Understanding the basics of Jewish genealogy is essential for writing your family history and bringing your ancestors to life. Here are some of our tips on finding your ancestor's hometown and helping to navigate your research. In the last several hundred years, there were three major influxes of Jews into the United States (and countries like England and Canada).[1] The Sephardic Jews from Spain and Portugal were the first to arrive, coming during the Colonial years of American history. The … [Read more...]
2 Guidelines for Resolving Conflicting Information in Sources
The conflicting information in sources can be a brick wall in your genealogy search. If or when you run into this unfortunate situation, here's some tips to help resolve those conflicts! We’ve all been there – tracking down an ancestor and finding an answer we've been looking for on a document, only to find another record that says something different! The death certificate has a different date of death than the headstone, a census gives a different place of birth than a marriage record, … [Read more...]
10 Ways to Tell That…You Might Be a Genealogist!
Genealogy may not appeal to everyone, but those who catch the "bug" tend to get it bad! Do any of these 10 things sound familiar? * If you carry a “relationship calculator” card around in your wallet, you might be a genealogist. (Second cousin twice-removed, great-grandniece...) * If your Google home page displays the home pages to MyHeritage.com, FamilySearch.org, Ancestry.com, or FindaGrave.com, you might be a genealogist. * If every time someone mentions a major U.S. city, you … [Read more...]
Research Pitfalls of Beginning Genealogists
Avoid these common research pitfalls that many beginning genealogists fall into! If you’re looking for ways to improve your research skills, it’s always best to take a personal inventory of your research practices and habits. Following are some errors that many beginners and hobbyists make which, if eliminated, could save time and increase accuracy immensely. Collecting Ancestors This is one of the most common mistakes. Simply copying down someone else’s tree or taking their … [Read more...]
Denied Access to a Vital Record? Try the Newspaper!
When privacy laws prevent researchers from finding genealogy records, newspaper records may provide the information you're searching for! Strict privacy laws, designed to protect both the living and the dead from having their identities stolen, can create some serious problems for a genealogist. Some states permit the acquisition of birth, marriage, or death records when the individuals named in those records have been dead for 50 years, or 100 years after the event was recorded. Other … [Read more...]
What’s in a Name? 4 Tips for Finding An Elusive Ancestor
Are you continuing to hit a genealogical brick wall searching for an elusive ancestor? Here are 4 unique tips that may help! One of the things I love about genealogy is the fascinating variety of names and the many forms that one particular name can take. One memorable name that I encountered recently was Cadwallader Slaughter, often shortened to Cad Slaughter. What a name! It’s a delicate science using names to determine the identity of one person, or distinguishing between many … [Read more...]
Google Searching Tips for Genealogists
In the digital age, searching for your ancestor's records is easier than ever. Read our 5 tips on using Google to navigate your genealogy search. You may be surprised what amazing genealogy finds you can discover using just Google alone! Thousands of photos, scanned books, and online genealogical collections are available that aren't at the usual big websites like Ancestry or FamilySearch. A reasonably exhaustive search should include a plunge into Google. Most know that you search for an … [Read more...]
Meet Carolyn, Project Manager for Legacy Tree Genealogists
Meet Carolyn, a passionate Project Manager for Legacy Tree Genealogists. Carolyn has an extensive family history of genealogy work and has been involved in various research opportunities around the country. Learn more about Carolyn! Carolyn Tolman comes from “one of those” families whose pedigree goes way back, thanks to diligent great-grandmothers who were passionate genealogists. She grew up hearing stories of her ancestors’ immigrations from Northern Europe and settlement in the untamed … [Read more...]