Civil War Genealogy Research

The Civil War produced huge amounts of documentation with over 3.5 million men (and a few hundred women) fighting for both the Union and Confederacy. But... because military records do not fit familiar patterns of most genealogical research you will conduct, vital records, passenger lists, and so on... these records can be overwhelming to a first-time researcher. But, by understanding a few key facts and having some great resources in your toolbox, you can start with a wealth of information about your Civil War ancestor before you even start digging!

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5 Tips to Level Up Your Genealogy Research

Family history research can be full of obstacles... and your genealogy journey might seem like it's laced with pitfalls, vast expanses of water... and those brick walls that seem to come out of nowhere at every twist and turn. If you focus your family-history training regimen on conquering the five challenges outlined here, you'll get better at building your family tree and even level up your Genealogy Research!

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Research Log & Family History -- 6 Things to Use in Your Genealogy Research Log

Have you ever visited an online research site (or physical archive) and thought about the vast collection of records that were just within your reach... but you had no idea where to even start? Or, maybe you've spent hours researching one single person only to lose... or worse... forget most of what you've learned and/or where you learned it. Maybe you've even walked away from your research for a few weeks and when you sat back down were left completely confused about where to pick it up again...

10 Historic Weather Events & Our Ancestors

Our weather is something that seems to always be a topic of conversation day in and day out. We always want to know what tomorrow will hold... especially with global warming being a hot topic. Weather is a worldwide subject of daily conversations, and it's also a great way to break the ice in awkward moments of silence.

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3 Tips for Hiring a Professional Genealogist You Can Trust

As you're tracing your family history, you'll at least occasionally find that you need the help of a professional genealogist to make the progress you want. This can be due to time constraints in your own life, a need for verification of your work, dealing with a foreign language, or searching for an ancestor who left little written history behind. Whatever the reason my be, when it's time to hire a professional genealogist, it's important that you find one who is trustworthy and whose work will last for generations to come.

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9 Research Strategies to Solve Genealogy Mysteries the Old School Way

Sometimes the KEY to solving a genealogy mystery is going BACK to the BASICS!

When you run up against a genealogy BRICK WALL - try these nine (9) old-school ways to break that wall DOWN. You'll find that not only can old dogs learn new tricks... but dogs both young and old will benefit from practicing these time-tested strategies!

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10 Brick Walls And How To (Possibly) Break Them Down

As a Genealogist... you've probably already discovered that the term "Brick Wall" is discussed almost regularly! We love to chat about the brick walls that are blocking our search into families' pasts. Usually, these brick walls are only detours that we can find our way around by stepping back and taking a fresh look at our research.... seeking out different record types... or doing some cluster research to find a clue buried in the overload of information.

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Genealogy Research Report Writing

We all love and live for the thrill of the HUNT... the challenge of a mysterious kinship or hidden story. We hone our research skills, learn about records and think over the evidence we uncover. But, there's another part of the detective work that we often overlook... writing reports about our research.

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Researching Passenger Lists

When you start looking into family research, nine times out of ten the trail will lead you to start questioning how immigrant ancestors got to America.

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