Those ancestors of yours from across the pond may think they’re elusive.  But, with the right research guides and helps to assist you, you may be able to track them down easier than you think.

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Research Principle #1

Find and use the helps, guides, resources and courses available for the locality or type of record you’re researching.

As you start researching your ancestors — especially those who came to America from foreign countries — you’ll want to find any guides, aids, maps and online courses that might be available to help you in your research.  Here’s just a sampling of what’s available to help you:

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Online Courses  — Give you excellent information on how to research your family in different countries and also how to access and use different types of records for your U.S. research.  We’ve got a bunch of them in the Classes & Training section of the Help Center.  Check them out.

Research Outlines — Describe the records and strategies you can use to pursue family history research in a specific geographic location or in a particular type of record.

Step-By-Step Guides — Provide specific instructions and tips for searching records, samples of records, background information about the record type, and where to find the record.

Letter-Writing Guides — Show you how to write letters requesting genealogical information from non-English speakers and provides some non-English translations of foreign words.

Resource Guides —Describe how to use a particular source, such as a census, land record, military record, etc.

Foreign Word Lists — Contain English translations of foreign words contained in old documents from foreign countries.

Maps — Show current and ancient county, ecclesiastical, and other boundaries for many countries.

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As you collect all the resources you’ll need for whatever locality or area you’re researching your family, you can keep them handy in your Family History Binder.

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Principle #2.  Don’t Skip Generations

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