Start your genealogy journey without paying out by following Karen Clare’s simple tips

Karen Clare

FAMILY HISTORY FOR FREE

Practical ideas to get you started

Starting your family history usually requires no more expense than your time. There really is plenty of basic research you can do for free before spending your money on things such as subscriptions to the major genealogy websites and the essential birth, marriage and death certificates.

1 Record what you know

If you’ve no clue where or how to begin your family history, then the old adage is true: start with yourself and work backwards. Surprisingly few people know the full names of their grandparents, not to mention greatgrandparents, when they start tracing their trees. Don’t worry if you are one of them, now is the time to put that right and record their lives for now and future generations.

Get a plain piece of paper and begin sketching out a basic family tree in pencil, or download and print one of the free trees on a website such as www.familytreetemplates.net Record the known names and birth/ marriage/death events of your siblings, parents, aunts and uncles, grandparents and so on.

2 Talk to your relatives

Once you have formed a basic tree you will find you have lots of missing information. Now’s the time to talk to your relatives – let them know you’re doing the family history and ask if they can help you fill in any gaps. If you can visit relatives in person (especially older relatives), that’s brilliant. Get comfy, settle down with a cuppa and have a set of questions ready, or just chat about what they may remember about their own childhoods and family members, providing gentle prompts for essential names and dates, where required. If they agree to it, you could video them talking or record the interview on your smartphone or tablet. Remember, however, that not everyone is happy to talk about the past – there may be sensitive or traumatic memories or events that are simply not up for discussion.