Nicole Elder Dyer

About Nicole Elder Dyer

Nicole Dyer is a professional genealogist specializing in Southern United States research and genetic genealogy. She is the creator of FamilyLocket.com and the Research Like a Pro Genealogy Podcast. She co-authored Research Like a Pro: A Genealogist's Guide and Research Like a Pro with DNA and is an instructor for the study groups of the same name. She lectures at conferences and institutes and previously served as the secretary and publicity chair of the Pima County Genealogy Society. Nicole holds a bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University in History Teaching. At Family Locket Genealogists, Nicole is a project manager, editor, and researcher.

RLP 287: Flew the Coop: Harriet (Huggett) Kelsey

Jan 8, 2024

Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about our ancestor Harriett Huggett (Nicole’s 3rd great-grandmother and Diana’s 2nd great-grandmother). Diana researched records for Harriett’s early life in England. She enjoyed finding a personal history written by Harriett’s granddaughter which provided wonderful details about Harriett’s decision to leave her wealthy situation. The history describes their difficult journey and Harriett’s adjustment to poverty in the Utah desert after being used to fine things in England. We...

Genealogy and DNA Research in Phases

Jan 6, 2024

Have you ever felt like you’ve been working on a research question for years, and are not even sure what progress you’ve made? To combat this feeling, we recommend breaking up complex research projects into phases. For instance, researching the mother of a female ancestor born in the early 1800s is unlikely to be completed within 20 hours. It will likely require several phases, each with its own objective. As professional genealogists, this is how...

RLP 286: Researching your Scandinavian Ancestors with Torhild Shirley Part 2

Jan 1, 2024

Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is an interview with Torhild Shirley about Scandinavian research. She continues the case study of Gudmund Rasmussen and discusses research planning, carrying out the research, and the conclusion. The central question addressed in this episode revolves around whether Gudmund Rasmusson, presumed to be Rasmus Gudmundsson’s father, married twice – first to Elsa Thuesdotter and then to Karna Larsdotter. Transcript Nicole (1s): This is Research Like a Pro episode...

RLP 285: Scandinavian Research with Torhild Shirley Part 1

Dec 25, 2023

Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is an interview with Scandinavian research expert, Torhild Shirley, AG. Torhild is a native of Norway. We discuss the challenges of genealogical research in Scandinavia, focusing on a case study from Sweden. In the case, Torhild aims to uniquely identify a person named Rasmus Gudmundsson, born around 1719 in Malmöhus, Sweden, using Swedish tax and church records. We discuss challenges from the patronymic naming system and the use...

RLP 284: University Archives with Sam Howes

Dec 18, 2023

In this episode of Research Like a Pro, Nicole Dyer and Diana Elder speak with Sam Howes, an archivist at Bates College in Maine. They discuss his work managing the official records of the college, including administrative documents, student records, yearbooks, and special collections. Sam explains what types of materials college archives typically maintain, like trustee meeting minutes, presidential records, alumni newsletters, student government documents, and more. He notes that confidentiality restrictions can limit access...

RLP 283: Selina Kelsey – Utah Pioneer in the News

Dec 11, 2023

Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about our ancestor, Selina (Beddoes) Kelsey. Selina lived until age 97, and was regularly featured in Utah newspapers due to being one of the last pioneers to arrive in Utah by wagon (before the railroad). Selina was only 4 years old when she crossed from Nebraska to Salt Lake City by covered wagon. Diana organized the newspaper clippings into a timeline in Airtable to keep track of...

RLP 282: Finding William Keaton’s Land

Dec 4, 2023

Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about Diana’s visit to the South Carolina Department of Archives and History to learn more about William Keaton, our ancestor. William Keaton received a land grant in the late 1700s in Pendleton District, which became Anderson County. Diana shares what she learned in her visit to the archives and we discuss the land grant. Transcript Nicole (1s): This is Research Like a Pro episode 282, finding William...

RLP 281: Civil Marriage Records

Nov 27, 2023

Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about civil marriage records and where to find them. We discuss examples from the U.S. and England and give a tutorial for how to make citations for marriage records from a bound volume at the county courthouse viewed as images online. Transcript Nicole (1s): This is Research Like a Pro episode 281 Civil Marriage Records Welcome to research Like a Pro a genealogy podcast about taking your...

RLP 280: Colonial Emigrant Ancestor: Thomas Royston

Nov 20, 2023

Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about our distant ancestor, Thomas Royston, who settled in Gloucester County, Virginia. Thomas was granted thousands of acres in the late 1600s, and Diana got to visit Gloucester County and see where he probably lived. Join us as we discuss the historical context and records that make up the story of Thomas Royston’s life. We discuss challenges like record loss and review Virginia’s colonial history, focusing on...