Find Ancestors

Work backwards from solid facts that you know are correct.

Dont trust family memories. Uncle Fred may have been baptised Joe and he was a foreman at the factory, not the factory owner!

Remember that the facts that are clear to you are unknown to those trying to help. Give names, dates, places and events - everything you can to help them help you. Make sure the ones you give are accurate.

Be aware you WILL have to spend some money if you want a family history that is accurate.

People are very happy to help but please give ALL the details you have as kind souls can be a bit upset if they have spent time and sometimes money finding info only to be told, "yes I knew that".

PLEASE dont just say "any information wanted on xxxxx xxxx" be more specific.


Please post on one board only at a time.

Ensure you give the relevant names in the title AND in the body of the text.

You will NOT receive notification of replies, hang around for responses or CHECK back quickly.


GOOGLE for everything you want information on, locations, dates, areas, names, other genealogical sites, occupations etc. , you may even find someone with a family tree that fits with yours.

And read EVERY thread on here and on the Tips and Records Boards, not just your own, because you learn from other peoples queries .

Use the search box to find info on particular subjects that may have been discussed several times. Use the Search Trees tab to see if your names are on others trees already.


If you are going to add extra info or reply to a query, click on your thread and then add reply and enter the new info in the box. Please dont send a reply by private message as some of us are answering several queries at the same time and just sending a note saying 'James was born in Yorkshire' will not mean anything to us. Add it to your thread and then everyone will see the update and be able to follow it up.


Finding the information yourself is such a buzz.

Women did get pregnant before they married even in Victorian times and couples did live together without marrying.


Use freebmd.org for births, deaths and marriages but remember it isnt complete as its being transcribed for us by volunteers. If you dont find a bmd on there, look at ancestrys complete index. The entries will give the GRO ref - the quarter, year, registration district, volume and page number of the event. You need that reference to buy the certificate.

When you are searching for a marriage and dont find it when you expect, go several years after the birth of the kids (Ive had marriages 2 decades after the kids were born).

Order certificates only from the following site - a straightforward cert with the GRO ref given should cost £9.25 - do not use similar sounding sites which charge up to £50 for a certificate!!!!

http://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/

Please say please. Im surprised how some people having been given some good info dont even thank the submitter. Its rude and quite understandably it tends to put people off helping you further or again.


Get a good family tree program to enter all your info on as you get it as 6 months later something that doesnt seem to fit now will be just the bit you need. GRs tree is not a good one, get one on your computer that you can back up to cd and the internet.

Record the source of the information that you add to your tree program.


Use familysearch.org (the mormon LDS site) for pre 1837 bmd - 1837 is the date when registration started and certificates were given - but registration was not compulsory until 1875. The IGI is far from complete and some of the information is submitted by members and can be wildly inaccurate, dont take it as gospel.

For pre 1837 bmd ultimately you have to trawl the parish registers for accurate information. There are other sites on the internet which have SOME parish records and there are Online Parish Clerks for some areas who will do look ups. Google the names and areas you are interested in.


Remember that census info is often not strictly accurate - that years of birth may change or names be spelt differently - it depends on who gave the info, the enumerator hearing the info correctly and then the guys back at the office transcribing it on to further sheets - which are the census images we see. On top of that we have ancestry's staff doing their best with sometimes dreadful originals to work from.

So if someone gives you info which doesnt seem absolutely right, dont dismiss it immediately AND always look at the image, not just the transcription - you may find more inf

Still needed :)

Nudging - to keep in view.

Wish GR would 'sticky it.................

Good advice here.

Bumpety Bump :-)

Always good tips from Heather.

n

Well Jonesy's tips are brilliant. I think GR ought to have one board of sticky tips to help people. Gawd knows why they dont.

Good morning everyone.

Just another little nudge for this good advice.

n

Gosh - how helpful..Just one thing - do you have idea how I can find the TIME? I've been in and out of the site for years on and off but never have the time to follow through.

Thanks for all the info

Angela.

n

Noted - many thanks for the sound advice, which I will follow.

...wish the searches on BMD could be refined a bit more, tricky for a newby looking for a death.

With best wishes

Susanne

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n

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n

this is great advice................found most of it out the hardway...............especially the bit about family stories !!!!

x

This is so true. Spent ages look for an Uncle Ben only to discover his real name was Thomas!!!