Need help finding ancestors?

Question

The name is Mabel Carpenter Heminger and William Mann. If someone could help me find out who both of their parents were that would be great. Extra info like birthdate would be helpful. I trying to create a family tree. If you would like to see what I have so far you can go to

http://www.geni.com/family-tree/index/6000000000110012784

Answer 1

Sorry, I couldn't go there; just try:

As The Man said, there are so many websites.  I always urge people to go to their local public library.  You pay for it, you may as well get some use out of it.  Our genealogy section is staffed by volunteers; old ladies who like to feel wanted and needed.  Make them happy.

Anyhew, here is my list:

You should start by asking all your living relatives about family history.  Then, armed with that information, you can go to your public library and check to see if it has a genealogy department.  Most do nowadays; also, don't forget to check at community colleges, universities, etc.  Our public library has both www.ancestry.com and www.heritagequest.com free for anyone to use (no library card required).

Another place to check out is any of the Mormon's Family History Centers.  They allow people to search for their family history (and, NO, they don't try to convert you).

A third option is one of the following websites:

http://www.searchforancestors.com/...

http://www.censusrecords.net/?o_xid=2739...

http://www.usgenweb.com/

http://www.census.gov/

http://www.rootsweb.com/

http://www.ukgenweb.com/

http://www.archives.gov/

http://www.familysearch.org/

http://www.accessgenealogy.com/...

http://www.cyndislist.com/

http://www.geni.com/

Cyndi's has the most links to genealogy websites, whether ship's passenger lists, ancestors from Africa, ancestors from the Philippines, where ever and whatever.

Of course, you may be successful by googling: "john doe, born 1620, plimouth, massachusetts" as an example.

Good luck and have fun!

Check out this article on five great free genealogy websites:

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article...

Then there is the DNA test; if you decide you want to REALLY know where your ancestors came from opt for the DNA test. Besides all the mistakes that officials commonly make, from 10% to 20% of birth certificates list the father wrong; that is, mama was doing the hanky-panky and someone else was the REAL father. That won't show up on the internet or in books; it WILL show up in DNA.

I used www.familytreedna.com which works with the National Geographics Genotype Program.

FOOTNOTE: No matter the source (papertrail) there will be errors.  When I check my credit report, it has me living in places I have never been, with TWO social security number and TWO dates of birth! The point is, ALWAYS try to find AT LEAST 2 sources before you accept it as a possible maybe.

My Grandmother's tombstone is incorrect; apparently her birth certificate was also incorrect.  Goin back in time, there were few records; many records from the Old South were destroyed destroyed during the Civil War; use caution always.  But, have fun.

Answer 2

I took a few minutes to look at the site you are using, and want to offer you some warning, from MANY years of experience. This site offers to "build" your tree by having persons contribute, and including living persons.  This is very poor genealogical standards.. there is no need whatsoever to upload personal info about living people.   All sites claim to keep it "private", however in reality, persons are still being put at risk.

Researching your ancestry depends on using verified facts and documents. In the early stage of research, those records should be from the persons involved, and with their knowledge and consent.  At the point where you reach dead ancestors, normally you will be able to access historical and public records.  Yahoo policy prohibits posting personal information here.

Any website that leads you to ignore these standard genealogy courtesies is not a great place to be, no matter how popular they might be or claim to be "easy to use".

Answer 3

The first link you gave demands a password.

Unless you put it in your question, we can't tell what country you are in. It is the most frustrating thing Yahoo does. It doesn't matter if you go into domestic Yahoo or one of the International Yahoos (UK, Australia, Canada, India . . .), all of the questions in English go into one big "pot".

Do you know if they were in the UK, USA or not?

1700's, 1800's, 1900's ???????

Was Mabel

1) Born Mabel Carpenter, married a Mr. Heminger and then married William Mann;

2) Born Mabel Carpenter Heminger and married William Mann;

3) Completely unrelated to William Mann; born Mabel Carpenter, married Mr. Heminger.

All in all, you are not helping much.

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Added:

I waited 150 seconds for the second link to load. When it did, all I saw was a light-green square. Sorry. Someone else may have the patience to help you. You may break down and post approximate dates, countries and relationships of those two people, instead of demanding we go to a start-up genealogy doesn't work or try to guess.

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Addition #2:

It is unethical for us to give away details on living people. Your motives are innocent, but a crook reading this very public forum could steal her identity or pretend to be a long-lost cousin who needs a small loan.

If you have details (birth dates, mother's maiden name, residence) of living people on that web site, you should delete them.