Family Story
Your family stories are precious threads in the tapestry that make your family unique. Even if they have inconsistencies, they create your family’s mythology, and will hold very important clues that give your research a sense of place, or have a name, a church, or important dates. Start talking with the family elders (with a tape recorder)
geography
We live in places, and those places have their own stories: towns, churches, houses, and other institutions. Try to find the places that your family members were born, married, died. These places become critical in your research as you need to look further into your family’s story.
Archival documents
This is the fun part: There is a lot online about your family, right now! Through censuses, military records, and even birth, marriage, and death records—you can find pieces of your family story. Click on the link below, set up a free account, and start searching.
DNA
It’s true that “DNA don’t lie,” so only begin testing yourself and family members when you are ready to uncover family secrets. You may find previously unknown family members or even more profound truths. Genealogists are uncompromisingly committed to the truth, but each family needs to come to terms with when and if to take this step.