Start with yourself in New to Genealogy

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New to Genealogy - Help for Beginners

Start Your Journey to Find Your Family Tree

Step 1. Start with yourself

Your first step in genealogy research is to start with what you know. Start with yourself and work backwards. Fill in all information on a Pedigree Chart.

Olive Tip: Use PENCIL so you can erase!

When you are done, you can easily see what ancestors are missing, or what facts you need to find.

Write down the names of your parents, grandparents, great-grandparents and so on.

Build your family tree! It's FREE to fill out on Ancestry.com

Find out when each was born, and where, and mark that down too.
Locations of vital events (births, marriages, deaths, burials) is very important. You need to know where each event took place so you can hunt for more records.

Olive Tree Genealogy Suggests: Ancestor Pedigree Chart

Download this free pedigree chart. You must have Acrobat Reader installed on your computer to view or print the form. You can download Acrobat Reader for free now

Genealogy Guide For Beginners

Step 1. Start with yourself
Step 2. Talk to Family Members & Relatives
Step 3. Find Death & Burial Records
Step 4. Find Ancestors in Census Records
Step 5. Find Marriage Records

Step 6. Find Birth or Baptism Records
Step 7. Contact other descendants in Genealogy forums
Step 8. Join a Mailing List
Step 9: Subscribe to a Free Newsletter or a Blog Feed
Step 10. Search the LDS Family History Library website

Return to index of Genealogy Guide For Beginners

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