Anyone do Genealogy / Ancestry?

[85_Ranger4x4]

I like those little red fish your people raise.

If you like those you outta try our cod.

 

[sgtsandman]

Me, mostly Swedish calling on my probably non-existent Viking heritage to deal with a stuck on brake rotor...

 

[JoshT]

Well, I don't know about doing the whole geneology thing, buy y'all have inspired me to start a family tree. I have a hard time keeping track of all my cousin's kids names, so if nothing else it'll be a reference list for that. Might go further up the line as I hear and think about more ancestors.

On that note, anyone got a good FREE site for creating and tracking a family tree? First result on google popped up FamilyEcho.com seems decent, but I imagine that there are better options

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Well, I don't know about doing the whole geneology thing, buy y'all have inspired me to start a family tree. I have a hard time keeping track of all my cousin's kids names, so if nothing else it'll be a reference list for that. Might go further up the line as I hear and think about more ancestors.

On that note, anyone got a good FREE site for creating and tracking a family tree? First result on google popped up FamilyEcho.com seems decent, but I imagine that there are better options

I just play the long game on ancestry, I don't have a dime in it but you can only do so much at a time.

 

[RobbieD]

On that note, anyone got a good FREE site for creating and tracking a family tree?

The only one that I can suggest is FamilySearch:
https://www.familysearch.org/en/united-states/

The website itself belongs to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but it's (quoting from the website) "free of charge to everyone, regardless of tradition, culture, or religious affiliation. FamilySearch resources help millions of people around the world discover their heritage and connect with family members. " From what I can tell, a person's ancestry has always been a big deal with the LDS; and even though a church owns it, there's no religion vibes to the FamilySearch website.

They do aprear partnered with Ancestry.com, but the LDS website is a non-profit. I don't trust commercial for-pay websites, and Ancestry ends up gobbling up all of the smaller genealogy websites anyway.

So what software do you all use for your research? is it in the GEDCOM (i thnk that is the universal format) and is it free?

I don't use any special software. I've never really figured out the GEDCOM thing, either. The way I do my own genealogy is to find, and work from, original period documents which I search out, and download or copy. I found so much wrong information, and mainly lack of information, on my own family that focusing on, and organizing and interpreting, original docs has been the only way I've been able to unravel the true story.

I use excel to keep track of these documents, in spreadsheets that I can work with by searching, sorting and filtering- "organizing". I also use excel to draw my own family trees, which in my case has been essential to keep everybody straight (during one critical period there were six related "John same-last-names's" all living within the same general area!!!).

I also keep all of my notes on each person in a simple .word document, per person. I also use .word for other types of notes, like a series of an individual's movements or land transactions.

The main thing, is to keep all of the accumulated data organized, so that you can find things easily, and to be able to examine and compare the data (as I'm so easily confused!). At this point, after about 25 years of working on it, I have several thousand images of original period docs, on hundreds of people that are related directly and distantly. This part, would be difficult, if not impossible, without using a computer.

Sooo . . . the way I do mine it is free, but takes some time and work.



For somebody just starting, I think that starting a tree on FamilySearch is about the best place to check it out and try things out. Most people will tire quickly of genealogy (it can be frustrating, and takes time and work), others will be fascinated by it and become obsessed with it.

 

[JoshT]

I'm not planning to start into full on family genealogy at this time, just tracking the ones I know right now. I figure it'll be something I can reference if I don't remember who belongs to who.

I tried that family search site first, but couldn't figure out how to add anyone to the family tree.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

I tried that family search site first, but couldn't figure out how to add anyone to the family tree.

You have to find someone to have a kid with...

 

[RobbieD]

You have to find someone to have a kid with...

But I'm kinda lazy . . .

. . . would you know of any that are already pregnant?

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

But I'm kinda lazy . . .

. . . would you know of any that are already pregnant?

 

[Sharky]

But I'm kinda lazy . . .

. . . would you know of any that are already pregnant?

nope, I am not going to ask ...................................

 

[RobbieD]

nope, I am not going to ask ...................................

No; I am not pregnant.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

No; I am not pregnant.

Are you sure? That would explain your strange mood swings...

 

[JoshT]

You have to find someone to have a kid with...

you know what I meant

 

[SenorNoob]

Sounds farfetched, but I've heard it said that the world population (maybe throughout known history?) outnumbers possible human DNA combinations. So mathematically someone has or had exactly the same DNA as you.

As for myself, I've only gotten records from my grandmothers family on my dad's side. That's Shrums all the way back to a Peter Schram in 1325 Germany. The oral history of the rest of the family is so unreliable as to be useless. LOL.

Now on the Jesse James thing...

Diamond in the rough! Could be a beautiful place to live. So much history comes with this place. Jesse James was known to hide out here at The General Store 29'X60' - originally built in 1896. Original hardwood floors and bar counter remains....

That was from the original ad for my house. Also a local historian published a book linking the original owner/builder of the house to a James robbery a couple towns over. Whether any of it is true or not IDK. Makes one wonder if my house was built with stolen money...

 

[don4331]

But I'm kinda lazy . . .

. . . would you know of any that are already pregnant?

There are a couple cousins of current generation who don't know/care who the father was. They would be more than willing to take child support from you.

I makes doing the family tree a lot more challenging when father is ????.​