Family trees help remind us of where we come from. Here’s how to make family trees and why the experience is so valuable.
Have you ever wondered where you came from? Or maybe wondered if you had any cool daredevil or famous ancestor.
If this is the case, you need to put together a family tree. Collecting information about your past is easier than you think.
In this article, we’ll show you how to make family trees so you can track your ancestry.
Why Should You Make a Family Tree?
Knowing where you come from will not only make you feel smarter, it will also fascinate you. It’s a great feeling to know where you came from and the events that led you there.
Tracing your family tree will help you find fascinating details about your family’s past such as:
- Medical conditions
- Tracing famous people in your family
- Unclaimed family inheritance
- Confirm family stories
- Trace down birth parents
These are only a few reasons why you should track down your family tree.
Start With the Information You Know
You’ll have better luck tracking down your family tree if you begin writing down the information you already know.
Ask yourself what information you know for sure to have as a starting point.
Record All Your Information
Once you identify what you know, start writing it all down. Begin collecting information you already have around the house such as marriage, birth, and death certificates.
Collect photographs and identify the people in the photos. Make calls to relatives to collect copies of information you might be missing.
What Do You Want to Learn?
Next, you need to figure out what you want to learn. How far back do you want to go?
Start with the people that you didn’t find any information on and go from there. So if you’re missing any information of a grandparent, you should start there.
What Types of Records Will be More Useful
Decide what types of documents will be most helpful in order for you to put together your family tree.
For example, in order to find more vital information about your ancestors, you will want to know when they were born and when they died.
So you’ll want to start with birth and death certificates.
Check Census Records
Did you know that census records go back to 1790? You’ll be able to check the federal census records from 1940 and all the way back to 1790 on certain web resources such as HeritageQuest or findmypast.com.
The Courthouse is Your Resource
If you learn where your ancestors lived, you can visit the local warehouse and obtain information about them.
You can pull marriage certificates, birth, and death records.
Other Resources
There are other ways for you to find out information about your ancestors and complete your family tree.
For example, you can try DNA testing to learn about your ethnicity.
How to Make Family Trees: The Bottom Line
Now that you know how to make family trees, it’s time you put your skills to the test. Decide what information you want to know, write down what you have, and collect the missing pieces.
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