THE ABC OF FAMILY HISTORY

As many of you may know in a former life (what now seems a lifetime ago) I managed and investigated allegations made against members of staff, in my employer organisation, pursuant to the NSW Ombudsman's Act.  Immediately pre-retirement I managed a team of investigators and my advice to them in conducting an investigation was to follow these rules.

Accept Nothing

Believe Nothing and,

Check everything.

I was recently part of a group discussing tips and tricks to conduct Family History Research and it occurred to me that these rules could apply to these "investigations"  as well and could be taken a little further.  What follows is my A - Z of conducting Family History Investigations

A - Accept all information you are given with an open and inquiring mind

B - Believe nothing

C - Check everything and Cite your sources and don't forget about what is written on headstones in cemeteries 

D - Document every step you take in your research. Your Direct Line is a good starting place as it shows  descendants  traced through persons who are directly related to one another as a child and parent

E - periodically Evaluate your methodology and your evidence will be your proof. Enjoying your research is key.

F - Find people who share your interest in Family History. One way to do this is to join a local Family History Society. I like to use Family Group Sheets which is a  form that presents genealogical information about a nuclear family 

G - Grow your tree - keep adding information to your family tree as you go along.  Once the process is started it is ongoing because families are dynamic, transitional and flexible. Go digital

H- Help others in their research as they may have information that will help you

I - the Internet is a valuable tool but don't believe everything you find without going back to ABC

J- Jump in and just get started you never know where it will lead you

K - Keep your focus. Although you will go off on different tangents along the way (and this is something I do and it can sometimes lead to amazing discoveries) it is important to have a plan for your investigations.

L - Look for alternative sources of information and don't forget the local and regional libraries hold great repositories of information

M - Make time for your research and think about the use of mind maps. It is also important to remember the maternal line which is the line of descent traced from the mother's side

N - Networking both online (using social media for instance) and in person is a great help in your research

O - Oral history can be provided  by older relatives and you never know when opportunities will present themselves

P - Plan your research - think about what you know and what you would like to find out.  

Q -  Question everything - ask why, when, who, where, and how.  Plan some quiet time for review

R - Read about the general and local history of the time you are researching.  Be respectful of your fellow researchers 

S - Sometimes work Sideways - if you cannot find the information on a particular ancestor look at siblings or siblings of parents

T- Thank people who provide you with information.  Whilst wills can provide important information remember that people were often described as testate - meaning they died without leaving a proper will

U - Understand new things - for instance, DNA technology and AI are making major inroads into family history research

V - Verify your sources of information.  If you find something on a website for instance by accessing another researcher's family tree don't accept that it is accurate until you have checked and verified it.

W - Write your story and the story of your ancestors. Wills can provide important family information

X - Xylographer - this is a term used for a person who used and made wooden blocks used in printing illustrations. Sometimes you will come across words, phrases, occupations, diseases, and causes of death that are no longer in common use and this takes some research

Y - interest Younger family members in the information you are compiling

Z - use Zoom in your research to connect to relatives and other researchers

Happy Researching