Thursday, June 23, 2011

My New Binder

I’m one of those people who just has to change my organization method every few years. If something’s not perfect, I decide to try something new.

When I took over family history research from Grammy, most of her information was organized into binders by surname. Does that sound like the 1990s to anyone?

In each binder was a combination of primary and secondary source material as well as research notes. That just wasn’t working for me. I decided that I wanted easy access to the primary and secondary source materials across all surnames. After all, that’s the starting point for my research.

I created a single new binder (only one for now) and added dividers for each surname. My intent is to slowly “move in” to my new binder.

What better place to start than with current records?

It dawned on me that someday my descendants will want copies of my original documents that are currently safely stored in my safety deposit box.

First up, my marriage certificate. I made a copy for my new binder, scanned an image, and added it as a source for my marriage in my family tree software. Sure, I knew most of that information, but it reminded me just how much information was there that could easily get lost. For instance, at the time we married, I was living in Denton County, the license was issued in Collin County, and we were actually married in Dallas County, Texas. How confusing that could be in 100 years!

Now is also a good time to scan your birth certificate, your children’s birth certificates, and your children’s religious certificates such as baptism and confirmation. Include those bits of information in your genealogy database now.

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Introduction to Channeling Grammy

My children call her Grammy, my nieces call her Grandmommy, but I just call her Mom.

My mother has been the keeper of the family history for many years. I’m not sure what got her started, but I’m glad she did.

Recently I received from her four bankers boxes filled with her genealogical research. It is now my honor and privilege to continue her legacy and make more connections on our family tree. Most of her research was done in the pre-Internet days, so there’s much left for me to contribute.

In this blog I will share the new things I learn along the my journey into family history. Sometimes it may be techniques; other times it may be newly discovered facts. Still other times I may just share things that have inspired me and may inspire you.

Surnames: Appling, Barrett, Childers, Collins, Davis, Edmonds, Green, Harper, Habich, Knight, McKinnon, Melton, Murrah, Parker, Perryman, Prince, Rippetoe, Standley, Stokes, Swinney, and more.

Locations: Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia