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| The next step after documenting your
closest family members is to expand out to other relatives. Family reunions are a great
place to gather information for your family tree because a lot of your relatives gather in
one spot. Time always seems too short at family reunions, but if you come organized, you
can obtain a lot of genealogical information. Bring lots of empty charts with you and have as many people
fill them out as possible. Make sure whoever fills out a chart puts their name, address
and telephone number on the back of the chart. (The need to document the source for asking
questions later). Bring your camera and take lots of pictures. Be sure to document your
pictures so that you know who is who – Picture number 1, left to right: Aunt Ollie
Beatty, Uncle Art Mills, etc. Obtaining names, addresses and telephone numbers of relatives is an imperative in completing a family history. You need information from a lot of people. You can mail, or e-mail, blank family charts to relatives and ask them to "fill in the blanks". This will be easier and cheaper than phoning, and also gives each relative some time to gather the needed information. On the other hand, sometimes you never get the chart back again. Most people lead busy lives, and not everyone will be as enthused, as you, about a family history. |
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There is no doubt that if you could visit
everyone, your enthusiasm would probably rub off on others and would help in a quicker
gathering of information. Although, in most cases, this is unlikely because most families
are spread out all over the country. The more people you are able to visit, the more personal information you will obtain. Also, you are much more likely to get told neat stories when you sit down over tea or coffee with good ole Aunt Myrtle. |
| When you go to visit relatives, you
must ask to look in the family photo album. Quite often you get to see photos of people
you have never seen before. Some of these old pictures would make great additions to the
family history. Nothing is more frustrating than finding old pictures of people you
believe to be your relatives, and nobody knows who they are. So again (and I can’t
emphasize this enough), make sure you document who the people are in the pictures and
where you got the pictures from. It is good practice not to write directly on the pictures
as this could damage the pictures. When you find pictures of your ancestors, you can
preserve them by having black and white negatives made of the pictures. In some instances,
your relatives might not wish to part with the picture, even for a brief period. In these
cases, if you own a good camera, you can actually take a picture of the picture. The
quality of the picture will depend on your camera, but at least you will have a picture of
your ancestor to add to the family history. Ask if they have or know about any old family Bibles, artifacts, or other family records that may exist. It would be great to find the original wedding certificate of your grandparents. Any information that you can get from family memories and keepsakes means a richer family history. When you talk to relatives, always, always, always ask them to tell their favourite stories about their family. If they are not too shy, videotape or audiotape your "interviews". The stories of the "Life and Times" of your ancestors are the heart of your family history. |
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