Our Research Journey

If you are researching your own family then you know what it means to find documents and sources for one of your ancestors. You also know how frustrating it is when you hit that dreaded "Brick Wall". Now, I am not going to post every little thing I do in my research journey. A lot of our ancestors do have some records that make it a bit easier to trace them and their families. But there are some records that could use some explaining and others we don't even know exist. It's exciting when you find out about a record that you can request for a specific ancestor.

I am going to try and write this journey for the beginner and more advanced researcher. I'm not claiming to be an expert by no means, but I do a lot of research. A lot of my research is online and I'm always looking for FREE information. Genealogy research can get quite expensive, so I'll go over some of my own "work-arounds" or how to get the most bang for your buck.

Most of the genealogy writers, experts, etc. always tell you the same thing when you're starting your research journey. There is no where to start except from the beginning. Write down what you know.

My First Steps

I know who I am and fortunately, I know both of my parents. I know their birth dates and in what state they were born. I know the date they were married but not where. I also know the names of my mother's parents but not their full birth dates and places. I know who my father's mother was and her birth day and state. I know this doesn't seem like much to start off with, but I also know the names of my aunts & uncles and some of my grandparents siblings. I also know the names of my great-grandparents. So I do have quite a bit to start my research. Putting all of this information into a file (written or digital) will give me a better picture of where to start.

I use an online genealogy site (about 3 of them). Ancestry.com is my main one. It is a paid site, but for me, it's worth it. I also use Familysearch.org and Wikitree.com, both which are FREE. I start with my father, Nathan Grady Perkins. He was born in 1945 so I'm hoping to find him on the last published US Federal Census. He would be 5 years old in 1950. I know from previous research that I can find this information on Ancestry.com but not sure about the other 2 sites (they are both "One Tree" sites). Wikitree.com is a site where the members are adamant about sourcing. You must be able to provide and prove names, dates, places, and relationships. It's a great online backup of your research and the research of others all combined (great when you can't find sources and others have). Familysearch.org has its own databases of documents, etc. But the family trees are not always correct. There is no governing or self-governing setup to ensure that information is correct. They had my uncle linked as my dad's father, but also had both of them listed as my grandmother's sons. Never take for granted that what someone else as posted as research is absolutely correct.

My First Source

I went on Ancestry.com and set up my family tree. I checked the hints for my father. I found him on the 1950 US Federal Census. He was living with his mother, two siblings and his grandparents. I know I have the correct family as I know the names of my dad's two siblings, his mother's name, and his grandparents names. Now the 1950 Census tells us the relationship of each person to the "head of household", their age (on the date the census was taken), race, gender, maritial status, and their birth place. Of the six people on the census, I can estimate the year of each birth and I have the state that each of them were born in. I didn't learn much about my father that I didn't already know, but I now have documented proof that he was indeed related to his mother, Edna Reeves (Perkins) and two siblings, Cliff and Madeline. I now have the estimated birth year of my grandmother. I already knew her birth day and the state she was born in. As for my great-grandparents, Enard and Esther Perkins, I learned a lot. I now have estimated birth years and the state they were born in and proof they were married. As for my aunt and uncle, I found that out as well. I also found a "Find A Grave" memorial for my dad. There was a photo of his headstone, showing birth date and death date, and the cemetery he was buried in. There were also some public records showing places he lived. Although that information was not that important to me, it may be important for some other relatives if I find that information.

I've exhausted all of the sources on Ancestry.com for my father (I make a note of the date), so I check out my other two sites. Familysearch had the same information but some FREE copies (I noted that in my sources). Wikitree.com I had to create a profile for him and post my sources. This will be an important step in future research.

My Next Steps

Just from the one census document, I have clues to aid in my research for my family and have 6 people on my research log. I have some search criteria for my grandmother and great-grandparents. By accepting that source on my Ancestry.com family tree, it has now linked my father to his siblings and mother. I believe it linked my grandmother to her parents. Hints should soon show themselves for new members of my family.

In my own filing system, I have noted and cited my sources and extracted the data from those sources into my own individual files for each of the people I found. I can see now what else I'm missing and hope that I can find more documentation to prove and add to information I have.