I need help on looking up my entire family tree and history..?

Question

okay, i would like lots of help from everyone. i want to know my entire family tree and history. i have some info already, i just need help on finding the rest! i have a PAF file of my family info so far. so if your like really good at looking up family history please let me know so i can send you the file through e-mail. thanks.

Answer 1

Your very best bet would be to interview your own family members - especially the elders. And, don't just stop with your parents or grandparents. Their sisters/brothers, aunts/uncles, cousins, etc. might have information that your immediate family is unaware of & the human interest stories you will likely hear can be invaluable as it's rare to find more than names & dates in other avenues of research. However, you should take advantage of those other avenues, as well. And, as for the internet, I would suggest you begin with this site: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/. It is a free branch of ancestry.com and has some very good tips, hints & suggestions for beginners, as well as some submitted family histories. If you are truly dedicated to finding your ancestors, you are in for a rewarding hobby but keep in mind the advice both Wendy & Shirley have given you - don't expect this to be a quick project and don't take all the information you find to be 'set in stone'. Even your own grandmother might not be precise on the day her parents were married, for example. Have Fun!

Answer 2

http://www.cyndislist.com/beginner.htm

Many tips on how to start your research. There are also many people here who are willing to help you.. however, please don't expect anyone to find your whole history for you. That is a project that takes YEARS.

Answer 3

Here is another site that is free and will help you with your ancestry quest:

http://www.familysearch.org/

http://www.familysearch.org/eng/Home/Wel...

Have fun and good luck!

Answer 4

In addition to what Wendy and Shirley said, it is IMPOSSIBLE to know your ENTIRE family tree and history.  MOST of human history occurred before humans began keeping written records.  There were no marriage records, birth and death certificates, wills, court and land records, etc., before a few hundred years ago.  Also, the mere number of ancestors is staggering.  If you go back just to your 10th great-grandparents, who would have lived roughly around the year 1640, you would have almost 5,000 ancestors between now and then to research; if you go back to your 15th great-grandparents, who on average would have lived roughly around the year 1500, then between then and now you have over 130,000 ancestors to research; if you go back to your 20th great-grandparents, who would have lived roughly around the year 1400, then between now and the year 1400 you would have over 4 million ancestors in that time frame.

I encourage you to get into your genealogy because it is a really fun hobby and you can pass your research on to your descendants to continue the work, so there is a legacy there that you can leave behind.........but you must be realistic about the results.  It will NEVER be complete, and it will take a lifetime to make a dent in those who lived just in the last 300 years, if you do it the RIGHT way and VERIFY EVERYTHING and DOCUMENT EVERYTHING.

Answer 5

ancestry.com is a great place to start. my mom did it and i looked me up i was 9 at the time and even i was on there so its updated constantly.

could you help with mine?

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;...

Answer 6

Wendy has told you right.   The only way your family tree will be online is if someone in your family has researched it and put it online.

Also, you cannot take as absolute fact everything you see in online family trees on ANY website, free or paid.  The information is subscriber submitted and mostly not documented or poorly documented.  You might see different info on the same people from different subscribers.  Then you will see repeatedly the same info from different subscribers on the same people. That is absolutely no guarantee at all it is correct. A lot of people copy without verifying.  The information should only be used as CLUES as to where to get the documentation.

I believe Ancestry.Com is the best for its records online.  They have all the U.S. censuses through 1930. The 1940 and later are not available to the public yet. They also have military records, immigration records etc and indexes to vital records from many states.  If it is too pricey your public library might have a subscription to it.

A Family History Center at a Latter Day Saints(Mormon) Church has records on people all over the world, not just Mormons.

In Salt Lake City, they have the world's largest genealogical collection.  Their Family History Centers can order microfilm for you to view at a nominal fee.  Just call them or visit their free website, FamilySearch.org, to get their hours for the general public.

I have never had them to try and convert me or send their missionaries by to ring my doorbell.  I haven't heard of them doing that to anyone else that has used their resources.

Answer 7

Your greatest satisfaction will come from verifying your information yourself.  There is a bunch of wrong info online.  The only way you are going to be able to find factual data is if you can back it up with documentation.  This is what most genealogical organizations require.

As stated by another poster ancestry.com has a lot of documentation for you to use.  Census, marriage records, probate and wills, other people's research, etc.

familysearch.org

rootsweb.com

usgenweb

genforum

All of those are other places that you can pull together info.  Do not overlook forums dedicated to the specific surnames that you are researching.  Don't forget about location-specific forums either.

Start with what you know.  Then ask your family members for input.  Keep this in a genealogical prgram like FamilyTree Maker or on pedigree charts so that you don't lose your data or get confused, both of which are easy to do if you don't back it up.  A little organization goes a long way whether you are just getting started or have been doing this for decades.