How to Spot and Avoid 9 Common Genealogy Mistakes & Errors

Introduction: Mary Harrell-Sesniak is a genealogist, author and editor with a strong technology background. In this guest blog post, Mary discusses 9 common mistakes made when doing family history research, and suggests ways to avoid them. Family history researchers are often frustrated by the mistakes of others—particularly when there is an obvious error in... (Read More)

How to Find Georgia Marriage Records

It is easy to find copies of your Georgia ancestors’ marriage certificates and records using two basic online genealogy tools: GenealogyBank.com and FamilySearch.org. If your ancestors lived in Georgia, let’s see how we can find information about them. FamilySearch.org has put Georgia marriage records from 1785 to 1950 online. You may search for these... (Read More)

Do You Know Where in Ireland Your Ancestors Came From?

Finding the town or county where your family came from in the “Old Country” can be difficult. That’s where Irish American newspapers can really help you locate your ancestor’s place of birth when researching your ancestry from Ireland. For example, look at this 1859 obituary from an old Irish American newspaper: This typical historical... (Read More)

Understanding Terms Found in Historical Newspapers

Introduction: Mary Harrell-Sesniak is a genealogist, author and editor with a strong technology background. In this guest blog post, Mary explains some of the unusual or archaic terms often found in historical newspapers, and provides examples from period newspapers. When I first started searching historical newspapers to help with my family history research, certain... (Read More)

A Peek into Yesteryear: Using Scrapbooks for Genealogy Research

Introduction: Gena Philibert-Ortega is a genealogist and author of the book “From the Family Kitchen.” In this guest blog post, Gena describes how scrapbooks can be a surprising and valuable resource for your family history research. Did you ever keep a scrapbook? I’m not referring to the modern-day scrapbooks that are essentially decorated photograph... (Read More)