Jan's Tips for Finding Your Electric Roots
- Learn to use internet search engines. Better yet, choose one or two search engines (my favorites are
Alta Vista and HotBot) and become proficient with them. This only takes a minute or two using your search engine's help button.
- Most browsers have a "Find on this page" option. On Microsoft Internet Explorer you will find it under Edit. Use it when you are searching pages for a particular word or surname. It will save you a lot of time.
- Many genealogy search pages will have query sections. This is simply a page to ask a question about a certain person or family. When you post a query make sure you include as much specific info as you can, like full name date of birth, place of birth, date of death, place of death, etc. Stick to the facts, keep it short, and it is generally accepted practice to put your surnames all in CAPS. You will want to include your e-mail address. Post as many queries as you can BUT make sure you only post them under your specific counties or surnames. Otherwise you will clutter up the query page with questions no one can help you with. A good place to start is
USGenWeb.
- Be prepared to keep up with responses to your queries in your genealogy files. Don't forget manners! Respond promptly whenever possible and, if someone helps you, don't forget to say thank you!
- Many times the further back you go in your ancestry, the easier it is to find information. This is because there are so many "cousins" out there.
- Don't forget that even just a couple of hundred years ago the spelling of surnames was not an exact science. It was not uncommon for immigrants to change the spelling of their names more than once.
- As your research points you to a particular ethnic group, geographical area and time, do yourself a favor and learn at least a little about the general history of the period. This can help you understand your research. As an example, many of my ancestors came to America during the 1600's with the Puritans and Quakers. Understanding the political and historical setting will really add color to your past.
- Start a home page somewhere. IT'S NOT HARD.
GeoCities is free and has some utilities to get a page up and running within minutes. You can always go back to it later and get fancier. Two sites that made HTML sooooo easy are Create It! and HTML Tutorials. I used to be a GeoCities Community Leader. I had to resign because it took lots of time, but I will be happy to help you create a genealogy page in GeoCities. Just ask.
- Most browsers have a 'view source' option which allows you to see the html document for anything on the web. While we don't want to steal this can be a great way to learn how other folks are doing the things you like on their pages.
- One of the first things you should get on your page is a list of your most common surnames. A home page will allow others who may be researching the same names to contact you and to share information.
- Once you have some kind of a page somewhere, go to some of the search engines that you like and find a place called "Add URL." Different engines have different ways to do this, but it's simple. Some of them will ask you for keywords. This is important because the keywords will connect folks to your site. I use some of my major surnames, geographical areas, and words like 'genealogy'.
- Cyndi Howell has an expanded area for constructing your own genealogy home page. This is must-read.
Cyndi's Genealogy Home Page Construction Kit
- Join mail groups and list servers. Check with RootsWeb for groups containing your surnames or region of interest. You will receive periodic e-mail about research in that particular area. This is a great way to keep up. This is an area which I have only recently begun to explore, and just within the last couple of weeks I've found new ancestors on three lines. It's good to just watch for the first few weeks on any list. This will give you an idea of how it's run, what kind of format people use, etc. Each list has it's own 'personality.' Then post your surnames for the particular area, or, if its a surname newsgroup, post your individuals. You might want to concentrate your efforts on one name or one line at a time, as the information can quickly become overwhelming.
- Don't forget to check back periodically with the pages where you have posted queries. When your email address is listed with your post, you can pretty much count on getting a response. But on some of the query and forum pages you will need to check back because many of the responses are posted but not sent to you individually.
- Consider joining the Tombstone Transcription Project. This is a group of valant individuals who are attempting to get every cemetery onto an online database through The US GenWeb Project.
- Above all else don't forget to SHARE! If you have a genealogy software program you can create a genealogy file to send. There are many companies and associations on line that will allow you to submit GEDCOM files. I like Ancestry because they have a large World Family Tree Database which is FREE at their site. Why should you submit? It will allow others who may be connected to contact you. When you see how valuable the internet can be in your research you will want to help others, too. Most families and groups want to have as large a database as possible, so even if you can only contribute information about yourself and your immediate family, it could be very valuable to someone down the road.
janib1@juno.com
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