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!

Tips for Researching Ancestors Who Migrated Alone

May 20, 2021 by Katy - Legacy Tree Genealogists Senior Researcher & Editor Leave a Comment

One of our researchers, Katy Barnes, provides valuable tips on how to research an ancestor who migrated alone. Katy traces the migration of David Trout, an unmarried laborer, who migrated to Dallas County Texas in the mid-1800s. Dallas County, TexasThe population of Dallas County, Texas, in 1880 was just over 33,000 (notable, since the 2020 figure is now above 2.5 million). A query of the 1880 census shows (in rough numbers) over 3,000 Dallas County residents that year were reportedly born in Tennessee; 2,100 were born in Kentucky; and 1,900 were born in Missouri, with 1,400 born outside the south in Illinois. In contrast, just 400 New Yorkers had made their way south to Dallas County during the post-Reconstruction period.Then there was David H. Trout, who was one of just 179 Maryland-born transplants in the area that year. And he came alone.David was born in 1846 in Woodsboro, a town in Frederick County, Maryland, that would have been considered small even by …

From Spit to Screen: The Journey of a DNA Sample

May 12, 2021 by Paul - Legacy Tree Genealogists Researcher 1 Comment

One of our researchers, Paul Woodbury, describes the journey of a DNA sample from the instant the sample is taken until it is analyzed in the laboratory. The following article is a reprint from the July-September 2020 issue of the National Genealogical Society Magazine and is published here with permission. How does DNA testing actually work? How can spitting into a tube result in an ethnicity estimate, a list of genetic cousins, and other DNA data? This article reviews the technology that enables genetic genealogy and the five-step process that transforms a saliva sample into a comprehensive genetic report: collection, extraction, amplification, testing, and data analysis (1).CollectionComplete copies of the human genome are carried by most of the trillions of cells in the human body. While red blood cells and some skin, hair, and nail cells do not carry nuclear DNA, nearly any other type of cell can be sampled for DNA analysis.In the early days of genetic genealogy …

Legacy Tree Onsite: Tips for Maximizing Leads in Chilean Genealogy Research

April 20, 2021 by Legacy Tree Genealogists Leave a Comment

Legacy Tree Genealogists works with researchers from across the globe to access records for our clients. In this article, one of our researchers discusses ways to maximize leads and get around brick walls in Chilean Research.Overview of Chilean ResearchRecords in Chile can be very informative. For the most part, the municipal and civil records are full of information and leads - if everything you are looking for is after the year 1887. The Chilean government started keeping more valuable and more detailed records around that year.Before 1887, the Chilean government did not offer much to a hungry genealogist searching for answers that could break a case wide open. A researcher had a few census records he could sift through or some passenger lists to look at from all the ships relocating new European settlers to South America.So, for the most part, a researcher had to rely on the records provided by the Catholic Church. These happen to include census records kept by the …

How can DNA Solve Unknown Parentage and Break Down a Brick Wall?

April 13, 2021 by Shelbie - Researcher with Legacy Tree Genealogists Leave a Comment

One of our researchers uses her own family tree investigation as an example to explain how DNA can be used to break down brick walls, solve an unknown parentage case and uncover surprises in genealogical research.Important Female AncestorsWho are the important female ancestors you would like to honor in your life? Sometimes finding historical records about our female ancestors is not enough. Sometimes, all you can do is send in a DNA test, hoping that somehow, some way, you will find a previously unknown genetic cousin who can give you the answers you need. Below is my female ancestor's story and how the quest to learn more about her story and parentage led to a long-lost relative, broke down a brick wall, and solved a surprise unknown parentage case.Annie Rice was born on 9 July 1876 in Hickman, Kentucky. At the age of 14, she married William H. Franklin in Cairo, Alexander, Illinois (pronounced Care-oh), in 1890. My great-great-grandparents went on to have fifteen …