20 easy ways to make an awesome family history

 4. Label your photos

Make sure you know who’s in the photo

You might know who’s in the picture, but will your children be able to recognise them too? It’s well worth carefully recording the names of the people in the picture and the date it was taken. An old family photo means so much more when you know for sure which loveable old ancestor you’re looking at. Even if it’s obvious to you, ‘That’s Dad, age 6, in Gibraltar, as Grandpa was working out there in the RAF at the time’, how could your descendants possibly guess that?! So as well as dates and places, do record details about the occasion – Grandpa going off to war, Auntie Julie’s wedding and baby Harold’s ­first birthday – each picture is a precious and irreplaceable memento of the past.

5. Back up your research

Keep your hard work and precious family history discoveries safe

Family history is really absorbing, but don’t underestimate the amount of time and effort you put in, nor how valuable your records will become – so back it up. It’s never too soon to get into the habit. Each family’s history is unique, so you need to make sure it’s kept safe – both for your sake (so you don’t have to repeat precious research should it get lost) and so you can pass it on to a future generation. What’s more, if you’ve taken the time to record the memories of older members of your family who have now passed away, records such as these are simply irreplaceable, so all the more valuable.

How you back up will depend on how you work. Use a family history program? Create a back up of that, for instance, on a memory stick. Perhaps export it to GEDCOM from time to time (then should your computer die and your old family history program not work on your newly bought computer, you can simply get a new family history program and import your GEDCOM). Photocopy your notebook if you’re a paper-only person. Write up your notes and blog about them.

6. Keep your source citations

Research and record your findings like an expert

Make notes of the sources you search, and you will ­find that these notes help you in the future, so that you can retrace your steps and explain them to others. When something’s dif­ficult it’s tempting to put off doing it altogether. ‘Source citations’ is just that sort of phrase to make you reach for your mouse and go gallivanting off in search of new ancestors. But not so fast. Source citations can seem complicated but they needn’t be. The main things you need to record are exactly: l which record collection you searched; l where you searched them (e.g. the archive); l the date you searched them. These details (the more the better) will allow you (or someone else) to reconstruct the research steps you’ve taken to see how you arrived at the conclusions you did about your ancestors. If you’re keeping a research log (see number 1), it’ll be much easier to get in the habit of keeping source citations too.

7. Employ a professional researcher

Plan the research goal you have carefully, set a budget, and get some expert help if needed

There are three main obstacles that might deter any of us from asking for help with a family history problem that we’re stuck on. The ­first is because we feel the answer must be out there somewhere, we just have to keep looking. The second is that we might want to ‘do it ourselves’ and feel as though we’re wimping out if we ask for help. And the third is that we’re worried about how much it might cost. But it’s really worth looking at these points a little more closely. Certainly, if you keep looking you will grow in experience, and by exploring more records you may find that vital clue you need. Also you’d be quite right in thinking that perseverance does pay off. Equally we can’t all be experts at every aspect of family history, so don’t be ashamed to ask for help. If you’ve searched thoroughly and kept a clear research log of what you’ve done so far (see how useful a research log is?), you’ll be able to identify precisely what it is you wish to ­find out, and can show the professional genealogist exactly what it is that you’re seeking. This will enable them to work out a much more precise quote and will save them time and you money.

8. Go back one century further

Discover new sources to explore and help you expand your horizons

Set yourself a challenge to take your tree back into an earlier century and relish the opportunities it offers for your research. Whether it’s a lack of skills or con­fidence on how to tackle unfamiliar earlier records, you can ­find your research languishing at a certain point in history. For example, you’ve got back to the earliest useful census (1841) – where next? Paged back to the earliest available, readable and detailed enough parish register (much later than you might hope) – what now? By consciously deciding to trace back that bit further you’ll be opening the door to a world of family history learning opportunities. There will be new records to discover – e.g. manorial records, militia lists, the contents of the parish chest – and new skills to acquire, such as learning how to decipher old handwriting. What’s your goal going to be?

9. Map your ancestors

Gain a much better idea about where they lived and why they moved

Plot your ancestors’ details on a map and you’ll get a much clearer understanding about their whereabouts and their movements, the places they once lived and why they might have upped sticks and left. It can be a country-wide map, or one just showing your ancestors’ suburb, depending on how precisely you wish to record place details. You can either use a printed map, or create a digital one, for instance on Google Maps. A digital map can provide massive flexibility (enabling you to zoom out for the big picture and zoom in for the ­finer detail). You can also embed a link in your blog to share your maps there.

10. Note the brothers’ & sisters’ names

See a fuller picture of your ancestors’ childhood by studying their siblings

Discover whether your ancestor was an only child or one of a large brood, and use the siblings’ details to trace your family between the census years. Sometimes it’s easy to focus just on our direct line ancestors, but researching their siblings is both enjoyable and useful. Struggling to ­find clues about your ancestor in the record? Search for a sibling instead and they could lead you straight to your ancestor. The census records allow you to ­ find your ancestors’ whereabouts every 10 years. But by noting the birth places of the siblings, for instance, you might be able to see whether and where the family moved in the intervening years.

11. Organise a family gathering

Kick back and have a nostalgic knees-up with your relations

Choose a date and place and send out the invitations to the ‘clan’ gathering! Whether you go large or invite just a select few, spending time with family, poring over old photos, sharing family stories and reminiscences is going to be a special day. To set the scene, get your family history on display, with your family tree (don’t worry about gaps – perhaps your relations can help you fill them in), old photos and memorabilia.

12. Read widely

‘The more that you read, the more things you will know; the more that you learn, the more places you’ll go’ Dr Seuss

Read deeply and widely as you learn about your family’s history, and your understanding of their lives and the world they inhabited will be so much richer for it. You can treat yourself to a new book, but don’t forget the interlibrary loan service (by using it you can order almost any book you like to pick it up from your local library for a fee – expect to pay in the region of £5). And there is also a fascinating and growing collection of digitised old books online, see, for instance, www.archive.org.

13. Plan a road trip

See with your own eyes, the places and things that relate to your ancestors

Visiting those places that have a connection to your ancestors’ lives will be rewarding and enlightening, and will mean so much more (especially if you’ve read widely on the area before making that trip – see above!). Having a day out at the town where your ancestors lived, walking the battle­ field they once fought over, paying your respects at the grave where they now lie buried... These are family history events certainly not to be missed.

14. Record voices & video stories

Save the family stories, as told by the ancestors, for future generations

There’s something unique and poignant about spoken memories, so grab your recording device and preserve those favourite family anecdotes – you’ll be so glad you did. The oldest form of storytelling is, of course, oral history. But with the written word, oral history was put to one side, perhaps seen as an inferior sort of history, subject to forgetfulness and inaccuracies. For years and years now, however, many of us have had ready access to recording devices, so that – even in this age filled with words – we can record our family’s precious spoken stories.

The main questions to ask

Who are you going to record and what stories are they going to tell?

· Earliest memories?

· Favourite family anecdotes?

· Tales of childhood and siblings?

· Experiences of migration or war?

Everyone has stories to tell, and with every passing year they only grow more precious, so make sure they’re saved.

15. Write your own mini-biography

Start with yourself & tell your story

It’s never too soon to start recording your own life story. It doesn’t have to be a weighty tome, but once you get going you might have more to write about your life than you think. Memories of childhood toys, games, friends and, of course, siblings, are all well worth recording along with ways of life now gone; holidays and home décor. The ordinary things of life become very intriguing once coated with the dust of history.

16. Trace living relatives today

Seek out long-lost family members, wherever they are living in the world

The internet is just waiting to be explored and, with the giant online family trees and social media sites out there, there are numerous places to search for and make contact with your distant relations from all over the world. What do you hope to gain by seeking out long-lost relations? By building bonds with family members near and far, you can share resources, stories and photos, find new clues and have the satisfaction of having found another branch for your family tree.

17. Closely examine BMD certificates

Glean every possible clue from these key, but expensive, family history records

Birth, marriage and death certi­ficates are extremely useful for sound family history research. But they are expensive, so study them carefully for every last clue. Get into the practice of studying every tiny detail and thinking about what light it can shed on your family tree. The witnesses’ names on a marriage certi­ficate, people’s middle names, their occupations, locations and former surnames – each of these might spark a light-bulb moment.

18. Get to know the neighbours

Learn about the people in your ancestors’ communities to find new clues

Make sure you explore the census records thoroughly as our ancestors’ neighbours can reveal valuable clues about the street where they once lived.

· Check out the names of the neighbours and you may be able to spot siblings, cousins, or future spouses living in the house next door.

· Examine their jobs and you may see your ancestors’ former colleagues.

· And take a look at the birthplaces – have the people in the neighbourhood dwelt there for long, moved around a lot, or perhaps migrated from far away?

19. Visit an archive

Hold the original records in your own hands

With the billions of family history records now online, there’s plenty to keep us occupied searching for ancestors long into the night. But the records online are just a selection of those we might search... Visiting an archive can give you the opportunity to explore an even wider range of records, perhaps the more specialised ones that have yet to be digitised (or may never be). You can also get the opportunity to see (and smell) the old pages, and even to ask the archivist for specialist advice on your query.

20. Set yourself a challenge

Get the satisfaction of learning a new skill and putting it into practice to find out more about your ancestors!

Family historians need many skills up their sleeves to become highly ef­ficient ancestor hunters. What do you need to learn how to do to become better equipped?

Perhaps you struggle with old handwriting, or wish you were more of a dab hand on the computer? Maybe you’d love to be able to understand military terminology? Or ­find out exactly what records were in the parish chest? Identify what you’d most value learning and set yourself the goal of accomplishing it. For ideas to help you find the perfect course for you, don’t miss our bumper guide on the top courses for family historians in the September issue of Family Tree!

Editor’s postscript: As I was writing this, I kept thinking, ‘This is my favourite project, or no, maybe this one is’. And certainly the projects that involve my family – passing round old photos, reminiscing, sharing stories, passing on tales about the ancestors to the children and recording memories are the things that really gladden my heart – poignant, funny, precious times. But to make sure we can do this, we need to treasure our family history, keep the light alive and the records straight. So I hope you’ll ­find these ideas helpful and I’d love to hear what you especially enjoy doing with your family history. Please share them with us at facebook.com/familytreemaguk or email me at helen.t@family-tree.co.uk.