Tools of the Genealogist
To forget one's ancestors is to be a brook without a source, a tree without a root.
Genealogy is additive. Genealogy is
never ending. Genealogy is the compilation of thousands of facts into one
family story.
For each generation, multiply the number
of relatives in your family tree by two: two parents, four grandparents,
eight great-grandparents, and sixteen great-great-grandparents! Before
you know it, you will have more information than you can handle. How do
you organize it?
- Four-Generation Ancestor Chart
- Family Data Sheets
- Putting It All Together: The Genealogist’s Notebook
- What’s Missing?
- Related Web Sites
- Lesson Plan: Making a Genealogy Notebook
Four-Generation Ancestor Chart
When beginning a genealogy project, always start with yourself and work backwards. Genealogical links are made through parents.
The first worksheet you will use is an
Ancestor
Chart, or family tree. This chart lets you see many generations on
one form. Using the Ancestor Chart provided by the State Archives of North
Carolina, write your name on line 1. Record your birth date in the space
below. Record your parents’ names and birth dates. When filling out an
ancestral chart, always list the father first. Write your father’s name
on line 2 and your mother’s name on line 3. Enter every generation by writing
male names on lines with even numbers, and female names on lines with odd
numbers. Sit down with your parents and fill out the Ancestor Chart as
far as you can. Write all unverified information in pencil so that corrections
can be made when supporting documentation is found.
Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to
view and print the Ancestor Chart (click
here to download this free software). To print this legal size chart,
click once on the printer icon on the Acrobat Reader toolbar directly above
the image, and then click once on the Properties button at the top right
of the Print box. Choose Black Text in the Printout area; Normal or Presentation
in the Print Quality area; Portrait in the Orientation area; Plain Paper
in the Media Area; and Legal in the Media Size area. Choose OK to return
to the main Print menu, load a sheet of legal-sized paper in your printer,
then click on OK to print the chart.
Use the Family Data Sheet to record all of the information about one family group (parents and children) beginning with the husband’s name. Each Family Data Sheet will have an even number that matches the even number on the Ancestor Chart. Family Data Sheet Number 2 will list your father, Number 4 will list your father’s father, and so on. Fill out the Family Data Sheet with information about your family.
Record the information in your Family Data Sheets using the steps below. Remember, be consistent.
- Write the family (last) name first, then the given (first) name, for example, Smith, John. You will know whether a name is a first or last name by its placement. For example, in Morgan, Hayes, you will know that Hayes is the first name because it follows Morgan.
- Write the full name, including the middle name, if you know it. Write nicknames in quotation marks after the given name.
- Write the wife’s maiden name before the given name.
- Write dates consistently throughout your chart. One way to write dates is to write the day, the first three letters of the month, and the year, for example, 4 Nov 1969. Always use four digits for the year to avoid confusion about the centuries.
Putting It All Together: The Genealogist’s Notebook
Time to get organized! Establish good research habits now to avoid pitfalls in the future. Because so much data is generated in genealogical research, relying on your memory won’t work. Establish good note-taking methods, and just as important, a system for retrieving the information gathered. The easiest system is a Genealogy Notebook.
A notebook works better than separate files
because it is easily transported and expanded. You can take a notebook
into an archive or courthouse records room, without having to leave important
information at home. A large three-ring binder can accommodate many different
materials, from photocopies of original documents to loose-leaf paper for
notes to plastic archival photo pages. You can even store pencils and money
(for more photocopies) inside. In the lesson plan
below, you will assemble your own Genealogist’s Notebook to help organize
your search.
Once you have filled out your Ancestor Chart and several Family Data Sheets, you will know what data is missing. These are the first holes to fill, the first research questions you must answer in the search for your ancestors.
Take written notes on the information missing from each Family Data Sheet. In the following lessons, you will learn the various places for finding that information. For now, start thinking about a family member you would like to interview in Lesson 3. Who will most likely be able to help me fill in the blanks in my Family Data Sheets?
The following Web sites contain general instructions on how to begin your research.
Family Chronicle—First Things First
http://www.familychronicle.com/first.html
Genealogy for Kids
http://www.geocities.com/EnchantedForest/5283/genekids.htm
Genealogy Instructions for Beginners,
Kids, and Teenagers
http://home.earthlink.net/~howardorjeff/instruct.htm
?Lesson
Plan: Making a Genealogy Notebook
| Overview: | Club members will put together a Genealogy
Notebook that will help organize their research.
|
| Purpose: | To develop a method that will organize
research materials and encourage good work habits.
|
| Time: | One to two club meetings
|
| Objectives: | Competency Goal 4 of the NC Informational
Skills Curriculum, all grade levels
(The learner will EXPLORE and USE research processes to meet information needs). |
| Materials: | Ancestor
Chart, one per club member
Family Data Sheet handout, fifteen per club member Three-ring binder or other notebook, one per club member Dividers, pencil holders, loose-leaf paper, photo pages (optional) Markers, Crayons, construction paper, glue, color photocopies (optional) |
Procedure:
- Distribute the Ancestor Chart and Family Data Sheets to club members. Give instructions for filling out charts (listed in Lesson 2: Organizing Your Search).
- Ask club members to fill out charts as completely as possible with the help of an older family member and to bring them to the next meeting.
- Have members organize their materials in the three-ring binder or notebook in the following manner:
- Place the Ancestor Chart as the first page. This chart serves as a summary of all genealogical links.
- Place Family Data Sheets behind the Ancestor Chart in numerical order, from lowest to highest.
- Place associated documentation behind the Family Data Sheet to which it relates. For example, place a photocopy of your mother’s birth certificate behind Family Data Sheet Number 6, which lists your maternal grandfather as husband.
- Place any optional materials that you will use in your research (dividers, photo pages, pencil, and floppy disk holders) into the notebook.
- Have club members decorate their Genealogy Notebooks. They could for example, use color photocopies of family snapshots from many generations, or reproduce their family coat of arms with construction paper or markers. They could illustrate a family story, or draw the family homestead or a map of the country from which they emigrated. Encourage members to make their notebooks distinctive. But remember, they still have to be functional!
- Have members list all information that is missing from their charts.
- Ask members to begin thinking about where they might find the missing information and to note these possible sources on their lists.
Lesson 2 Handouts:
Ancestor
Chart
Family
Data Sheet
Linebar graphic by Vickimouse (http://www.vikimouse.com/)
