In some ways, family history research today is very different from that done by the "pioneers" in the field years ago. Those early genealogists often traveled long distances to consult records in courthouses, libraries, and archives. They visited cemeteries and spent a lot of time writing letters to possible family connections and to churches and courthouses, etc., that were too far away to visit. They spent years collecting and organizing information about their ancestors. The result of all this time and effort was a family tree to pass on to their descendants. The resulting family tree was often handwritten or typed, a true labor of love to be treasured by succeeding generations.
Today, the "digital highway" has made this whole process much easier and has opened up all kinds of possibilities for the modern genealogist. My latest project has been to research my son-in-law's Louisiana roots. Since I live over 1,000 miles from Louisiana, this would have been a monumental task even 25 years ago. It probably would have taken me a lifetime to research and document his ancestry.
Today, though, with the advent of websites like Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org, I can access, in minutes, records that would have taken earlier researchers months, if not years, to acquire. Besides having digital copies of original records, many of these websites have indexes as well, making it easier than ever to locate those elusive documents.
I can go to Ancestry.com and view census records that were written as much as 200 years ago. I can search GenealogyBank.com to find obituaries and stories about my ancestors in the newspapers and historic documents. These sources all help to bring our ancestors to life, to reveal the stories behind the names.
One of the things I find especially exciting about the digital age is the large amount of primary source material becoming available on the internet. Most of my son-in-law's ancestors originated in France or Canada. Fortunately for me, the French government has been making most of their old documents, particularly church records, available online, so I have been able to locate baptism, marriage, and death records for many of his ancestors in France. Most of these records were created in the early to mid 1700's. I just think it's really cool to be able to view documents that were written over 300 years ago, without ever having to leave my house.
For genealogists like me, who want to place their ancestors into historical context, another exciting development has been the digitization of old books. At websites like Google Books and Archive.org, I can access books that were written at the time my ancestors lived. In this way, I can get a glimpse of what life was like for them.
Another big advance in genealogy has been the advent of message boards and search engines like Google. These tools help to bring together genealogists from distant places who are researching the same family. While the researchers of old were limited to letter writing and queries in genealogical magazines to network with possible relations, I can accomplish the same thing much more quickly. I recently did a search for one of my son-in-law's elusive ancestors, and my efforts were rewarded. I found two new connections: distant cousins who had been researching this particular ancestor for over 30 years. They have given me all kinds of new leads to follow up on.
Family tree software has also made things much easier for the modern genealogist. With programs like Family Tree Maker and RootsMagic, researchers can enter names, dates, and other facts, as well as source information, into a computer database. Once the information is entered, the software does the work of organizing the data. With the click of a button, genealogists can generate any number of charts, trees, and genealogy reports.
When all is said and done, though, family history research has not changed that much since the "early days." I am accessing many of the same records that my predecessors did. I'm just able to do it a lot more quickly and easily. I have a great appreciation and admiration for those early genealogists who paved the way for people like me. Many of the indexes that I use today were created by those same "pioneers," who sat in dusty courthouses or church archives years ago. They painstakingly extracted names and other pertinent information, so that future researchers like me would have an easier time finding what they were looking for.
If you've ever thought about researching your family tree, there has never been a better time. Although some of the websites I've mentioned require a subscription to access their records, there are also many sites that offer their services for free. One of the best free sites is FamilySearch.org. Many public libraries also offer access to the subscription sites to patrons in their library.
I'll warn you, though, that genealogy is addicting. Once you get started it's hard to stop, but it can be a fun and fascinating hobby, especially if you have an interest in history.
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