Research Your Family History

Genealogy research uncovers the stories of those who came before you—the names, places, struggles, and achievements that accumulated across generations to produce your existence. The combination of DNA testing and digitized historical records has transformed genealogy from a hobby requiring physical visits to archives into an activity accessible from any computer, while the discoveries about identity, heritage, and family secrets can be profoundly meaningful. The starting point for genealogy research is what you already know and can learn from living relatives. Family documents—birth certificates, marriage records, old photographs, family Bibles, letters—provide dates and names that anchor further research. Interviewing older relatives about their memories of parents and grandparents captures knowledge that will otherwise be lost; this work has urgency that document research lacks. The online record resources have democratized genealogical research. Ancestry.com provides the largest collection of digitized records with powerful search and tree-building tools. FamilySearch.org (operated by the Mormon church) offers extensive free records and collaborative family trees. Findmypast, MyHeritage, and regional databases expand coverage for specific geographic areas or ethnic groups. The ability to search millions of records from home represents a transformation from the archive visits that previous generations required. The DNA testing dimension adds biological information that records cannot provide. The ethnicity estimates (percentages of various regional ancestries) receive the most attention but are the least precise. More valuable are the relative matches—people who share DNA segments with you, indicating common ancestors. Connecting DNA matches to documentary research can break through brick walls, identify unknown parents, and reveal family secrets that previous generations carefully concealed. The brick walls that halt research occur when records are lost, destroyed, or never created—particularly common for immigrants, enslaved people, and those from areas with poor record survival. The techniques for breaking through brick walls include indirect evidence (documents mentioning your ancestor without naming them directly), DNA triangulation, and community research in places where ancestors lived. The unexpected discoveries that genealogy commonly reveals include adoptions, affairs, name changes, and family narratives that don't match historical reality. The relative who "came from money" turns out to have been a servant. The family that "never owned slaves" appears in records that contradict the story. These discoveries can be difficult; genealogical research requires readiness to accept findings that challenge family mythology. The documentation standards that serious genealogy follows ensure that conclusions rest on evidence rather than assumption. Citing sources for every fact enables verification and avoids perpetuating errors that propagate through online family trees. The Genealogical Proof Standard provides framework for reaching reliable conclusions from sometimes fragmentary evidence. The community of genealogists, organized through societies, online forums, and DNA matching platforms, provides assistance with research challenges. Specialists in particular regions, time periods, or ethnic groups can often help with problems that general knowledge cannot solve. The culture of helping fellow researchers, sharing discoveries, and collaborating on common lines enriches the hobby's social dimension.