Genealogy, Family History & Temple Work

I admit that upon moving to my current state of residence, I only considered visiting my local genealogical society because I had some ancestry in the area. I doubt I would have considered it otherwise. I probably would have assumed they wouldn't have any information for me about ancestors in other states. Or that they wouldn't have very much information. Of course, I would have been wrong. For one thing, most genealogical societies have great libraries. While the majority of these books will contain information about the area, they may also have collected books about surrounding areas or have random information that was donated by some passer through. It's always worth while to check their catalog. While you're at it you might as well become a member. Membership fees ... Read More

"Genealogy is not family group record forms, pedigree charts, microfilms, name abbreviations, and technical regulations. These are only tools. Genealogy is the study of one’s family, the study of our ancestors—their birth, their childhood, their dreams, their marriages, their occupations, their children, their deaths. And because these things in the past all have an impact on the present, in a very real sense, genealogy is a study of one’s self." - George D. Durrant, Doing Genealogy: Finding That Glorious, Elusive Condition Called ‘Balance’ Ensign, Apr 1985, 1... Read More

In a previous post I talked about the importance of improving extended family relationships and mentioned a few ways that this might be done. I'd like to discuss one of those ways now: starting a family newsletter. The idea of a family newsletter was another novelty I encountered upon getting married. The members of my extended family usually called each other on birthday's and that was about the extent of our contact during the year, excepting the occasional visit. After marrying my husband I discovered that not only did his family have regular parties and game nights, they also kept in touch with distant relatives by sending out a quarterly newsletter. We loved receiving t... Read More

"I suppose all of us have our own favorite reason for having family reunions. In a way, they are extensions of family home evenings. Family reunions are an opportunity to gather our larger, eternal families together to learn to understand and love one another, and to unite ourselves in the work of the Lord, just as we do in family home evenings." - Alma Heaton, Really Getting Together: Your Family Reunion, Ensign, Jun 1975, 12 In a previous post I talked about the importan... Read More

As a Genealogist there really are times where I feel closer to my kindred dead than to my living relatives. It's often easy to bury myself in the discovering of facts about people I wish I had known and forget to forge deeper relationships with those in the here and now. But I know it's important to make both living and deceased family members a priority in my life. "Whether we live in the same city in which other members of our family live, or far away, or even whether we have any living relatives, our choices are the same. Our extended family can be seen as a natural extension of ourselves, or they can be seen as distractions from our own needs and interests. The scriptures abound with insight into the value of maintaining good extended family rel... Read More

In an earlier post I talked about the importance of keeping a journal. Perhaps you've read that and understood why it's important or maybe you already knew the value of keeping a journal. But sometimes, in spite of knowing the importance of something, we find that something very hard to do. Journal writing is certainly not something that everyone finds enjoyable. I've always enjoyed writing, whether it be poems, short stories or journal entries. So keeping a journal is something I look forward to doing and it isn't hard for me to get creative or think of topics. Math on the other hand is something I avoid doing at all times. Maybe it's the other way around for you and wr... Read More

"Ask living members of your family what they know about your extended family. Look at records close at hand, such as family Bibles, to find more details about your forebears. Then you can reach out to other sources such as vital records, church records, census records, and military records. If you have access to a computer, you can put your computer skills to work and log on to the Church’s FamilySearch.org Web site. Family history has become a sophisticated activity where computers provide immense resources for your search. You can easily access a vast collection of family history records using the Internet on your home computer or at your nearest family history center. - ... Read More

"The need for safeguarding the world’s vital records, original manuscripts, histories, biographies, and other genealogical records has long plagued mankind. Where and how can records be protected from destruction by the elements, the ravages of time, and the destructions of man? Through microfilming, copies of original documents are being made in every corner of the earth; and thereby, copies of millions of pages of records are presently being stored safely and securely." - Theodore M. Burton, “Q&A: Questions and Answers,” New Era, May 1973, 48... Read More

"Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God." - Doctrine & Covenants 88:118 There are several different methods for organizing your Family History research and if you're like me, none of them seems to be the perfect fit. But they're all easily adaptable to your own preferences. I'll discuss the two main systems of organization below. Organizing with File Folders Mary E. Hill presents a method of Family History organization in an article online titled ... Read More

"Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God." - Doctrine & Covenants 88:118 Why Organize? I feel that organization is critical to good research for many reasons. First it cuts down on frustration. It's easy enough to get frustrated over my ancestor Mary Cotty for whom information about seems to constantly elude me. I don't need to be frustrated that I finally found some crucial information on her and misplaced it. Second, organization can help prevent duplication of effort and research. I don't want to spen... Read More

Yes, there are definite things you should avoid doing or assuming when you begin researching your Family History. Here are just four of them. 1. Just because it's been published, doesn't mean it's true. Even professional genealogists can make mistakes, and most of those who publish family genealogies are not professionals. Transcriptions may have been misread or assumptions about certain family relationships may have been made. Take everything you read with a grain of salt. 2. Just because it's on the internet, doesn't mean it's true. These days, anyone can put up information on the internet. Not all of the genealogical information on the internet is incorrect, but a lot of it is. This is largely because people accept what they see as fac... Read More

Most genealogists have this in common - The excitement they feel from finding a new ancestor is so exhilarating and empowering that they want to share that feeling. Thus there are many genealogists doing volunteer work, hoping to help others find out more about their ancestors and to feel that same thrill of discovery. In the next little while we will be taking an in-depth look at some of the main volunteer resources on the web and how best to navigate and use them. So far we have discussed RAOGK.org, Rootsweb Books We Own (BWO), ... Read More

One of the most frustrating things for me when doing Genealogy, is gathering information from others, asking them where they got the information and having them tell me, "I don't know." I sometimes feel like tearing out my hair, wondering why no one bothered to write down their source for the information. Because no one knows where it came from, I have to wonder if what I'm reading is truth, simple speculation, exaggeration or complete fabrication. And what if I want to obtain a photocopy of the actual document? I can't even know, without source material, where I might find that document. Good documentation is something the responsible genealogist will endeavor to accomplish. Whether you do Family History for yourself, your family or for others, part time or full time, d... Read More

We are all at different stages of life. Some of us are single, married, parents or grandparents. Some of us are attending school, busy in our social sphere, working or staying home with our children. All of us have various obligations that differ in time and intensity. Mormons, while encouraged to do their genealogy have also been reminded that ..."it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength." - Mosiah, Chapter 4, verse 27. And Elder Oaks in his talk, Family History: In Wisdom and in Order" Ensign, Jun 1989, ... Read More

Two days ago my husband and I celebrated our 7th Marriage Anniversary. We commented to each other about how celebrating 7 years made us feel so old. That and 3 children! But we were excited to celebrate one more year of being together. After my husband went to work I pulled out our wedding album and flipped through the pictures. They triggered many memories of that special day, both reverent and exciting. I remember posing for photographs in below freezing weather, my cheeks and nose red and my skin pale. In between photo shoots my new husband rubbed my gloved hands between his to try to keep my fingers warm. The gloves didn't s... Read More

The word Genealogy is derived from the Greek word Genea meaning race, family. Specifically it refers to the study of Family History and line of descent. Genealogies, recorded accounts of the descent of a person, family, or group from an ancestor, are also referred to as family trees or pedigrees. The basic intent of genealogical research is to identify your ancestors and establish where they belong in your family tree. Genealogy becomes Family History research as you begin to learn about and record the lives and doings of... Read More

I received my first journal when I was eight years old. It was a gift from my parents in celebration of my birthday and my decision to be baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. The first half of the journal was filled with recollections of my life that my mother had written. I remember excitedly reading about the day I was born, outings with family and other events. She had covered the first eight years of my life for me. Her final entry was dated 10/13, my eighth birthday and contained a beautiful letter. One paragraph of this letter reads: "For eight years, we have tried to keep a history of the events of your first years.... ...Now you keep this journal as the Lord has command... Read More

Most genealogists have this in common - The excitement they feel from finding a new ancestor is so exhilarating and empowering that they want to share that feeling. Thus there are many genealogists doing volunteer work, hoping to help others find out more about their ancestors and to feel that same thrill of discovery. In the next little while we will be taking an in-depth look at some of the main volunteer resources on the web and how best to navigate and use them. So far we have discussed RAOGK.org, Rootsweb Books We Own (BWO), ... Read More

In a previous post I talked about preserving old photographs. Photographs are of course not the only things we can or should preserve when it comes to family history. And while an original of something is always better, that doesn't mean we shouldn't make copies of it. After all, we can't show or give the original to everyone. That leads me into the topic of this post. Lyman De Platt in, “Organization Begins at Home,” Ensign, Oct 1976, pp.16 said, "Genealogical activity begins with trai... Read More

"Not one of my children has any recollection of my grandparents. If I want my children and grandchildren to know those who still live in my memory, then I must build the bridge between them. I alone am the link to the generations that stand on either side of me. It is my responsibility to knit their hearts together through love and respect, even though they may never have known each other personally. My grandchildren will have no knowledge of their family’s history if I do nothing to preserve it for them. That which I do not in some way record will be lost at my death, and that which I do not pass on to my posterity, they will never have. The work of gathering and sharing eternal family keepsakes is a personal responsibility. It cannot be passed off or given to anot... Read More

I've written briefly about the importance of Family History work to Mormons but I wish to elaborate on what is required of Mormons to be able to enter the Temple to do this important work. Besides baptism, Latter-Day Saints must obtain their own endowment before they can perform any ordinances for the dead. Elder James E. Talmage in The House of the Lord Deseret Book Co., 1968, pp. 83–84, defined the Endowment for us: “The Temple Endowment, as administered in modern temples, comprises instruction relating to the significance and sequence of past dispensations, and the importance of t... Read More

Family History Centers are branches of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Founded in 1894, the Family History Library at present contains over 2.4 million rolls of microfilmed genealogical records. You can read more about the Family History Library's beginning's here. Of the 2.4 million rolls of microfilm mentioned above, about 100,000 rolls of microfilm are circulated to Family History Centers each month. There are over 1,800 Family History Centers in the United States alone and over 3,400 centers worldwide. These Family History Centers attempt to bring a vast majority of content from the Fam... Read More

There are many great ideas for getting our children interested in doing Genealogy. Mormon's have been counseled to set aside one evening a week for family time. Called Family Home Evening, this is a prime time to teach different gospel principles, serve others or have fun together doing any number of wholesome activities. If you're interested in teaching your children about Genealogy, consider setting aside your own weekly time slot for some of the following activities that might spark their interest. 1) Have a "Tastes of our Family Tree" meal. Prepare samplings of recipes that have been passed down through the... Read More

LostCousins is a relatively new resource on the web. In the website's own words: "LostCousins is the only family history site able to match you with cousins researching the same ancestors automatically, accurately & confidentially. Simply enter the relatives on your family tree who were recorded on the US, Canadian, or British Census - then click the Search button!" Lost Cousins currently allows you to enter ancestors on the 1841 England & Wales Census, the 1880 US Census, the 1881 Canadian Census, the 1881 Census of Scotland, and the 1881 Census of England & Wales. After you have entered any ancestors whom you know are located on any of those censuses, ... Read More

With the invention of the internet and online library websites and catalogs, people everywhere have realized that the local library they use to look to as the ultimate resource, may actually not carry everything they need in doing research. But even with this realization, traveling to a library far away, then applying for a card there and checking the item of interest out just isn't practical or feasible. Enter the beginning of a wonderful library service called Interlibrary Loan (ILL). Interlibrary Loan brings material of interest to you by following two simple operations: borrowing and lending. If your library is a borrowing library, you can request a certain book or photocopy of information and this request will be sent to a lending library. If the item you want is in circu... Read More

In the year 1864, the United States imposed a tax on the sale of luxury items to raise wartime revenue for the Union. One item that fell within this act were photographs. The act stated that sellers of photographs including daguerrotypes, ambrotypes, tin types and ... Read More