Historical name and border changes can affect what records were created and where they are held today. In this article, we look at how to find vital records in Galicia, Austria-Hungary. Before historical records can be searched for any location, it is necessary to understand the historical names and border changes associated with that place, since this can impact what kinds of records were created and where they are held today. If you have ancestors that reported they were from Galicia, … [Read more...]
Putting the “Story” Back in Family History
Whether you want to build your family history with as many names and dates as possible, or choose to instead focus on discovering the stories and details of your ancestors' lives, there's no right or wrong goal. It's about choosing what's important to you. Choosing How to Build Your Family History As project managers, one of the questions we ask our clients is whether they want us to build their family trees as quickly as we can, only including biographical material if it is of unusual … [Read more...]
Seeking Connection: The Importance of Family History
We explore the importance of family history in helping you find belonging, and how records can help you discover the meaningful details of your ancestors' lives. Family can mean different things to different people. For some, it means to be with people who understand and accept you unconditionally. For others, it is strictly those to whom they have a biological connection. Some of us don’t have ideal families, while others couldn’t imagine their life without family. Most often, though, it’s a … [Read more...]
Super Human? Magician? Freaking Miracle Worker? Close…We’re Genealogists!
Have you hit a brick wall in your genealogy research? Have you considered hiring help? We share 4 tips for managing expectations when hiring a professional genealogist. As Legacy Tree’s high client ratings can attest, hiring a professional genealogist can be a deeply rewarding and exciting process. In nearly 20 years of service, we have helped thousands of clients learn about their heritage, identify biological parents, join lineage societies, break down brick walls, trace their immigrant … [Read more...]
Genealogy Sleuthing Part II: Using Women’s Fashion to Date Old Photos
In Part II of our two-part series on how to date old family photos, we discuss how to use women's fashion to date old photos you encounter in your genealogy research. Sometimes, there are no clues within the photograph or imprinted on it. In those situations, we need to rely on an understanding of the fashions of the 1850s through 1900s, both hair and clothing, to accurately determine when that particular photograph was taken. At least one of the three key aspects of women’s fashion—hair, the … [Read more...]
Genealogy Sleuthing: How to Date Old Family Photos – Part I
Many family historians have a collection of unidentified old family photos they're not sure what to do with--but can't bear to throw out. In this article, we'll share tips for helping you accurately date old family photos. Photographs are one of the treasures of genealogy. There is something about being able to look an ancestor in the eye—we make a connection to the people we can identify by both name and face. We search for traces of ourselves in their faces. We wonder what they were thinking … [Read more...]
Legacy Tree Onsite: Top 3 Record Collections for Researching Jewish Genealogy
Legacy Tree works with researchers all over the world to access records for our clients. We asked one of our onsite researchers, located in Lviv, Ukraine, to share the top 3 record collections for Jewish genealogy research at the State Central Historical Archive of Ukraine. The State Central Historical Archive of Ukraine holds the largest Ukrainian collection of historical Jewish documents. This includes Jewish populations that were part of the Polish Kingdom (before 1772), the Austrian … [Read more...]
Evidence Analysis Explained Part III: Evaluating Genealogical Evidence
This third and final installment in the evidence analysis series considers the concept of genealogical “Evidence” and then overviews the Genealogical Proof Standard which allows for defensible conclusions in genealogy. The purpose of genealogy is to reach defensible conclusions about our ancestors. This is done through proper analysis of the evidence. When we consider the sources, the information, and the evidence we can reach conclusions which are reliable. Evidence Analysis in … [Read more...]