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)

Tarbell Sisters’ Civil War Feud Finally Ended—in 1922!

While many genealogical records can provide names and dates for your family tree, newspapers give you something more: actual stories about your ancestors’ lives, so that you can get to know them as real people and learn about the times in which they lived. Here’s an example of a newspaper preserving a remarkable family... (Read More)

New Year’s Genealogy Resolutions for Genealogists in 2013

It’s the start of a new year, a time when many people think about making some changes. Here are four suggestions I have; I hope that genealogists take to heart these New Year’s resolutions for 2013. Use Newspapers for Genealogy Research Search through historical newspaper archives for each of your ancestors and find those... (Read More)

Genealogy Records You Can Find In Newspaper Archives Infographic

Is the Infographic image above too small? See the larger version. Newspapers offer a variety of genealogy records that you can use to trace back your family tree. Learn about the types of genealogy records that can be found in newspapers and discover the family history information that each record type contains below. Obituaries Obituaries are an... (Read More)

Ancestry Believe It or Not: Genealogy Scams, Fakes & Forgers

Introduction: Mary Harrell-Sesniak is a genealogist, author and editor with a strong technology background. In this guest blog post, Mary writes about genealogical fakes and frauds, and cautions readers to be careful in documenting their family history. You can’t always believe what you read—or can you? Genealogy, when done right, is a pursuit requiring... (Read More)

How to Find Your Ancestor’s Divorce Records in the Newspaper

Introduction: Gena Philibert-Ortega is a genealogist and author of the book “From the Family Kitchen.” In this guest blog post, Gena describes how old newspaper articles about your ancestor’s divorce can provide valuable family history information to help with your genealogical searches. I am always surprised when people assume life was so much better... (Read More)