In this episode, Nicole and Diana discuss part 4 of Diana’s 5th project to search for the father of Cynthia (Dillard) Royston, focusing on research logging and source citations. Diana explains how she uses the Airtable template, “RLP with DNA 4.2 (2026),” to organize her project and enter data for key DNA matches. Nicole details the real-time logging process, noting how they enter data in either row or form views. To organize her research on...
In this episode, Diana and Nicole discuss Phase 5, Part 3 of the search for Cynthia (Dillard) Royston’s biological father. They review the known facts about Cynthia’s life using census, tax, and estate records, as well as death certificates of her children. Diana presents her hypothesis focusing on three Dillard men who drew lots in the 1832 Gold Lottery in Cass County, Georgia: James Dillard, Joseph B. Dillard, and Roliver Dillard. She explains how they...
This episode explores the ongoing genealogical project to identify the biological father of Cynthia (Dillard) Royston, an ancestor who remains a mystery after years of research. Diana and Nicole focus on the fifth phase of this investigation, which involves utilizing DNA and documentary evidence to connect Cynthia to potential candidates among the Dillard men who drew lots in the 1832 Georgia Gold Lottery. Diana explains how she organizes this project using Airtable to track timelines...
Diana and Nicole examine the ongoing research project to identify the biological father of Cynthia (Dillard) Royston. Diana summarizes previous research phases conducted through the Research Like a Pro with DNA study group, which have systematically tested Dillard candidates and narrowed the search using documentary evidence. She explains the genealogical background of Cynthia, who was born about 1815 in Georgia, and details the elimination of various candidates from earlier research phases. The discussion also covers...
This episode addresses the importance of methodically logging research and creating source citations as you follow a research plan. Diana shares her strategy for quickly creating citations for FamilySearch records, emphasizing the value of creating the citation first to understand the source and ensure it’s done. Nicole explains how she sets up and fills out her research log using the Research Like a Pro Airtable template, which includes features for grouping, sorting, and linking records...
In this episode, Nicole and Diana discuss the crucial “Research Planning” stage of the Research Like a Pro process in the fourth part of their series on the father of Cynthia (Dillard) Royston. Nicole begins by emphasizing the importance of creating a thoughtful research plan rather than haphazardly searching records. Diana then walks through the specific steps she takes for this case study. She states her objective, which is to discover a candidate for Cynthia...
Nicole and Diana give an overview of Diana’s multi-phase research to discover the father of Cynthia (Dillard) Royston. Diana first reviews four past phases of her research. She discusses Phase 1, which initially focused on George W. Dillard as a strong candidate, and Phase 2, which identified and eliminated ten other Dillard candidates in the area. Both of these documentary-based hypotheses are eventually disproven. She then outlines Phase 3, where she successfully tests and disproves...
Writing a report is a crucial step in our research. As we write, we synthesize the many details we’ve explored and put them together in an organized fashion. This allows us to bring a research phase to a close and provides the next steps for a future research phase. The search for Cynthia’s father continues, but in this phase, I successfully eliminated some candidates and found new opportunities to research. I’ve included the report at...
After making a research plan, following that plan is exciting. What new information or insights will we discover in the records? Could we find the answer to our long-standing brick wall? I’ve learned through experience that methodically logging my research as I follow my plan ensures that I don’t miss important clues. Creating the source citation is the first thing I do as I fill out my research log for a couple of reasons. First,...
An important step in our research is to make a plan. Rather than haphazardly clicking on record sets in various websites, we can think through our research objective and what we know about the family and locality, then plan searches in specific record sets. For this part of the Research Like a Pro process, we have several steps that help solidify what we know and prioritize the research. Here is the complete series: Revisiting the...
