TIP OF THE WEEK –
DON’T FORGET FAMILYSEARCH (AND IT’S FREE!)  FamilySearch is much more than its tree. They offer a vast amount of records that would otherwise require subscriptions to other sites. This is especially notable since FamilySearch includes international records for free that would require an higher tier subscription on a site such as Ancestry.

But not all records on FamilySearch are available from home. To get the most out of FamilySearch visit a FamilySearch Center or affiliate (The SGS Library is a FamilySearch affiliate, but not a center). Even better, these locations usually have a host of other resources and subscriptions that patrons can access for free. Utilize the best resources to research your family and save money while you do it.

Learn more about FamilySearch Centers and the resources they provide

TIP OF THE WEEK –
NEW WASHINGTON STATE RESEARCH GUIDE AVAILABLE

Family Tree magazine is offering a digital guide to doing research in Washington state. Visit their website and scroll down below the Map section for the download. The cost is about $10.

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  April 1, 2025

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TIP OF THE WEEK –
WATCH OUT FOR INCORRECTLY FILED DOCUMENTS

It is common to see historical documents incorrectly filed. Use logical reasoning when looking through collections, especially if they were filed later. For example, some Civil War Complete Military Service Records from the National Archives have records belonging to two different soldier in the same file — men with the same or similar names mistaken for the same person. Ask yourself a few questions. Are the documents in the file mostly consistent on facts? Are different dates and locations used for where the soldier enlisted? Did he die at multiple places? Do different documents say he was present and absent on the same dates? These may be signs something was incorrectly filed.

This author has even found records for the same solider filed in two different regiments. This was not because the man was actually in two different regiments, but because the regiments’ names were very similar. In this case the solider’s disability discharge papers were incorrectly filed in the wrong regiment with a soldier who had a similar name who served for the entire war. The logic didn’t match up at several points (A man who was discharged because he lost his right arm in 1862, would not have been promoted to sergeant in 1863 ….).

Be sure to gather all names an ancestor’s regiment went by, especially if its name changed during the war. Check similar named regiments for men with the same or similar names if you suspect an error was possible. These concepts apply to other types of collections.

Collecting all facts, understanding the filing system in question, comparing timelines and mapping out locations can help work around filing errors.

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  March 1, 2025

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TIP OF THE WEEK –
FAMILYSEARCH’S FULL-TEXT SEARCH
EXPANDS TO INCLUDE MORE RECORD GROUPS

The people at FamilySearch have been slowly improving their full-text search project. One of the latest updates has added federal records to be searchable. This include federal patent and land records, military records and other federal collections.

To access the project go to FamilySearch Labs.

Log in (with your free account, if you don’t have one you can create one) and activate the option “Expand your search with Full Text” and click “Go To Experiment.” Once on the project page, search by keyword. This could be a name of location name. If you need to search for a phrase or full name try putting it in quotes — for example, “Abraham Lincoln.” Hit search and then use the provided filters to narrow down your search results by date and place.

To find federal records filter by place “United States of America” and then pick “United States of America” again for the secondary location filter (not a specific state).

TIP OF THE WEEK –
FIND AN ANCESTOR’S NEIGHBORHOOD IN THE CENSUS, EVEN IF THEY DIDN’T OWN PROPERTY

If you have an ancestor who didn’t own property and whose location isn’t clear in the census records — maybe the township or division no longer exists, and no census maps are available for that time period. One way to narrow down a location is to look for landowners listed next to your ancestor in a census. See if you can find the location of the neighbor’s land. Since census records were often taken door to door, these people likely lived nearby. Cross examine multiple neighbors property locations through plat maps, deed records and patents to find an estimated location for your family.

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  January 1, 2025

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TIP OF THE WEEK –
GET THE MOST OUT OF FIND A GRAVE

Find a Grave — the crowd-sourced cemetery website — is a wonderful resource for genealogists and history buffs alike. But like any crowd-sourced material, such as the FamilySearch tree, it is important to verify the information found there.

Slate recently delved into the history of the site. Senior editor Tony Ho Tran talked to active users and discussed recent controversies. He also explains how he used the site to help solve a family mystery.

There is so much to explore on Find a Grave. One underused feature they offer is the ability to create virtual cemeteries for people of interest to users! Create a free account and start adding memorials to a virtual cemetery! 

TIP OF THE WEEK –
YOUR ANCESTOR OWNED NO LAND?
FIND APPROXIMATE LOCATION WHERE LIVED

If you have an ancestor who didn’t own property and whose location isn’t clear in the census records — maybe the township or division no longer exists, and no census maps are available for that time period. One way to narrow down a location is to look for landowners listed next to your ancestor in a census. See if you can find the location of the neighbor’s land. Since census records were often taken door to door, these people likely lived nearby. Cross examine multiple neighbors property locations through plat maps, deed records and patents to find an estimated location for your family.

TIP OF THE WEEK –
ACCESS PREVIOUS VERSIONS OF WEBSITES

Remember back in the olden days when you could see the cached version of a web page from the Google search results? This was especially helpful if the page was no longer accessible or had changed and no longer included the content of interest to you. Google sunsetted that feature earlier this year, but there’s good news! They have partnered with Internet Archive to add links directly to archived page crawls from the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine! Read more about it.