Family Searcher: Genealogy is rewarding, not intimidating

by Nina Brawn
    Genealogy — the very word is intimidating. I pictured it as dry, dusty work with little appeal and requiring a lot of precision and technical expertise. Instead, what I have found is a 20-year hobby that is just as interesting today as it was when I began. It requires only as much time and expertise as you want to devote to it.
    Genealogy is one of the fastest growing hobbies around the world. There are many reasons for this, and two of the most influential are the computer and the Internet. When my sister Cindy and I began our quest, the computer was not an integral part of our work. We used it to write letters, which we snail-mailed to various towns in search of documents. Hand printing does not photocopy well, so we laboriously hand copied each chart we made. We did not know what message boards were, we rarely used e-mail, and the few genealogy Web sites available had no information about our relatives.
    All of that has changed — for the better! Now we have wonderful computer programs which, with a few keystrokes sort and report our years of hard work. The Internet can make available passenger lists from 400 years ago, censuses from many countries, and types and amounts of information not even dreamt of just a few short years ago. In the weeks ahead, I will walk you through the many ways in which you can bring your past to life! You can find relatives you never knew you had, and learn more about the lives of those you have met. You can begin to understand and appreciate what has brought your family to this place and time, and discover ways to document what you have found.
    My family had a few cherished legends about famous ancestors and brave women in our past, and some of it has even turned out to be true! (or nearly true.) Whatever the excitement or disappointment that lays ahead genealogy will add a richness and appreciation to the life you now lead, and make family more important than ever.
    So how do you begin? Start with questions, with what you know. Start with yourself.
    Think about your names, your birth date, marriage date, and partner’s names. Are there other dates that were significant in your life, such as baptisms, and graduations? Where did these events occur? What else can you learn about your life from this information? What kinds of records may exist out there about you? Where can you find them?
    For instance, have you heard that you were named after someone in the family, perhaps you and an aunt or grandmother share a middle name? Perhaps a surname (last name) will give clues to ethnicity. (“Gallagher” may be Scotch or Irish, “Giordano” is Italian, LaBree French). With Italian surnames, chances are your family was Catholic. If you are old enough to marry, you may own real estate, vote, or register for military service. Some of these records are available to the public. Local libraries may have yearbooks, newspaper archives and other incidental records. Did the local paper mention you in a list of Cub Scout awards? Did you volunteer with a local organization that may have records, newsletters, or have been published in the newspaper? Did Aunt Lucy write to her son about your birth? Think about all the things you have done with your life. Someone, somewhere, may have a record of it. Once you start asking questions about your own life records, it becomes easier to consider possibilities for records for your ancestors.
    In the weeks ahead, I will cover how and where to look for genealogical information locally and on the Internet. I will discuss how to evaluate the reliability of information you find, what some of the basic records are, and what you may learn from them. We will explore using a computer to discover and share your family’s story, as well as other creative ways to use the information you find.
    Family history is rich with possibilities. Consider yours. In the meantime, enjoy and cherish your living family.
    Editor’s note: This regular column is sponsored by the Aroostook County Genealogical Society. The group meets the fourth Monday of the month (except in December and June) at the Cary Medical Center Chan Education Center, near the entrance to the Caribou Inn & Convention Center at 6:30 p.m. Guests and prospective members are always welcome. Columnist Nina Brawn of Dover-Foxcroft has been doing genealogy for over 30 years, is a free-lance genealogy researcher, speaker and teacher. Reader e-mails are welcome at ninabrawn@gmail.com.