The Legacy Tree Genealogists Blog

Hand-picked, tested and trained, our professional genealogist team knows how to find your story. We search the world for answers. Find the un-findable. And we’re experts at everything from tracking down rare international records to analyzing DNA test results. Based near the world’s largest family history library in downtown Salt Lake City, we also work with researchers and archives around the globe. Contact us today if you would like help discovering your ancestors!

6 Signs of Misattributed Parentage in Your Genetic Family Tree

January 4, 2023 by Paul - Legacy Tree Genealogists Researcher 4 Comments

While DNA testing and genetic evidence are certainly useful for breaking down challenging historic brick walls, the implications of DNA testing can also hit closer to home in the modern era when it comes to research on misattributed parentage.  In cases of adoption, unknown parentage or misattributed parentage, genetic genealogy methodologies enable identification of close biological ancestors whose identities might otherwise remain unknown, and which represent immediate brick walls for any genealogist dealing with such a scenario in their immediate family tree. In this series of blog posts, we explore tips for successful genetic genealogy searches dealing with adoption research, unknown parentage, or misattributed parentage. (Portions of this article are reprinted with permission from the April-June 2022 issue of NGS Magazine ) Genetic genealogy can (and often does) reveal surprise cases of misattributed parentage in test takers’ family trees. Misattributed parentage …

Top 5 DNA and Genetic Genealogy Blog Posts in 2022

December 22, 2022 by Legacy Tree Genealogists Leave a Comment

The use of DNA and genetic genealogy have become widely used strategies for solving challenging genealogy research projects since DNA testing became available to the public in the early 2000s. With our team of expert genetic genealogists at Legacy Tree, we can break through brick walls, discover unknown parentage, and make family tree connections that were impossible just a few short decades ago. In case you missed them, below are the top five DNA and genetic genealogy blog posts of 2022 that can help you better understand genetic genealogy and possibly overcome brick wall challenges that could hinder your research progress. (If you haven’t done so, you can subscribe to our blog on this page.) How Are We Related? Navigating the Terminology. How are we related? That’s a question that we have been asked quite a bit lately, and sometimes determining that exact familial connection with someone else can be confusing. What is the difference between a second cousin and a …

Nine Tips for Successful Adoption Research with Genetic Genealogy

December 19, 2022 by Paul - Legacy Tree Genealogists Researcher Leave a Comment

While DNA testing and genetic evidence are certainly useful for breaking down challenging historic brick walls, the implications of DNA testing can also hit closer to home in the modern era when it comes to adoption research. In cases of adoption, unknown parentage or misattributed parentage, genetic genealogy methodologies enable identification of close biological ancestors whose identities might otherwise remain unknown, and which represent immediate brick walls for any genealogist dealing with such a scenario in their immediate family tree. In this series of blog posts, we explore tips for successful genetic genealogy searches dealing with adoption research, unknown parentage, or misattributed parentage. Approximately 7 million Americans (or 2% of the population) are adopted, and about 140,000 children are adopted each year. Meanwhile, nearly 60% of the U.S. population has had a personal experience with adoption, meaning that they themselves, a family member, or a …

15 Steps to Finding Your Immigrant Ancestors

November 28, 2022 by Marissa - Legacy Tree Genealogists Researcher 2 Comments

Immigration ancestor research can be very rewarding as you discover the story behind your ancestor's journey across the pond. In this guide, we share 15 steps to discovering your ancestor's story of their journey to the United States and help you retrace their steps to find the records and data to verify your heritage. If you live in the United States and your ancestors aren’t Native American, then your ancestors crossed the pond at some point. Depending on the time period and proximity to a port, they might have walked, ridden on the back of a cart, traveled by train, or even taken a small river boat to get to the port city. They got word from a family member or friend telling them exactly how to travel, the best places to stop along the way, the best merchants to do business with (and some to avoid), and the best ticket agents from which to buy a ship ticket. Your immigrant probably knew exactly which shipping line to book passage with, and maybe even the exact ship they should …