Project 1: Family Tree

1. Look for ancestors with a light-blue icon in the couple's box—this means that record sources are available. If you don't see any of these icons, expand one or more ancestor lines to find them.


2. Click the light-blue icon for an ancestor.


3. In the list that appears, click the link for a hint (or click Show All to see all record hints for the ancestor, and then select a link). This displays a Record Hints table with additional information for the record.

4. If an image is available, click "View Record" (top) or "Browse the film" to see the record. To see the record collection on FamilySearch, click the Record Collection link.
5. To review this hint, click Review and Attach at the bottom (you may need to enlarge the record hints window vertically) and proceed to Choice B below; otherwise, click Not a Match to discard the record hint.
6. You can also see record hints on your Welcome screen:
   a) Click the FamilySearch logo (upper left);
   b) In the Record Hints section right side), click a blue record hint icon for an ancestor in the list;
   c) Click the name to see a summary for the hint (click Records in the upper right to see available records); and
   d) Click Review to review the record. To see additional hints, click Show More in the ancestor list.

Citations

1. Learn more about each Document Information field.
   
   FS—What is the document information in Historical Records? - 2024


2. Learn how to find source citations for records.
   
   FS—How do I find the citation for a historical record? - 2024


3. Learn how to write clear and accurate source citations.
   
   RT: 5 Steps to Writing the Perfect Genealogical Source Citation - 2018
   TH: How to Cite Genealogy Sources - 2019


4. Learn more about writing source citations.
   
   FL: Source Citations: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Citation - 2016

The picture below is an example of the Review and Attach window.

Make sure the "Attach Historical Records to Family Tree" window is open for the selected ancestor, as explained in the Choice above.

1. Read the text in the window to verify that the record should be attached to this ancestor. You can click the View Record or View Image links (upper-left) to see more information.
2. To see additional information from Family Tree for the ancestor, click Details (right side).
3. If you need to change the focus person for the record, click Change Person (in the blue bar) and select a name. For more info on changing the focus person, click the Info icon in the blue bar.
4. You can see other information, if available, by clicking the "Open" link for any of these categories:
   • Children on Record
   • Children from Family Tree
   • Siblings on Record
   • Siblings from Family Tree
   • Other on Record
   • Other from Family Tree
5. If this record is a match, type a reason for attaching the source, and then click Attach. The source attachment is noted in green on the screen, and the source is attached to the family tree.
6. Click Return to Family Tree at the bottom of the screen. In the ancestor's Person page, notice that the Record Hint no longer appears in the Hinting area (upper right); instead, it appears as a Source at the bottom of the page.
7. To detach a source from an ancestor in Family Tree,
   a) Click Detach;
   b) In the "Detach Source From" dialog, type the reason you are detaching the source; and
   c) Click Detach.
8. Additional Help: For more help using the Source Linker, see the Source Linker Learning Center.



Save, Edit, Share

1. To save a record, at the top of the record page click Save and then select one of these options: Save to Source Box, Copy Full Record, Print Record (click the wheel icon for print settings), or Attach to Family Tree.
2. To edit the index for a record,
   a) Click Edit;
   b) In the Essential Information pane on the right, click the pencil icon for the field you want to change;
   c) Type the update information (you can also click "Add or Remove Fields"; and
   d) Click Save.
3. To share a record, click the Share icon, select "Email" or "Copy Link", and then share the copied information.



Resources

1. Learn how to recover record hints that were mistakenly marked as "not a match."
   
   FS—How do I recover record hints marked as "not a match" in Family Tree? - 2024


2. Learn what to do when a "!" indicates that a source is already attached to a different ancestor.
   
   FS—A source that I want to attach in Family Tree is attached to someone else - 2025


3. Learn how to attach sources from MyHeritage to Family Tree.
   
   FS—How do I attach sources from MyHeritage to Family Tree? - 2024



Exercises
• * Good: Attach sources to the Person pages of at least two ancestors. Be sure to include reason statements for each. Also, share your sources with a friend or relative on social media, or save them to your Source Box in FamilySearch.
• * Proficient: Same as above, for at least four ancestors.

---

1. Read these articles for a review of adding and attaching sources.
   
   FS—How do I attach a historical record to a person in Family Tree? - 2025
   RIV—Adding and Attaching Sources - 2017


2. For a detailed look at the record hinting process, read this blog post.
   
   FS—Record Hints - 2016


3. If you would like to attach websites as sources for records in your part of the tree, read the article or watch the video about using RecordSeek.
   
   RIV—RecordSeek for Recording Sources in Family Tree - 2018
   BYU—RecordSeek for Recording Sources in Family Tree—8:47 - 2015
   
   
   


4. For more information on attaching record sources to a person in Family Tree, read these articles. The first article explains how to attach the source to in-laws, grandparents, or other relatives not shown on the current screen, by changing the focus person.
   
   FS—How do I attach record hints in Family Tree? - 2024
   FS—How do I move sources to a different person in Family Tree? - 2025


5. Learn how to add missing family members to Family Tree from record hints.
   
   FS—How do I add missing family members to Family Tree from record hints? - 2024


6. Learn how to deal with "unfinished attachments".
   
   FS—How do I handle unfinished attachments in Family Tree? - 2024


7. To attach a source from a record search screen, see Choice B in Goal 4 of Project 4: Discover.
8. Reverse Hints: Watch this video to learn about "reverse hints" that take you from a record to a possible matching ancestor in Family Tree.
   
   BYU: Reverse Hints


9. Learn how to transfer sources from FamilySearch to Ancestry.
   
   FS—How do I transfer sources between Ancestry and Family Tree? - 2024

Note : FamilySearch may occasionally email you about record hints it has found for your ancestors. To see a list of record hints stored for you by FamilySearch, visit the Campaign link for hints.

You can also attach sources to living persons whose names are displayed in the tree.