Patricia Hartley

You Can Start a Genealogy Club in Your Area: Here’s How

Collaborating with others is one of the most cherished aspects of genealogy. While it’s entirely possible to make great progress conducting your family history research completely on your own, working and sharing with like-minded folks can be both helpful and a whole lot of fun.

9 Surprising Things About the U.S. Census Every Genealogist Should Know

Despite how valuable census records have become to family history researchers, they were not created for this purpose. For this reason we need to understand everything we can about this go-to resource if we are to walk away with the most accurate data available. Here are 9 census facts that may surprise you.

Can’t Find Great-Great-Grandma? Pro Tips for Researching the Women in Your Tree

Women were just as important to a household and community hundreds of years ago as they are today but, thanks to laws and social ideas that limited women’s roles and rights, their contributions and names are often lost to history. To uncover your female ancestors’ lives, you’re going to have to work harder, dig deeper and be more creative.

20 Things Your Ancestors Did That You Probably Never Will

Some folks yearn for the “good old days,” when times were simpler. But just because your ancestors lacked the hectic, technology-driven lifestyles we lead today doesn’t mean they had it easy. Luckily, some of the more complicated, strenuous, and dangerous tasks they endured are now obsolete.

Ready to Contact Your DNA Matches? Here’s What to Say (and NOT to Say)

DNA testing for ancestry is more popular than ever. More than 12 million Americans alone have now been tested. And with this many DNA results online in the various databases, chances are very, very good that you’re going to find hundreds of distant cousins when your results are processed.

The Search Tricks You Need to Find Your Ancestors With Bing

As search engines go, Google is the undisputed king. But, while there’s much to be said about the benefits of turning to Google for genealogical research, family historians can also get great results from trying other search engines, like Bing. Here’s how to make the most of your efforts.

9 Genealogy Gifts for the Family Historian on Your List

Have you been wondering what you should buy for the family historian on your list this year? We’ve gathered some of the most secretly wished-for genealogy gifts – plus some surprises your roots researcher may not even know she or he wants.