve history in books for my future posterity.  I have been able to publish several books, but I still have along way to go. 

I was very fortunate as a child to have heard the conversations between family members about the past.  I would wait for the discussion to break, and then I would interject my own questions that I anxiously wanted to have answered.  I did this without pen or paper.  My interest was so great, I would often look forward to the times the family would get together so I could learn more.  I hope every young person has the opportunity to hear family stories from parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles. 

While young, I began asking questions of my grandmother when we were alone.  I wanted to know about her parents and grandparents. I questioned her about what life was like growing up on the farm.  I asked her about slavery and if she knew any stories of slaves in our family.  She told me that her grandmother was sold from her mother as a slave as a very young child.  She also told me that a grandmother was freed from slavery when she was a child.  

I did not think of asking the name of her grandmother back then.  I know now that it was either Martha Sims Talley or Elenia Coleman Chick.  My grandmother, Otis, would have known both of her grandparents well.  I have documented both of them on the census back to 1870 and on other historical records.

Otis Edna Tucker was very much a lady.  She carried herself as a lady throughout her life.  I  never saw her in anything but a dress. She was very careful to teach me what it meant to be "trifling" as she would say.  I have become like her in a huge way.  She grew up in a time where it did not take much for African Americans to be treated with disrespect.  She knew it was important not to give anyone a reason to disrespect her.  

She was the oldest, and helped out a great deal on the farm.  She even taught in a one room school house where some of her siblings where her students.  Her dad introduced her to Emory Wallace Vance, and little did he know they would later elope.

I have traced the Tuckers and the Chicks clear back beyond the 1700's.  Both of my great grandparents descend from slave owners.  Our records are intertwined within the records of the former owners and their children.  

It was through a family reunion during later years that a print of the photograph of the father of George Anderson Tucker which hung in their home was shared.  A photo of Martha, George's mother, hung alongside it, but it was destroyed in a house fire.

When I began researching, I traced my ancestors back as far as I could.  I wanted to learn more, and as I looked at all the names of their descendants I had recorded on extraction forms in my search, I wondered if there was anyone alive that could tell me more.

I decided to search each census forward to identify extended family that could still be living.  I branched out on several collateral lines. In the next article, I will share some of those census discoveries and how I learned about more members of each family group. 

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I started my StoryPress audio library

I was dancing around just like a kid last night (inside, LOL) after I downloaded StoryPress.  Reviewing all the features, I played around a little and started my own audio book.  I thought I would give you a quick run down on what I learned so far.  Please forgive the darkness of some of these shots.  I was trying to block the glare.

When you open StoryPress, you will discover it is so easy to use that you can just dive in.  There will be one green book on the shelf entitled, "Create A New Book." Notice I already have two of my own audio books on the shelf:

I clicked on the green book where I entered my name the way I want it to appear on the book:

 I entered my birthday:

 Then the real fun came when I found out I could choose  from one of the book covers included...

or use my own photo!

 After I edited the title, I clicked "Approve," and I chose to use the interview questions built into the app:

 

I love this feature because there are so many questions that I can choose to answer, and I can skip the ones I don't.  The built-in questions will make it so easy for the times I am interviewing a family member.

The Interview Mode features keep you from feeling rushed.  I love that I can stop and come back to where I left off when I return.

My book will stay on the top shelf until I am finished and ready to share it.   By the way, I think I will go back in now.  I will keep you posted about my finished project!  To learn more, see:  Download the StoryPress app  free through the holidays.

"11 Ways" update coming soon!

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