Genealogy Tip of the Day

Check with your local library and determine if they have access to subscription databases that may be helpful in your research. There are ob...

In some cities, streets have been renamed and renumbered. If your family lived in the same house from 1880 through 1930, make certain the ad...

I was working with tax lists while at the Family History Library in May. In my excitement over finding relatives  in a 1831 tax list, I almo...

If you have lost a female relative, have you considered whether or not they are really lost at all? They may simply be "hiding" un...

Have you gone through your computer and paper files and organized them lately? Do you have multiple copies of the same things? Do you have s...

If you are not certain how to spell the name of a location, do not know where it is actually located, and have never seen the place on a map...

When you find a deed for an ancestor in a record book, be certain that you look a few pages before and after the located record. People coul...

If you have found what looks like a deed where heirs are settling up real estate after a death, try and access other records if at all possi...

Sometimes it pays to get that document or record when you "think you know everything." One reason is that you might be incorrect ...

Don't get me wrong, I love the materials that the Family History Library has on microfilm and in digital format. But the individuals who...

Don't forget that records regarding your ancestor might have been created at several government levels: local--such as town, city, or...

When searching local court records, remember that they typically appear in the plaintiffs' index once and in the defendants' index o...

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Even if you think your ancestors never lived anywhere else, consider the possibility they were somewhere else, even if for a short time. A y...

I've been using the 1865 Illinois State Census at FamilySearch. Between the poor handwriting, the faded ink, and the non-English names, ...

Court cases and pension applications often contain affidavits and statements from witnesses. Sometimes these statements will indicate how lo...

Remember that the date your ancestor "executed" a document is usually the date he signed it. It is different from a date when the ...

Often it is necessary to estimate a date of an event. If you have to approximate a date of birth, marriage, or death, indicate your reason i...

I'm not going to make a 3,000 word long essay on starting your blog. Blogging is best done by learning. After you've made a few post...

The informant on any record or document has their own perspective, their own agenda, and their own set of biases. Always be aware of this wh...

Many have asked about starting your own blog for reasons discussed in today's tip. You can create your own blog at Blogger for free on...

Creating a blog is easy. It may also help you to break down brick walls and make connections with others who could help with your research. ...

Several years ago on a trip to Missouri, we stopped in the town where my mother-in-law was born. The local library didn't really have an...

If your ancestor was a member of a religious denomination that practiced infant baptism, look at the names of the individuals who were spons...

A visit to a rural cemetery to visit my grandparents' graves recently caused me to stumble a cross a couple who were using the back of t...

Microfilmed and digital copies of court packets usually contain the papers in the order they are when they were filmed or digitized. They ma...

The consideration in a land transfer is the money or other item that has been used to pay for a piece of real property. If it is a token amo...

Let your genealogy friends know about Genealogy Tip of the Day. They can view old tips on the blog at http://genealogytipoftheday.blogspot...

An administratrix is a female administrator of an estate. The term has fallen from use and is rarely used today. If you have a female relati...

Every so often I review various relatives and realize that I'm "missing" one or another in a certain census record. Sometimes ...

When was the last time you made a backup of your electronic genealogical data?

Don't look at just the alphabetical names in a city directory. There may be directories of businessmen that could provide more detail ab...

The marquee said "DOS GUYS" in all capital letters. I never went to hear them perform, so I cannot really be certain what the ...

Set a date to periodically review those families you have not worked on in a while. It can be easy to get wrong ideas, misconceptions, or in...

Reading through every bill paid by your ancestor's executor or administrator might seem as fun as watching paint dry, but I learned: ...