Help Needed in Researching Ancestry

[Golder]

Any help with direction
as to best research my ancestry, Would be very
much appreciated......
Please use my email as well ( mention ancestry in title)
thank you in advance!
Golder

[rainman]

contact the mormon church. They have the most detailed records on ancestrry.

[Patrioten]

Start by asking whatever living older relatives you have about what they know about the family history. Names, when they were born, where they were born, occupations etc. As far back as possible. Then you can go on to try to find genealogical resources, either locally where you live or on the internet. I was surprised to find out how much information that my grandparents, paternal and maternal, had about our family history when I finally got around to asking them about it so older relatives would definately be the most logical first step in your genealogical efforts. I wish you the best of luck with your efforts as it is an often highly enlightening, not to mention inspiring and entertaining, journey to make.

[Sigurd]

Yes, as Patrioten stated: If there are no records - your first journey should be to older members of your family, chances are that your grandparents might know the birthdates, birthplaces and profession of their great-grandparents and have anecdotes to tell at least about their grandparents. That is already 32 people on your pedigree with at least 16 people to tell a vivid life story about.

Having done that, it may be possible to track down more removed family members, such as third cousins. Chances are that there will be someone in the extended family which has already done extensive genealogical research, usually you will be able to find out some ancestors further back than what you've been able to ask from your living, direct relatives. This will typically take you 7-8 generations at least, 128-256 people on your pedigree, typically about 200 years back.

At that stage, you will have a fairly clear picture which ancestral lines are Old Stock and which ones are later immigrants. In either instance, usually a rich stock of church records exists - all you have to know is their birthplace or their place of marriage and chances are that you will be able to find some information.

Where this goes back to Europe this might be a little more difficult, because sometimes the exact village of origin is not that easily known, immigration records might just read "Prussia" or "Flanders". If the surname is known, there are several online pages --- I believe they've been posted around here at some point --- which can help you pinpoint a rough area.

That's where existing linguistic research can also come in handy, many European regions will have had a trustworthy scholar compile a leading onomastic work pertaining to family names. These will then often state not only etymology but where the name was first recorded alongside villages where this place is common. This already helps to narrow down your search a little.

It may seem like a vast task, but you'd be surprised how easy genealogical research can be.

[Collie Dog]

Hi, I have been researching my family tree and can recommend Ancestry.co.uk (a small fee is required) This gives acesss to the census and birth,deaths and marriage records, as well as allowing you to link up with other members who list your ancestors in their online Trees to share information. As already stated family elders can be a great help - a cousin of my mother gave her a copy of some family research which triggered my curiosity. Distant relatives who still live local to ancestral hometowns may have carried out research in person including examining Parish records (some are appearing online) grave stones, local publications, war memorials and anecdotal evidence and may have put this information on the web. I don't know your personal circumstances, but a site visit can be very rewarding.
Good luck I'm sure you will find your efforts very satisfying.

[NormanRollo]

Sigurd summed it up pretty well.

After asking your family, you can go on and try to search further back. You'll have to go up your family line individually. If you know the place of birth of an ancestor, you can email the town hall and ask if they have marriage, baptism or birth records. In some states in the US they are annoying and ask a proof that the person is your ancestor before getting out of their way to search their records. Some town halls ask for money in exchange. Others want you to come in person and search their records yourself.
Anyway, if they are cool, they'll copy or scan the part of the record which mentions your ancestor and mail (or email) it to you. With that you get the mother and father's name and you can go on and do the same with them. You'll notice some branches get stuck early, others can go back generations more. It all depends on the surviving records.
You have to do the same thing for Europe. E-mail the town hall. Don't worry about writing them in English if you don't speak the native language of whatever country you may originate from. Most people in Europe understand English. By experience, I know that usually, French and Belgian town halls are more than willing to look for the records for you and email them (considering you're from Maine, you could have Francophone ancestry). Germany and Norway are more difficult about it.

I never got much from websites, but then again, I only used the free ones.

You'll find the first stages are annoying and frustrating, but in time you'll get the hang of it and will manage to search more effectively.

[Schubert]

I'm lucky to have a 102 year old Swiss Great-Grandmother, with great recollection of her family.