Why is genealogy important? Joey Caccarozzo says, “I think it is important to understand the decisions, challenges, and sacrifices that our ancestors made in order for us to be living our lives today.” For today’s spotlight, she shares how she got started in family history, school projects that inspired her, and the what she does now to share family history with her children. I met Joey at a genealogical society seminar in our area a few months ago. Despite being a...
Do you want to get started in Family History but you’re nervous about the time commitment or your abilities? Do you feel overwhelmed whenever you think about just getting started? Today I’d like to spotlight my friends and neighbors, the Rickenbach family. We belong to the same LDS ward and I’ve worked with their family for the last several months doing family history. Craig and Corinne took my beginning Family History Sunday School class in...
Family history is all about people and meeting new cousins is often a highlight in our genealogy ramblings. Ten years ago, long before Ancestry’s DNA became hugely popular, I participated in a YDNA test group that not only proved my connection to Thomas Royston, who arrived in Virginia in 1635, but led me to a new cousin. Today I’d like to introduce you to Don Royston, my DNA proven cousin and fellow Royston researcher. I met Don...
Provo City Center LDS temple, formerly the Provo Tabernacle I often wonder why some people research their genealogy and some people do not. Those of us who identify ourselves as family historians or genealogists can usually recall a certain moment in time when our love for family history began. This “Family History is for Everyone” series aims to uncover that spark – the initial interest that brings people to research their roots. Sometimes it occurs when we are inspired by a friend or when we...
Today, Phil Gregory tells how he got started in family history in our second installment of the “Family History is for Everyone” series. Phil says, “I think we should all know where we came from, at least in some basic way.” He tells about the value of sharing records freely online and the discovery of his Irish ancestry. I met Phil six years ago while searching google for more information about a branch of my family tree...
According to D. Joshua Taylor at the Green Valley (AZ) Genealogical Society seminar yesterday, the stereotypical genealogist is a 65 year old white female. He learned this when he dedicated a separate web browser for his genealogy google searches only. Google built a profile based on these searches to target him for advertisements. He found out from friends at google that google thought he was a 65 year old white female. We got a...
Family History Is For Everyone At the Brigham Young University Family History and Genealogy Conference today, FamilySearch CEO Steve Rockwood spoke about the FamilySearch mission to make family history exciting for everyone. He said we need to “bring more emotion” to the work and get all ages involved by adding more technologies, photos, and memories. Rockwood wants the family history center to be the most fun, exciting place for people to visit. Family history work...
In this episode of the Research Like a Pro Genealogy podcast, hosts Diana and Nicole discuss the features and effectiveness of FamilySearch’s new “Simple Search” tool. They explore how this experiment allows users to search billions of full-text records using natural language queries rather than traditional forms. Diana shares her experience testing the tool with her father’s name, Bobby Gene Shults, demonstrating how the artificial intelligence parses results and helps distinguish between individuals with similar...
Nicole and Diana open the episode by discussing Claude in Chrome for Pedigree Triangulation before introducing their interview with Mark and Steve about AI, who host the Family History AI Show. Mark Thompson also runs the Making Family History blog, and Steve Little writes on his Substack, Vibe Genealogy AI. Steve is the AI Program Director for the National Genealogical Society. They both teach widely about AI topics and family history, including their own courses....
This episode features Virginia Pratt, who brings decades of expertise to the discussion, including five years on the FamilySearch Research Wiki Team and a bachelor’s degree in Family History from BYU. Virginia joins Nicole and Diana to discuss the essential, free online genealogical resource: the FamilySearch Research Wiki. Nicole asks Virginia to explain the Wiki’s purpose, access methods, and how to navigate the main page, noting that it should be used for finding information on...
