Most of the time every family story has a kernel of truth, even if it is the smallest crumb. The trick is following the trail of crumbs to the truth. Below are a few steps that I have used in the past to help me find and follow the crumbs of family lore...
Ask family
- Family gatherings (Reunions, Holidays, Visits with Parents or Grandparents)
Use the internet
- Personal family history website
- Genealogy message boards
- Internet Searches
Social Media
- Facebook groups for a shared surname or location
Find it on your own
- Take a look at an ancestor that has an interesting gap in his or her timeline or did something that just didn't make sense. Research it. You may discover a very interesting story.
Keep in mind:
- Make it fun for your family to share the story
- Don't discount any story, even the wild ones. Sometimes they turn out to be true
Here are a few examples of stories I have discovered, investigated or verified after talking with family members
- Charles at Large: The Search for Charles Hawley
- Faught Lake: Could it be Foch Lake?
- William Burt: Are we a witness??
- Niergarth School in Rust, Montmorency, Michigan
- The Sad Death of Margaret (McKenzie) Clark and her Children
- Elizabeth Miller and the hope of a cure
- McKenzie Schoolhouse: Two Brothers, One Schoolhouse and Years of Memories
- Family Story Friday: The candy store account
- Boys will be boys and thank goodness for uncles
- A Near Miss and the love between brothers
Start with the key information from the story, even if it doesn't seem possible. Uncle George may have lived in Tibet where he met his 6th wife, you never know...
Create a timeline
- Start your timeline based on the story you were told
- Fill in details that you already know from your genealogy research (Birth, marriage, census dates, children's births, death, etc..)
- Add in historic events that could have affected the person or location in the story
- I have found it helpful in the past to create a comparison timeline in cases where I was comparing two individuals
Start analyzing
- Find the holes in the story (missing dates or dates that don't make sense, duplicate events or locations)
- Write down your questions about the story
Here are a few examples of stories I have discovered, investigated or verified using timelines:
Look for records that can prove or disprove the family story.
Create a list
- Create a simple list of records that may prove or disprove the story
- This may include census records, birth records, marriage records, death records, newspapers, written accounts, or county histories
- Focus on the holes in the story and the questions you came up with in the previous step
Analyze the records you find
- Look closely
- Question everything
- Don't assume the details are wrong because they don't match previous research (that one detail could break the case)
- Compare the information you find to the information you already have
- Ask yourself, does this prove or disprove the story? Why?
- Write everything down
Update your timeline
- Update your timeline with the new information you have found
- Add the contradicting information in, keep it there until you can disprove it
- If needed, create a comparison timeline
Update your list of questions
Hopefully, your list of questions is shrinking, but if your research is anything like mine, it is only growing
- Update or add clarification to existing questions
- Add new questions
Branch out your research to those that lived with or around, worked with and associated with the main character(s) of your story. Researching the lives of our ancestor's family, friends, neighbors and business associates can lead to a more complete and accurate picture of their life. Your ancestors did not live in a bubble. They went to school, work, church, block parties, and other events, and this is where cluster research comes into play.
Family
- Family stuck together
- Siblings struck out to new locations together or followed a sibling that had already immigrated or relocated.
- Children moved to take care of elderly parents
- Parents moved closer to children to help out when a new baby was born or when a spouse passed away
- Looking at your ancestor's sibling can provide missing information, such as:
- Parent's names
- A woman's maiden name
- Possible birth location
Cluster genealogy is a research technique employed by genealogists to learn more about an ancestor by examining records left by the ancestor's cluster. A person's cluster consists of the extended family, friends, neighbors, and other associates such as business partners.
Naming patterns
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- While certain names are popular in different areas at different times in history, the repetition could represent a pattern. Many cultures believe in honoring their elders and do so by naming children after them
- This could help you discover the name of a parent or grandparent
Friends
- Look at baptism, marriage, naturalization, and probate records. Who were the witnesses? How are they connected? Even when there is no obvious connection to the witnesses, you can gain information. Why didn't they have a close friend or family member witness the event?
- Look for the church they attended and those they worshiped with
Neighbors
- Look at census records and land maps
- I have found several examples of neighbors being family or otherwise connected to an ancestor
- If your ancestor was not living with their family, at an age where you would expect them to, ask "Why?"
- Being near family, friends, and neighbors when immigrating or relocating often provided a sense of security and stability
- Family that lived near each other, especially in rural communities, often inter-married. If was very common to marry the girl/boy next door.
- The lines between friends and family can become blurred. “Uncle” Charlie or "Aunt" Molly might not be blood-related at all, but instead an honorary member of the family, or a second or third cousin that is referred to as Aunt or Uncle
- Look at newspapers for local events.
- Even if you don't find your ancestor, you may find a clue to an event that may have affected your ancestor or influenced a decision they made that didn't originally make sense to you.
Business associates
- Look at land and business records
- Who did your ancestor sell land to or buy land from? Could these people be family?
- Who did your ancestor go into business with or have the same profession as? It could be a family trade or an apprenticeship.
Here are a few examples of stories I have discovered, investigated or verified using cluster research
Genealogy research can often seem like a solitary hobby, but there is power in numbers.
Look for research already started
- Ask around, you may discover a treasure trove of research that has already been compiled by a family member.
- Expand beyond immediate family to inquire about research
- If you find a hidden treasure, keep this in mind
- Be respectful, this research could represent years of your family members time, energy and passion. Treat the document, book, pictures, etc with care. If you disagree with a previous finding share your thoughts but don't discount the work previously completed.
- Don't just take the resource and move on. Take the time to talk to the person that did the research, if you are able. There is most likely research tips, evidence, references and stories that weren't written down or recorded
- Look for sources, not all family histories will be sourced and cited, use the information as a starting point but verify it yourself
- Looking online is not always the best option, most likely the research will be in paper format
Look for groups that are researching the same surname or location
- Check out local historical society in the location you are researching
- Look for message boards (Rootsweb, Ancestry, Family Search, etc.)
- Look for family history websites
- Look for groups on social media. Facebook groups related to genealogy have become very popular. I belong to several and have found it very helpful.
- Check online family trees. Although online family trees can be inaccurate, you may find a story, photo or other research attached that will help
When you feel that you have searched and analyzed all the records you can, DNA might be the next step. DNA research can help you:
- Confirm a connection that you have already discovered by following the paper trail
- Find new possible connections when the paper trail runs dry
- Prove an NPE (Nonpaternal event) that is suspected, but can't be proved through traditional methods. This becomes especially important when researching ancestors who were born before the 20th century.
- Connect with family members, both closely related and distant to collaborate and share information
Here are a few examples of stories I have discovered, investigated or verified using cluster DNA
The hardest part of this journey, at least for me, is getting to a point where I am comfortable and confident in my own conclusion. As soon as I feel I have a solid conclusion about what really happened, I start to second guess myself. What I have learned is that you have to start somewhere. Write out your conclusion and run with it. I typically try to include outstanding questions, concerns or doubts in my conclusion. This provides a place to go back to when you find a new clue or piece of information.
Write it Out and Share
So you have written your conclusion. Hopefully, you are a 100% confidence that you are correct, or maybe you still have some doubts. Either way, share what you have found. There are several ways to do this:
Some examples include:
- Write a blog post - This has been the method I have found the most helpful. Writing the blog post accomplishes several things;
- Allows me to verbally think through my conclusion and understand how others may read and understand it
- Creating a blog post allows for a larger audience to read and share your conclusion
- A blog post will allow other researchers and family members to interact with you through blog comments and email. This can lead to new and interesting discoveries
- Share your story or conclusion using an online family tree. Several family tree sites allow you to upload stories, memories, and documents that can be attached to one or more members of your family tree
- Share it with family or fellow researchers.
- This can be a short document shared by mail, email, or online storage sites. It could be a single word processing document or a collection of documents and stories put together in a binder. It doesn't have to be extravagant or professionally bound to be worth sharing
- You can create a book using genealogy software like FamilyTree Maker, RootsMagic, Legacy, etc
- You can create a book using online software such as Blurb.com, Snapfish.com, or Mycanvas.com
Be Open to Feedback
Most importantly, be open to feedback and comments about your conclusion. Anyone that has taken the time to research and document their family history develops a sense of ownership over their research. This is natural, just keep in mind that not everyone understands the trials and tribulations of researching your family history. Nor do they have a clue as to the number of hours spent in libraries and courthouses, or late nights researching online. However, sometimes the most amazing and helpful information you can receive is from other's who have either no connection to your family, but have dealt with similar situations in their own research or those family members that have no real interest in genealogy, but have that one little tidbit of knowledge that might break the case wide open. Accept all input, feedback, and suggestions with an open mind and a researcher's curiosity. Be gracious when you receive feedback and thank the person providing it. This will create a relationship that may prove to be very beneficial in the future.
Disclaimer
I am not a professionally accredited genealogist, nor do I believe that this post covers all possible methods of researching or sharing your family stories. However, these are some of the tips and tricks that have worked for me over the last 15 years. As I try to take my own advice, I welcome any feedback, suggestions or input regarding tips and tricks that have worked for you. Thank you for taking the time to read this post. I look forward to hearing about your own research methods when following your journey to discover your ancestors.
Very informative! I like the graphics, too.
Loved your flowchart! I created a shortcut to your post because it is full of some very useful advice and I know I will want to reference it again.