—Welcome to — The Genealogy Gypsy Blog
Money Saving Tips for Genealogy
If you work with Genealogy Records… then you KNOW how FAST those memberships, record requests, and supplies can ADD UP! Most of my business budget goes to having SEVERAL memberships to HUNT DOWN and INVESTIGATE anything and everything I can get my hands on… BUT… I have some GREAT money-saving TIPS to help out — without sacrificing our research!
Read MoreOnce anyone finds out I'm a professional genealogist, and I specialize in DNA, the questions start pouring in about what test to take, what are my privacy rights, or just advice on what to do next...
Read MoreI want you all to stop and think for just a minute. Think about all the friends, coworkers, and neighbors you see each and every day. How many of those people will show up on your family tree one day? It's a good question, right. Something we don't often think about. And probably a few of those surnames might pop up in your tree. But, it's important to remember that you're part of a bigger community, one that shapes who you are and the decisions you make, just as much as your blood relatives.
Read MoreAmerican history was made with our immigrant and ethnic ancestors. Everyone has immigrant ancestors. It doesn't matter if your ancestor came to America in the 1900s, the 1600s, or were here to meet the rest of the settlers, all American ancestry leads somewhere else.
Read MoreLand records are one of the most underutilized resources in genealogy, believe it or not. What once brought immigrants to America, the ability to obtain land, is often completely forgotten in research. Established countries, like Europe, almost all land had been titled for years, even centuries. Laws of primogeniture (inheritance by only the FIRST SON) ensured that properties wouldn't be split up into smaller parcels, but that also meant that other children couldn't inherit the land.
Read MoreThe Civil War produced huge amounts of documentation with over 3.5 million men (and a few hundred women) fighting for both the Union and Confederacy. But... because military records do not fit familiar patterns of most genealogical research you will conduct, vital records, passenger lists, and so on... these records can be overwhelming to a first-time researcher. But, by understanding a few key facts and having some great resources in your toolbox, you can start with a wealth of information about your Civil War ancestor before you even start digging!
Read MoreHere are some of my favorite genealogy hacks that help you figure out what websites can do... that you didn't even know was possible, to speed up your research, and even streamline websites and tech tools. Some of these hacks can even save you money (which I love the most) on subscription websites, by helping you weed out free records or pay as you go.
Read MoreFamily history research can be full of obstacles... and your genealogy journey might seem like it's laced with pitfalls, vast expanses of water... and those brick walls that seem to come out of nowhere at every twist and turn. If you focus your family-history training regimen on conquering the five challenges outlined here, you'll get better at building your family tree and even level up your Genealogy Research!
Read MoreWhenever I talk about citing genealogy sources, I swear I can hear someone physically sigh... and I get it! There is no other area of genealogy that stirs less excitement than the topic of citing! Creating accurate genealogy source citations can be DULL and let's be honest... it takes up so much time... but it's so important!
Read MoreHave you ever visited an online research site (or physical archive) and thought about the vast collection of records that were just within your reach... but you had no idea where to even start? Or, maybe you've spent hours researching one single person only to lose... or worse... forget most of what you've learned and/or where you learned it. Maybe you've even walked away from your research for a few weeks and when you sat back down were left completely confused about where to pick it up again...
Read MoreOur weather is something that seems to always be a topic of conversation day in and day out. We always want to know what tomorrow will hold... especially with global warming being a hot topic. Weather is a worldwide subject of daily conversations, and it's also a great way to break the ice in awkward moments of silence.
Read MoreOur ancestors' lives were influenced by society, events, and external forces. Everything from the lands where a family lived to the social causes they endured could affect how our ancestors made decisions about where to settle down, where to start a family, and where to work. These values and motivators go far beyond traditional genealogy records, and can help you break down your brick walls!
Read MoreIt's summer vacation... and as a Professional Genealogist, running my own business, working for myself... that means I have two eager kids fighting for my time in between projects. We decided to set out and see Ohio this summer, taking in the History, learning about the land through visits to local battlefields, a trip to the public library and a tour of the Genealogy archives, and even some historical home tours that aren't too far from our home.
Read MoreAs you're tracing your family history, you'll at least occasionally find that you need the help of a professional genealogist to make the progress you want. This can be due to time constraints in your own life, a need for verification of your work, dealing with a foreign language, or searching for an ancestor who left little written history behind. Whatever the reason my be, when it's time to hire a professional genealogist, it's important that you find one who is trustworthy and whose work will last for generations to come.
Read MoreSometimes the KEY to solving a genealogy mystery is going BACK to the BASICS!
When you run up against a genealogy BRICK WALL - try these nine (9) old-school ways to break that wall DOWN. You'll find that not only can old dogs learn new tricks... but dogs both young and old will benefit from practicing these time-tested strategies!
Read MoreAs a Genealogist... you've probably already discovered that the term "Brick Wall" is discussed almost regularly! We love to chat about the brick walls that are blocking our search into families' pasts. Usually, these brick walls are only detours that we can find our way around by stepping back and taking a fresh look at our research.... seeking out different record types... or doing some cluster research to find a clue buried in the overload of information.
Read MoreWe all love and live for the thrill of the HUNT... the challenge of a mysterious kinship or hidden story. We hone our research skills, learn about records and think over the evidence we uncover. But, there's another part of the detective work that we often overlook... writing reports about our research.
Read MoreWhen you start looking into family research, nine times out of ten the trail will lead you to start questioning how immigrant ancestors got to America.
Read MoreSitting down to start your genealogy research... it is common practice for many professional genealogists to begin by looking at DEATH RECORDS, first. Death certificates and records give us the most recent evidence of our ancestor's lives.
Read MoreWhen working with genealogy in the United States, every family tree you encounter will have an immigrant ancestor. The only question is when that migration took place.
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