Genealogy research

Anyone here have any experience in the area of genealogy? I've always had an inclination to research my ancestors but with limited information, results have yet to be fruitful.

I may try one of those genetic tests like 21andme to see if it can help me in my search. Maybe.

a reply to: PhantomOrion

I can't give (pay them to take it) any company my DNA. It will be sold to the highest bidder and eventually it will end up costing me something.

Sounds fun and neat, but think very hard before you do this.

I can't help but feel like it's some kind of nefarious scam.

Even further than preying on virtue signaling douche bags who feel special being told they're .03% native American.

Not gonna lie. I have wondered this as well. But wouldn't they have my dna anyway due to a life's worth of hospital visits and whatnot?

a reply to: PhantomOrion

Did someone (Dr) pull a DNA test?

If not them no, unless you think there is a mass DNA collection conspiracy at hospitals.

You could start by searching to see if you're in a family tree that's already been started. Also search using grandparents names..etc. Ancestry.com has a pretty decent database.

I did Ancestry.com and also a 30 some-od marker when the option was still in it's early stages. It didn't help me any. Besides, it doesn't necessarily mater where you came from nearly as much as who you are "NOW". Right?

a reply to: PhantomOrion

I've done quite a bit of genealogical research. Where have you been looking? There's a substantial amount of digitized information these days and a lot more all the time.

You're going to want a site to host your tree. There's quite a few of them, including free. Ancestry.com is actually pretty good if you're looking to pay. Two sites that are super useful are familysearch.org and findagrave.com. Then you've got state and municipal records databases (and equivalent in foreign countries — some countries are *much* better than others) for birth/death/marriage/divorce/etc records, church records (quite a few of these are indexed), census records are of course great where applicable. Obituaries can be a gold mine. (also it's about the only way to find living relatives except public trees) Speaking of which, there are lots of family trees searchable on different sites. There's also historical societies which will often host lists of things taken from public records, maybe biographical sketches, newsletter archives, etc.

There's really a wealth of data out on the Internet. There's also a vast number of local history and genealogical books in the world. There are also quite a lot of family sites out there but that's a much better bet the further back in your tree your looking (because you've exponentially more cousins and the chances of serious researchers are higher). And genealogy forums of course.

Do you know your great-grandparents' names? Places of birth/death, places lived?

There are plenty of FREE sites to search online. I have compiled a huge family tree made up of thousands (one line going clear back to 1150 during The Crusades.) Along the way I have gathered not just names and dates and locations, but some interesting stories and photos too. I have found connections with well known and historical figures and lots of royalty too! The only money I spent was for a software program to keep it all organized. Talk to your parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles and get names, dates and locations as far back as possible, and search from there.

Familysearch.org is a good free search site. You can learn a lot from other researchers on the forums on rootsweb (now part of ancestry.com, but the message boards should be free) and genealogy.com. Other people searching the same line are usually great about sharing if you share back. You can also Google names with birth dates. And check out cyndislist.com where there is a huge list of all the genealogy sites online.

Be patient, and document all sources.

If you are still considering DNA testing, do some research. Here are a few interesting videos to help you, (or confuse you further.)
60 Minutes story revealing the inaccuracy of DNA kits
The part beginning at 4 minutes is especially telling.

Several sets of triplets testing various DNA kits

Happy hunting!

a reply to: PhantomOrion
Haven't done it myself, but somebody traced one branch of our family back a long way.
It would have to be done by patient working backwards. Where your father was born, who his father was, where HE was born, and so on through different parents. You need to establish a connection at each step, especially if they moved around, because the fact that somebody has the right surname doesn't prove him a relation.
I can't see that DNA testing would satisfy anyone looking for detailed genealogy. It just establishes you as a member of a very large group.

Whatever site you may use just remember to do your own research to verify your lineage. There are just too many people that have used these same sites and blindly accept others ancestry trees as proof of lineage when no one has actually verified anything they include in their own trees. Plus, after some time they loose interest and abandon their tree still unverified. Others can give you leads but just don't accept their work as gospel.

In my case I was never able to trace my paternal lineage back beyond my great grandfather from Andersonville, Georgia.
The DNA project did present distinct possibilities beyond that but nothing could be definitively proven. Census data before the late 1800's sucked and made research beyond that extremely difficult. I couldn't believe how many people with the same first and last names I was trying to research existed in Georgia and surrounding states during the time I was confining my search to. Much frustration!

Some employ professionals to do it for them. If you have the $$ it may save you much time and extreme frustration to have it done.

a reply to: PhantomOrion

Ive gone back in a line to 1772 immigration from Ireland. One Revolutionary war fighter, another was The War of 1812, another the Civil War...and G-Grandfathers. Even a mention of one relative in 1142 Northumberland.

Libraries have free Genealogy use of sites like Genealogy.Com and Ancestry, an Family Search. Get your folks and family Marriage and Death Certificate which names the Grandparents...go from there.

The DNA thing will only give you nationality %...you want to find out about the relatives by name and location.Youll be surprised.

Good luck

Some good advice from mysterioustranger....321equinox....theantediluvian

Stories and names from the oldest surviving members of the family give you

a good insight to names etc. to investigate.


Mormons have the largest data base in the world www.city-data.com...


The best genealogy sites www.toptenreviews.com...


www.searchforancestors.com...


GOOD LUCK you will need a lot of patients with this... it may help you to rope in

other interested members of your family

Just get started, you'll go a long way if you can put in the time. Ancestry.com is really good and you can join for one free month, then pay for another month when you reach enough dead ends. Your tree can be adjusted with your own information while using the free version. Use all the free information you can to help provide documentation and proof of identity.

You'll end up finding some relationships that don't make sense or people that get listed a number of times as being in the family. Brothers and sisters marrying or even first cousins are likely not good information and need correction. Keep digging to fill in the blanks.

I went back as far as the 900s AD in some lines, that doesn't add much for me, so now I just get as far as their country of origin and leave it at that. Language can be a barrier too.

Once you have most of the lines going back to their country of origin, you can say with certainty that you are this percent of this or that ethnicity. Don't bother with the DNA unless your fixated with race, something you could guess based on the history of the area they came from.

Dig hard when you are trying to prove some family stories, like in my case I assumed Blackfoot tribal blood. I found that relative was a white woman from New Jersey, not a half blooded Native American. On the other hand I found two relatives from the Mayflower and one who helped found James Town and a relationship to Pocahontas. None of those stories had survived as family stories.

ETA: My first cousin did the DNA test. Everyone in the family was certain her father was half Africa American, her features even supported that assumption. It turns out she didn't have a single drop of African blood and it proved my findings about that side never having Native American blood either.

Something I find interesting is that even after you trace your ancestors to the country they arrived from, you may find that that is not their actual origin. For example, someone who arrived on a ship that came from Switzerland, actually lived in France. I have a line that traces back to England. For many generations this line was comprised of higher class folks. But if you keep following the way line back, it turns out they were originally Vikings who raided England, that came from Sweden and Norway. Another line traced back to Ireland where they were historically documented kings and clansmen for hundreds of years. But before that, they were in Spain> Egypt > Scythia... etc.
Once you start searching and finding more ancestors, it's impossible to stop.

Thank you everyone for all the input I disappeared shortly after this post because I pretty much fell down a rabbit hole of information. I've made some headway through Ancestry.com, familysearch.org, and genenet.com. I will start digging into the other sites recommended on here.

Unfortunately language and culture is a barrier for me. I've encountered older relatives reluctant to share what they remember. Apparently social class continues to be a big deal in my ancestors country of origin, so finding positive associations are challenging. Plus I think there are names mixed up, but can't verify. I've tried contacting people from the websites as well.

My next step in that regard looks to be gaining the support of an expert. Also the DNA test. Any recommendations for the best one?

Many thanks again!

a reply to: PhantomOrion

I am late to this thread but thru dna testing at Ancestry I found I had a different father. I was able to find who he was after about 1 1/2 years and another 9 months to verify. If you do dna I do recommend Ancestry (tho they recently said they would sell your dna...I figured they did anyway). you can also post you dna to a private site called Gedmatch for free. They have people from there who tested at 23 and me, Family Tree DNA and Ancestry. I do not recommend 23 and Me. Most people there are looking for health info and if they are interested in family they upload to Gedmatch.

Good luck in your search. Any updates would be of interest.

originally posted by: liveandlearn
a reply to: PhantomOrion

I am late to this thread but thru dna testing at Ancestry I found I had a different father. I was able to find who he was after about 1 1/2 years and another 9 months to verify. If you do dna I do recommend Ancestry (tho they recently said they would sell your dna...I figured they did anyway). you can also post you dna to a private site called Gedmatch for free. They have people from there who tested at 23 and me, Family Tree DNA and Ancestry. I do not recommend 23 and Me. Most people there are looking for health info and if they are interested in family they upload to Gedmatch.

Good luck in your search. Any updates would be of interest.

Thank you for sharing your experience! My intention with the DNA testing is primarily for heritage, but the health aspect interests me also. If I went the Ancestry route, would I be able to submit their results to other health based ones onstead of retaking another test?