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>Determine What You Know
Choose the Interview Method
Cover the Basics
Discover Your Family History
Follow General Interview Guidelines
Locate Family Treasures
Access GPL's Gene Links
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Genealogy 101: Determine What You Know
he more specific information you have when starting your research,
the more productive your search will be. Before visiting the library or searching online databases, determine what you know.
- Start with the Ancestral Chart. Fill in as much information as you can. Use pencil, and keep an eraser handy.
- Access an Ancestral Chart online via Ancestry.com
- For each person on the chart, record birth, marriage and death dates and places.
- Next, start a Family Group Sheet for each immediate family on the chart.
- Access a Family Group Sheet online via Ancestry.com
- Once this is complete, it is time to start the interviewing process. Choose a living family member. The member might be a parent, grandparent or a great grandparent. Don't forget about aunts and uncles or great aunts and uncles when seeking information about your family.
