Slides from a Genealogy Basics workshop at the Omaha Public Library. Aimed at patrons with little or no previous experience.

1. Genealogy Workshop
-
Basic Tools & Strategies
Bill Hall, Library Specialist
Saddlebrook Branch
Omaha Public Library

2. Genealogy Basics
• What is Genealogy?
• What are the Basic Tools?
• What are the Basic Strategies?
• How to Get Started
• Taking Oral Family History
• Recommended Books
• Genealogy Software
Family Roots
• Good Genealogy Websites

3. What is Genealogy?
• A Collection; of the names, dates, places,
and facts of your family
• A Treasure Hunt; where discovery of
buried facts brings excitement
• A Jigsaw Puzzle; the compete picture is visible
only when all the pieces fit
• A Trial; where rules of evidence and
proving facts is necessary

4. Two Planes of Focus
• Vertical
 Your direct lines of descent
 Genealogy
 Forms: Pedigree or Ancestral Chart
• Horizontal
 Your Family’s stories
 Family (Oral) History
 Forms: Family Group Sheet

5. Basic Tools for
Genealogy
Organizers:
 3-Ring Binders or File Folders
 3-Hole Punched Lined Filler Paper (for notes)
 Standard Genealogy Forms
 Pens, Pencils & Highlighters

6. Optional Tools
• Plastic photo sheets (for preservation)
• Archival paper (doesn’t deteriorate)
• Computer (laptop for portability)
• Internet access (genealogy websites)
• Genealogy software (keeps everything in one place)
• Digital recorder (for interviews)

7. Basic Strategies
• Progress “From the Known to the Unknown”
 From the current generation to the past
• Search “Wide and Deep”
 List everyone from current generation first
 Most important if you know little about your past
• Gather documents to verify all facts
 Names, places, dates, relationships
 List the source of the information
• Prove identity before assigning lineage
 Facts about the person before making connections to others

8. Getting Started
• List Spouses/partners and Children
• Collect names and birth information
• Include marriage information, if any
• Include divorce information, if any
• Include death information, if any
a. Date, location, cemetery, cause
6. Record in sequential order on a Family Group Sheet

9. Data Conventions
• Last names in CAPITALS
• Include full middle name
 HALL, William Robert or
William Robert HALL
• Dates as dd/mm/yyyy
 13 APR 2012
• Places as city or twp., county, state, country
 Omaha, Douglas, NE, USA

10. NOTICE!
• Genealogy forms are built on the
traditional 2 parent family model
 Forms assume marriage
 Only recently do some forms include divorce
• Treat Single partners as a marriage
• Multiple partners as multiple marriages
• Treat the child relationships carefully
 Ancestry.com has help with adoptive children

11. Family Group Sheet

12. Getting Started - 2
• Next gather data for your Parents and Siblings
 Collect birth, death, marriage, divorce info
 Fill in a Family Group Sheet
• Third is Grandparents, Uncles and Aunts
 Fill in a Family Group Sheet
• Include as much information as you know
• Fill out an Ancestral Chart
 Start with yourself on the far left position

13. Ancestral Chart
Grampa
My Dad
Gramma
ME
Papa
My Wife My Mom
Nana

14. Research Forms

15. Family History
 Begin recalling and recording things about yourself
 Write an autobiography
 Interview your parents and older relatives
 Look at artifacts in photo albums and storage areas
 Organize data into genealogy charts and bloodlines, and
group people in family units

16. Oral Histories
 Gather stories not just facts
 Use a digital recorder to gather interviews
 Get to the oldest living relative SOON!
 Pre-plan your questions
 Photos help subjects recall memories
 Allow your subject to digress

17. Oral History Books
• Brown, C. S. Like it was: a complete guide to writing
oral history. 808.0669 B877. (1988)
• Fletcher, W. P. Recording your family history: a guide to
preserving oral history . . . 929.1 Fletcher (1989)
• Green, B. To our children’s children: preserving family
histories for generations to come. 920.002 (1993)
• Hart, C. Tell me your story: the oral history workshop.
907.2 Hart. (2009)

18. Oral History Websites
• How to Interview a Relative
http://genealogy.about.com/cs/oralhistory/ht/interview.htm
• Fifty questions for Family History Interviews
http://genealogy.about.com/cs/oralhistory/a/interview.htm

19. Genealogy Software
• Family Tree Maker (Windows & Mac)
• Reunion (Mac)
• iFamily (Mac)
• Standard genealogy file format:
gedcom .ged
• Online family tree site:
MyHeritage.com

20. Genealogy Websites
• Ancestry.com (OPL)
• Heritage Quest (OPL)
• OPL genealogy study guide
• Greater Omaha Genealogy Society
• Douglas County Historical Society
• Rootsweb/GenWeb
• Cyndi’s List

21. Next Genealogy Class
at Saddlebrook
•Exploring Genealogy Online
•Saturday, June 16 @ Noon

22. Genealogy Basics -
Review
 Genealogy vs. Family History
 Basic Genealogy Tools
 Basic Research Strategies
 How to fill out basic genealogy forms
 How to conduct an Oral History interview
 Some good genealogy websites

23. Happy Hunting!