The Original 13
Growing up, from time to time, I would stay with my aunt and her family in Germantown, Pennsylvania. I won’t mention how many years ago that was, but I will tell you those visits...
Verbal Family Histories
All the advice for people starting to research their family history says to go and ask family members what they know. I was lucky that my grandparents provided me with a lot of information...
The Allure of Libraries
With so much focus in genealogy on internet searches, it is important to remember that libraries can be very helpful in your search for ancestry. Some libraries are set up specifically for genealogy while...
Tax records: a virtual goldmine of genealogical information
In my previous article, I highlighted some suggestions for navigating information about ancestors in the pre -1850 census period. One of the most fruitful sources of information for more distant ancestral research is tax...
Jewish genealogy and the search for roots near and far
Previously, I discussed the challenges encountered by African-Americans searching for ancestors who pre-date the Civil War and strategies for accessing both basic and more detailed information about this time period. Similarly, genealogical research for...
What land records can reveal about your ancestors
Land records are an important, and sometimes overlooked, source of information in genealogical research. Land records are not simply descriptions of the details of a plot of land. Besides providing evidence of where...
Using military records to learn about your ancestors
While military records are a great source of information for genealogical research, tracking down the appropriate record requires some investigative work. Identifying the branch of service, the war your ancestor was involved in and...
Genealogy and African-Americans: the search for enslaved ancestors
While tracing one’s family tree can be an ambitious undertaking for anyone, the widespread availability of resources has done much to democratize genealogy as a hobby and an industry. However, there are ethnic and...
Why Genealogy Matters
Genealogy has undoubtedly experienced a rebirth in recent decades. The proliferation of online resources and the vast opportunities for crowdsourcing to expand one’s ancestral knowledge underscores the popularity boom that genealogy has experienced. Currently,...
Exploring Heraldry
A few years ago, I went into a shop with a girlfriend. It was called The Coat of Arms Shoppe and was dedicated to heraldry. For those who don’t know, heraldry is the creating...
