Category: Country Research

Considering the Future of FamilySearch Family History Centers

Note: This article was published previously on the Genealogy’s Star blog site.   https://www.familysearch.org/fhcenters/locations/ FamilySearch.org in conjunction with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Church) has a huge network of 5397 Family History Libraries and Family History Centers around the world as of the date of this post. These libraries and centers range in size and content from the Salt Lake...

Where Are the Records?

The quest for finding historical records is one of the main objectives for anyone doing genealogy research. Without records, family history easily becomes family mystery, or even mythology. Many types of historical records have been produced by governments, churches, and other organizations, such as vital records, census, immigration, property, military, and many more. The question “Where are the records?” has...

Getting to Know FamilySearch Community and Partner Trees

When we think about using the Search menu in FamilySearch, the most familiar choice is right at the top: Records. The other items in the menu may be less familiar, however. Halfway down the menu is the Genealogies option, which is an interesting one. Many of us are aware that a huge number of user-submitted pedigrees are available on FamilySearch....

Remembering Our Pioneer Ancestors

Elaine Hardman, Communications Assistant for the Granite Family History Center, recently published a blog article that reminds us of pioneer ancestors, around the July 24 Pioneer Day celebration. With her permission, part of the article is quoted below:   There are many resources available to research our pioneer ancestors. As we commemorate the entrance of the vanguard company of pioneers...

New QRB Videos: World War I Records and German Research

There are three new arrivals to the QRB (Quick Research Basics Videos) collection: United States Military Records for World War I (United States, Goal E2, Choice C) Germany Research: Maps and Surnames (Germany, Goal 7) Germany Research: Records, Words, and Scripts (Germany, Goal 1, Choice D) Each of these is included on our YouTube Channel and in the links mentioned...

Strategies for Searching Church Records

Note: This article was published previously on the Genealogy’s Star blog site.     Church records are some of the most valuable genealogically significant records for tracing your ancestors in predominantly Christian-based countries. In order to understand and use these records, it is helpful to understand how and why these records were created. Parish registers are records created by small...

MyKoseki.com – a Must-see Site for Japanese Genealogy

One of the most powerful tools for doing family history research in Japan is using the “koseki,” which is the Japanese family registry required in Japan. This registry records births, adoptions, marriages, deaths, etc. for Japanese families. Recently we discovered a great website, MyKoseki.com, that makes it simple and easy to learn about, find, and use koseki records in your...

New Videos from The Family History Guide

We’ve recently added several new videos to our YouTube Channel and The Family History Guide. Let’s take a look at what’s new:   Spain Research Overview—This video is the first in a two-part series. It focuses on the history of Spain and how it has influenced the language and culture of the people. This gives you a background in understanding...

What is in a name? Taking Your Genealogical Research to a Higher Level

Note: This article appeared previously in the Genealogy’s Star blog site.     My Great-great-grandfather’s name was David Thomas b. 1820, d. 1888. He was born in Wales. Sometime, probably after he died, he “acquired” a middle name and became “David Nathan Thomas.” Here is a photo of his grave marker with his name as “David N. Thomas.” However, every...

New QRB Videos: Maps and Surnames

We have recently posted three new Quick Research Basics videos on our YouTube Channel. These are by Miles Meyer, Education Director for The Family History Guide Association. They have subtitle captions in Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino, and they cover the following topics:   Using Historical Maps—Learn how historical maps can help you locate your...