It’s easy to get led down different paths during a day of research. You start out intending to look up only one branch of your family, or even just one person, and you end up finding so much more. It’s interesting, so you follow the clues to see where they lead you. Before you know it, you are researching a different branch or person entirely. Start out each research day with a clear plan of what you will be working on and stick to it. Keep notes of any additional interesting information you fin...
Apr 08, 2019•1 min
Are you descended from royalty? Most genealogists would love to discover this. It is something that sounds prestigious and gives you bragging rights in genealogical circles. The thing is, mathematics says we are all descended from royalty, whether or not we can prove it on paper. Today, I’ll show you how your royal heritage is possible. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/are-we-all-royalty-mathematics-seems-to-prove-it/ Listen via: https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes https://ancestralfin...
Apr 03, 2019•8 min•Season 5Ep. 237
If you’re having an “in the field” research day where you’re visiting cemeteries, libraries, archives buildings, town historians, town clerk’s, churches, courthouses, or other places away from your home, there is always the possibility of finding leads you never expected to find. These leads may cause you to want to go to places not on your list for the day. You’ll probably think that “just one more stop” won’t hurt, and may help you find exciting new information on your family. While this may b...
Apr 01, 2019•1 min
Have you ever searched a record collection or book, looking for a family or ancestor you know should be there, and come up emptyhanded? It could be because of misindexing. Today, I’ll talk about how misindexing happens, and how you can get around it to find your people. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/misindexing-a-common-brick-wall-and-how-to-get-around-it Listen via: https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube Weekly Giveaways: https://ancestralfindings...
Mar 29, 2019•7 min•Season 5Ep. 236
Have you ever considered giving back to the genealogical community? The community offers us so much, as we contribute to it by giving back, even in a small way. Today, I’ll show you why you should do it. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/giving-back-to-the-genealogical-community Listen via: https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube Weekly Giveaways: https://ancestralfindings.com/drawing Free eBooks: https://ancestralfindings.com/ebooks Hard To Find Surnam...
Mar 27, 2019•7 min•Season 5Ep. 235
This is probably the best and most effective time management research technique when it comes to genealogy. Tell yourself, and anyone else in your life who is affected by your hobby, that you will only spend a certain amount of time that day on research. Make this declaration before you start research for the day. It can be any amount of time you deem reasonable, or that you and your spouse or other loved one agree upon. Then, use either an egg timer or the alarm clock feature on your smartphone...
Mar 25, 2019•5 min
There are plenty of reasons for getting involved in doing genealogy. However, did you also know that it is a fun, fascinating hobby in and of itself? Today, I’ll give you some of the best reasons for getting involved in genealogy. It is a hobby you will love. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/the-top-things-that-make-genealogy-a-fun-fascinating-hobby Listen via: https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube Weekly Giveaways: https://ancestralfindings.com/draw...
Mar 22, 2019•8 min•Season 5Ep. 234
Have you ever heard of Mathew Brady? Join me today, as we look into his life and his photographs… to know what the Civil War really looked like. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/mathew-brady-photographing-civil-war/ Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaways: - https://ancestralfindings.com/drawing Free eBooks: - https://ancestralfindings.com/ebooks Hard To Find Surnames: - https://ancestralfindings.com/surnames...
Mar 20, 2019•8 min•Season 5Ep. 232
Today’s Genealogy Gold Tip... Check Out the Neighbors If your immigrant ancestor came here pretty early in the nation’s history, such as prior to 1850, you may need to look at additional records to find their nation and town of origin. Wills and probate records are good sources, as are tax lists, land sale records, and deeds. You can also look at their neighbors, and the records they left behind. It was common back then for people from the same town in a foreign country to immigrate together or ...
Mar 18, 2019•1 min
There is a hidden state between California and Oregon called Jefferson. On today’s episode, I’ll talk about the people who live in the area of Jefferson and why they are so serious about it. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/the-ghost-state-of-jefferson-all-you-need-to-know-about-the-state-you-didnt-know-about/ Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaways: - https://ancestralfindings.com/drawing Free eBooks: - https://ancestr...
Mar 15, 2019•5 min•Season 5Ep. 231
Once you have a clue or two from family stories and/or census records, you can go to immigration and naturalization records to look for confirmation of what you discovered. You can find these records at the National Archives (if you want to go look in person), and on Ancestry and FamilySearch (if you prefer to look online). If you want to be exceptionally thorough, as any good genealogist should, you should check all these sources. If you can’t make it to the National Archives in person, you can...
Mar 13, 2019•2 min
The Louisiana Purchase doubled the size of the United States and caused a lot of controversy for President Thomas Jefferson. Today, I’ll explain why it was such a controversial. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/louisiana-purchase-controversy Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaways: - https://ancestralfindings.com/drawing Free eBooks: - https://ancestralfindings.com/ebooks Hard To Find Surnames: - https://ancestralfindin...
Mar 12, 2019•5 min•Season 5Ep. 230
Do you have Ashkenazi Jewish DNA? This can be an exciting journey for you. Today, I’ll talk about who the Ashkenazi people are and what it means for your family history. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/ashkenazi-jewish-people-related/ Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaways: - https://ancestralfindings.com/drawing Free eBooks: - https://ancestralfindings.com/ebooks Hard To Find Surnames: - https://ancestralfindings.com...
Mar 08, 2019•6 min•Season 5Ep. 229
While family stories are notorious for having inaccuracies and outright falsehoods in them, there is usually a grain of truth in there somewhere. The more recently a family line immigrated to America, the more likely the family origin story is to be correct, while the further back in time the immigration happened, the less likely it is to be true. Even so, always verify all family origin stories, even with more recent immigrants. For example, I was always told growing up that my paternal grandfa...
Mar 07, 2019•2 min
Census records beginning in 1880 asked for the birthplace of an enumerated person’s parents. If you have a recent immigrant ancestor, or a suspected one, the 1880 and later census records can give you a clue as to whether they were born in the United States or not, and where their parents were born. Although you will still have to follow this information up with confirming records, because the people giving the information on the census may not have told the truth, for their own reasons, or may ...
Mar 06, 2019•2 min
Have you ever heard of foot shape genealogy? It is a concept out of the 19th century that still has some adherents today. It is based on the belief that the shape of your foot can tell you one of five ancient ethnic groups to which your ancestors belonged. Join me today and as I talk about this wild and crazy method. The French enjoyed much better relations with Native Americans than other European groups when they first came to American shores. Join me today and I’ll give you the reasons why. S...
Mar 05, 2019•5 min•Season 5Ep. 228
Don’t let having a limited budget keep you from doing your genealogy research. Some of the best research sites are expensive to use, such as Ancestry.com and GenealogyBank.com. Ordering the records you might have found on these sites can cost money, too. So, save yourself some money and further your genealogy research by going to the library. There are free genealogy resources online, but they are not always indexed, and it can take some time to search through them. On the other hand, most libra...
Mar 04, 2019•1 min
Your genealogy work will only be reliable to future generations (and publishers) if you keep good records of your work as you go. Don’t just treat your work haphazardly like a hobby, even if that is what it is. Even as a hobby, you want your work to be taken seriously. Being organized means you will know what work you have done, what work you still need to do, what sources you have used, and their origin and reliability. Having this information is good not only for giving credibility to your wor...
Mar 03, 2019•1 min
There is a chance someone might have already researched your family tree. Their work may be online or in the form of a published book. Do a check for these things before devoting too much time to a family line. However, do not take everything published online or in a book as gospel, either. Make sure anything you find has sources, and check for yourself to make sure those sources are correct. Only then can you use someone else’s research in your family tree; if you do, be sure to give them credi...
Mar 02, 2019•1 min
Have you ever heard of foot shape genealogy? It is a concept out of the 19th century that still has some adherents today. It is based on the belief that the shape of your foot can tell you one of five ancient ethnic groups to which your ancestors belonged. Join me today and as I talk about this wild and crazy method. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/your-foot-shape-and-your-genealogy Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaw...
Mar 01, 2019•8 min•Season 5Ep. 227
You are going to find more records for your own generation, and the two or three just before you, than anything farther back in time. There are a few reasons for this. At first, it will be because certain vital records were not required until the late 19th to early 20th century. As you go even farther back in time beyond the 1880s and 1890s, you will discover that all or most of the records you need simply aren’t there, because they have been lost during the passage of time. Courthouse fires are...
Feb 28, 2019•2 min
Are you a Mayflower descendant, or do you think you may be one? You have to do the research to make sure because a lot of families have a "Mayflower ancestor" myth. Join me today and as I show you how to gather the evidence to make sure you can claim that Mayflower ancestor as your own family. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/do-you-have-mayflower- ancestry-here-is-how-to-prove-it/ Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaway...
Feb 26, 2019•8 min•Season 5Ep. 226
Your family tree has hundreds of lines. As you go back in time beyond three or four centuries, it turns into thousands. This is because the number of your ancestors doubles with each generation going backward. You have four grandparents, eight great-grandparents, 16 great-great-grandparents, 32 great-great-great grandparents, and so on. You obviously can’t just jump into your family tree and swim around in the leaves, hoping to find something useful. You have to focus on one line at a time, and ...
Feb 24, 2019•2 min
If you are looking for your ancestors in old newspapers, you might not be getting the most out of every search. You want to make sure you find every mention of your ancestor, so today I’ll give you a couple of tips to help you ensure you do. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/how-to-do-more-effective-old-newspaper-searches/ Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaways: - https://ancestralfindings.com/drawing Free eBooks: - htt...
Feb 22, 2019•8 min•Season 5Ep. 225
eBay can be a wonderful resource for genealogical research. Because so few genealogists know about using it to find out about their family, its genealogical potential is underused. This is good news for you because you will have your pick of many interesting things involving your family when they come up on the site. You will have few, if any, competitors. If you haven’t used eBay for genealogical research, give it a try. You will be glad you did when you see the amazing things that appear on th...
Feb 21, 2019•1 min
Have you tried sending introductory emails to your DNA matches on DNA testing sites and gotten a poor response rate? You're not alone. It's all too common in the DNA world. Today I’ll share with you some excellent tips on how to get more of your matches to respond to you. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/how-to-communicate-with-your-dna-matches-the-proper-way/ Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaways: - https://ancestral...
Feb 19, 2019•8 min•Season 5Ep. 224
Irish ancestry isn't always the easiest to explore, but there are ways around the typical brick walls. Today I’ll give you some tips for getting the info you need on your Irish ancestors. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/why-is-doing-irish-genealogy-so-challenging-and-what-can-you-do-about-it/ Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaways: - https://ancestralfindings.com/drawing Free eBooks: - https://ancestralfindings.com/eb...
Feb 15, 2019•8 min•Season 5Ep. 223
These ten websites are among the best for genealogy beginners. Everyone has to start somewhere, and in the era of modern genealogy, you can do much without having to leave your house. Join me today and I’ll suggest using ten beginner websites to get you off to the best start. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/the-ten-best-genealogy-websites-for-beginners/ Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaways: - https://ancestralfindin...
Feb 12, 2019•7 min•Season 5Ep. 222
It is not uncommon to get Genealogy burn out every now and then when you are doing a lot of research. Fortunately, staying motivated, or getting re-motivated, is easy. Today I’ll give you some common sense tips for staying motivated as a genealogist. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/how-to-stay-motivated-with-your-genealogy-research/ Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaways: - https://ancestralfindings.com/drawing Free e...
Feb 08, 2019•8 min•Season 5Ep. 221
Are you trying to get past a genealogical brick wall? Are you simply stuck in your research on a family branch and feel like you are going around in circles? It is time to elevate your research skills. Even pros can do it. Join me today and I’ll give you six tips to make you a better researcher. Show Notes: https://ancestralfindings.com/become-a-better-researcher/ Listen via: - https://ancestralfindings.com/youtube - https://ancestralfindings.com/itunes Weekly Giveaways: - https://ancestralfindi...
Feb 05, 2019•8 min•Season 5Ep. 220
