Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about the FAN club. When you research your ancestors, do you pay attention to their neighbors on the census? The bondsmen, godparents, witnesses, doctors, and people with the same occupation? These all make up the friends, associates, and neighbors of your ancestors. Researching the FAN club is a strategy Diana and I have used often in our own research and research for clients. Join us as we...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about pensions given to soldiers of various U.S. conflicts. Our guest, Michael Strauss, AG, discusses each war, the kind of pension records that are available to veterans and survivors, and where to find them. Join us as we talk with Michael about this substantial federal record group. Links Prologue Magazine – National Archives Publication Genealogy Research Network – website of Michael Strauss, includes his lectures, speaking schedule,...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about a research project Nicole did for a client in the 19th century in England and New York. We discuss each step of the research like a pro process and how it helped find a solution. Join us as we discuss the known information, creating a research plan, finding candidates, and eliminating them until only one remained. Links RLP eCourse coupon code: RLP89RT2020 (expires April 30, 2020)...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is an interview with Libby Copeland, author of the new book The Lost Family: How DNA Testing is Upending Who We Are. We discuss some of the main themes in the book, from ethnicity estimates, the history of genetic genealogy, the use of DNA to solve cold cases, and surprises that come from testing. Libby also shares her own experience with genealogy and DNA testing. Links Link to...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about how to find your female ancestors. We interview Lisa Lisson, the author of the Are You My Cousin? blog. Lisa shares four helpful strategies to get around the common problems encountered when researching the women in our family tree. Join us as we talk about these proven strategies and unique record types (even cookbooks!). Links Researching Female Ancestors? You Can Overcome Those Research Roadblocks! – by...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about Richard Miller’s new chrome extension, Goldie May. The extension logs each website you visit and offers helpful research guidance for research in the United States. Start with a person in your FamilySearch Family Tree, then set an objective. Goldie May advises you where to look for locality information, suggests reviewing the ancestor’s timeline, and reviewing the sources already attached. From there you can set additional tasks...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about how to write about your genetic genealogy research. After keeping track of your searches in your research log, you are ready to write about what you found in a report. We discuss what to include in the report, how to discuss genetic connections, and ideas for making the report flow. Links DNA Research Reports – the Ultimate Finish by Robin at Family Locket Writing a Research...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about how to use a research log in your genetic genealogy research. We discuss the sources and methods to include in your log, how to best keep track of your DNA matches, correspondence logs, and tech tools that will help you be efficient. We discuss how to use a database tool called Airtable to help you with big projects where you have a lot of DNA matches...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about how to find and use gazetteers in your genealogy research. Diana and Nicole discuss how to locate them using the FamilySearch Wiki, Google, and library catalogs, and what kind of helpful information they contain. They share several examples of helpful gazetteers, including Meyers Gazetteer for Germany, the U.S. Geographic Name Information System, Names in South Carolina, and more. Links Gazetteers – article at the FamilySearch Wiki...
Today’s episode of Research Like a Pro is about how to analyze a record thoroughly and find clues for future research. Nicole is preparing her portfolio to submit to the Board for Certification of Genealogists, so we are discussing portfolio element 3 – Document Work – in conjunction with this subject. For this portfolio element, applicants are given a document to transcribe and analyze. We focus primarily on parts 3C, 3D, and 3E – creating...