How can you check your Family History and build your Family Tree

There exists a lot of ways in which one can build their family history and family tree. Each tool or methodology has its own advantages and limitations. Based on your interests and inclinations, you can choose a way that most suits you.

Tools and Methodologies

Earlier, genealogy researchers relied mostly on looking up information in the books and journals crammed in the dingy libraries and newsroooms. It was a slow and taxing process looking up names and ancestry information in long texts. With the advent of internet and technology, multiple tools have become available to researchers and common people to do this research with faster and with ease. Moreover, DNA Testing has made identifying ethnic origins and tracing anestral relationships easy. This tool has become a routine part of genealogy these days.

Now let's look at some tools and resources in detail and understand their advantages and limitations:

• Online Census Records: Online collection of US census records has probably been the single most important development for genealogy research over the past 15 years. Usually, conducted every 10 years, official censuses are generally regarded as the most comprehensive resource for researching family history.
  
  Easy online access adds to the usefulness of the census and creates a convenient starting point for newcomers to genealogy. The first company to finish digitizing and indexing all the extant census records was Ancestry. It was the first major genealogical resource to come online with digitized page images linked to an every-name index. This census database set the standard for online access to records and paved the way for the digitization of newspapers, passenger lists, books and other resources. Over the years, Ancestry has also added UK and Canadian census records to their database. Other websites with the full run of US censuses linked to digital images include MyHeritage and Findmypast. FamilySearch has indexes for all US censuses, with digital images for some.


• Crowdsourced Databases: Online digitized records are great, but searchable name indexes make online records far more useful. Record indexes are labor-intensive and costly to produce, though, so genealogy organizations have come up with a solution: Enlist help from the general public. These three sites’ indexing projects are good examples:
  
  FamilySearch has developed an online indexing system so volunteers all over the world can use specialized software to index the organization’s digitized historical records. Anyone with internet access can do it. Since the inception of the program, indexers have completed more than 1.2 billion records, which you can search for free at their website.
  
  Find A Grave has been crowdsourcing gravestone transcription since its founding, before crowdsource was a word. This free site (now owned by Ancestry) and its companion app let users submit photos of gravestones and transcribed inscriptions. A similar site, BillionGraves, includes GPS locations with pictures of headstones so you can find the grave’s exact location and search for others buried nearby.


• DNA Testing: Since Family Tree DNA introduced commercial DNA testing for genealogy, it has rapidly become a go-to way to prove or disprove family connections and identify ethnic origins. As genetic genealogy companies continue to refine the technology, the research benefits of DNA testing increase. The most useful tests for genealogy examine two kinds of DNA:
  
  Y-DNA is passed down through the paternal line, so only males can take this test. Since children usually adopt their father’s surname in our culture, Y-DNA is generally linked to a surname (except in cases of “non-paternity events.”) Because Y-DNA mutates slowly over generations, a Y-DNA test can estimate how closely two men are related.
  
  Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is passed down from a mother to her children. Both men and women receive mtDNA from their mother, however because men do not pass on mtDNA, this test is only used for tracing maternal lines.
  
  Autosomal chromosomes are the 22 pairs other than the sex-linked X and Y chromosomes. You inherit autosomal DNA from all your ancestors, to varying degrees, and the more autosomal DNA two people share, the closer they’re probably related. An autosomal DNA test can predict whether the matches are relatives up to the fifth cousin level, and sometimes beyond. It can also estimate your overall ethnic ancestry.


• Genealogy megasites: Large genealogy websites with digitized and indexed collections of the most-used historical records—censuses, passenger lists, draft registrations and more—make it possible to discover names, relationships, residences and other details for entire family lines in one sitting. These sites also have smaller, yet informative, record sets. Three of the largest sites continue to grow and improve:
  
  Ancestry boasts more than 14 billion records, including census, birth, marriage, death, military and immigration records, plus more than 60 million family trees of its members, as well as digitized books. Its search capabilities continue to grow more sophisticated. The site’s most impressive technological feat is the ability to search through all those records and family trees in a single search.
  
  FamilySearch also has large, growing collections of records, books and family trees. These include more than 1,500 searchable record collections (other collections aren’t yet indexed, so must be browsed instead of searched), more than 3.5 billion names in searchable databases, and 81,000-plus digital books. All are free. FamilySearch adds more than 35 million records to the site each month, so keep checking back for your ancestors’ names.
  
  MyHeritage, which started with online family trees and expanded into historical records when the 1940 census was released, now offers 5 billion records, 27 million family trees and 200 million photos. Based in Israel and available in 40 languages, the site has a strong international presence.


• Genealogy Software: Keeping your genealogy research organized is a big job. Doing it on paper requires an intricate filing system, lots of charts and plenty of room for storage. Genealogy software, on the other hand, helps you digitally record details for trees with thousands of profiles, easily retrieve digitized records for each person, and note the sources where you found each piece of information. Most programs let you create charts and reports, and share your family tree with others. Some work with database sites for streamlined searching and attaching records. Software can improve your research efficiency, contradicting the myth that only those with loads of extra time (read: retired folks) can do genealogy.
  
  Ancestry.com’s Family Tree Maker, the most popular genealogy program, automatically searches the site’s record collections for the names in your tree. A waving leaf beside a name indicates a potential match; click on the leaf to view the record (you’ll need an Ancestry.com subscription to see most matching records). You can then evaluate the match and add the record to your family tree.
  
  The free Family Tree Builder software from MyHeritage works much the same way. Besides helping you record your genealogy finds, it automatically searches the site’s online records and family trees for matches with your relatives. You’ll need a subscription to access most of the records on MyHeritage, too.
  
  

All this looking back begs the question: What’s in store for the next 15 years? Our money’s on developments in DNA, online searching and records digitization. Only time will tell how advances in these areas will advance your research.