By Jodi Bash The HistoryLines website bills itself as “Instant Personal History.” Those of us who love family history get really excited when we think we can get a lot of valuable information quick and easy. So at first glance HistoryLines can seem a little disappointing. Instant personal history may be overselling it. But, like …
Can HistoryLines Really Build an Instant Personal History of Your Ancestors? Read More »
Here at Family History Daily we have spent a great deal of time researching free genealogy sites. While large paid websites, like Ancestry or MyHeritage, can offer a wealth of information to family history researchers, there is an growing selection of no-cost genealogy databases available online that provide just as much value. These sites, which are generally made available through the work of dedicated organizations, local governments, and volunteers provide a staggering amount of data that would be nearly impossible to access otherwise.
Generally, these sites provide information on those who have passed long ago, meaning that privacy is no longer an issue. But sometimes data about living people will be found. This is true on many sites – such as Ancestry – where you might just as easily find your own marriage record as that of your great great grandmother. But what happens when a site crosses the line? When they provide too much personal information about a living person and make it too easy to access?
From online databases to image archives, researching our family history has never been easier. However, there is one problem that digitization and online databases cannot fix: historical handwriting. From words no longer used to character formation, cursive style and even sentence structure, it can be very frustrating to the genealogist when deciphering old family documents or official papers. To assist you in this process, let me share some tips and tricks that I have learned in my own research.
While the official study of historical handwriting is known as Paleography, there is a lot more to it than you might think. Some basic themes and issues that you might encounter first are abbreviations and styles.
Need help figuring out how you are related to a distant cousin? You’re not alone. This simple, visual family relationship chart for genealogy will help.
By Tony Bandy From official documents and family snapshots to handwritten letters and more – incorporating scanned images and documents into your genealogy research can be rewarding on many levels. However, the process of digitizing them can often be difficult. You may find yourself wondering: what format(s) should I use/not use to store old family …
Digitizing Family Photos and Records: What’s the Best Format to Use? Read More »
On Sept 1, 2017 FamilySearch will make a big change to how they handle their vast collection of microfilmed genealogy records by no longer distributing them to the thousands of Family History Centers in the US and elsewhere.
Currently, researchers can request microfilms of millions of not-yet-digitized records to be delivered on loan to a local center. This service is provided at a nominal fee and allows researchers access to these records without having to travel to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City.
UK genealogy research leader Findmypast has announced that they are offering nearly all of their British and Irish records completely free of charge this weekend. From now until midnight Monday you can access these records without cost and without entering a credit card. Findmypast is only requiring a name and email address. We love that. Start by searching here and then easily view and download records of interest.
On March 22, 1933 The State in Columbia, South Carolina ran an article titled “Treatment of Jews by German Regime Stirs Washington” about the first Nazi concentration camp, Dachau. This early article covering the horrors of the Holocaust was one of countless published by U.S. papers in the 1930s and 40s. And now, a project from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is attempting to find them all.
With Father’s Day right around the corner, several large DNA testing companies are offering steep discounts on their tests for a short time. Whether you’ve been waiting for a deal to take a test yourself, or plan to share one with a family member, now might be the perfect time. We’ve included links to the deals …
From Conestoga wagons on long, dusty trails to pioneers struggling for success on a homestead in Oregon – America’s westward expansion in the latter part of the 1800’s has long held promise for genealogists. There’s a lot to consider when investigating your ancestor’s movement into the American West, primarily because no singular resource or database has it all. In fact, the sheer number of options in this category can make for some very trying research, especially if you are new to the topic.