Category: U.S. Research

Expanded Commentary on the Rules of Genealogy: Rule Eleven

Editor’s note: This article by James Tanner appeared previously in the Genealogy’s Star blog site and is used with the author’s permission. Expanded Commentary on the Rules of Genealogy: Rule Eleven I have slowly been going back to the list of the Rules of Genealogy and writing about each individual rule. There are presently 12 Rules. Here is the current list...

What’s New with QUIKLinks

QUIKLinks are one of the most popular and useful features of The Family History Guide. You can learn more about QUIKLinks and how to use them in the Features Help page. We’ve recently made a few improvements to how QUIKLinks are presented on the site, as well as adding quite a few more QUIKLinks. Here’s a brief summary: Discontinuing the...

Expanded Commentary on the Rules of Genealogy: Rule Nine

Editor’s Note: This article by James Tanner was originally published in the Genealogy’s Star blog site and is used with the author’s permission. Expanded Commentary on the Rules of Genealogy: Rule Nine I have slowly been going back to the list of the Rules of Genealogy and writing about each individual rule. There are presently 12 Rules. Here is the current...

Are You Giving The Gift Of Family History?

Years ago I went to my first BYU Family History and Genealogy Conference and one of the speakers said, “If you want to find your ancestors, do other people’s research!”  There was a bit of a gasp from the audience! The thought ran through my mind, seriously? I can’t even do my own very well. This was probably a decade...

The Miracle of Community Indexing

Editor’s Note: This article was written by Karen Meyer, Area Temple & Family History Consultant, North America Southwest. You open a heavy trunk, hidden by debris in a dusty attic. Lifting the lid, you see it is full of old pictures. You routinely turn them over in your hands. You notice that a few of the pictures have a name,...

More on Rule Four: There Are Always More Records

Editor’s Note: This blog article was originally published by James Tanner in the Genealogy’s Star blog site and is used with the author’s permission. Expanded Commentary on the Rules of Genealogy: Rule Four I published the first six Rules of Genealogy back on July 1, 2014. See “Six of the Basic Rules of Genealogy.” This short list included the most...

Is The Family History Guide for Experienced Researchers?

Although The Family History Guide is often thought of as a learning center for those new to family history, it’s also surprisingly good resource for those who are more experienced. These are people who know the basics of family history and have “been around the block” with research. Two areas where The Family History Guide shines are these: making research...

Do You Have a Research Plan?

Editor’s Note: This article was published in the Genealogy’s Star blog site by James Tanner and is used with the author’s permission. Do you feel your genealogical research is like a random walk in the park? Perhaps, you should think through your objectives and come up with a research plan. There is always a measure of uncertainty in any research...

The Next 5 Steps to Improving Your Family History Experience

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published by James Tanner in his Genealogy’s Star site and is used with the author’s permission. If you are wondering about the first 5 steps, see “5 Steps to Improving Your Family History Experience.” Here are the first 5 steps: Focus on the places Learn about the places Identify the types of records that...

5 Steps to Improving Your Family History Experience

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published by James Tanner on the Genealogy’s Star blog site and used with the author’s permission.   When you are working on researching your family history, you can easily get sidetracked by failing to focus on the fundamentals of historical research. Sometimes finding an obvious match for your ancestor will send you off on...