Uncovering your ancestors’ stories is one of the most rewarding parts of genealogy research. Each piece of information you find reveals a little bit more about where you come from and who you are.
But where do you find these stories? How do you go beyond the basic facts of birth, marriage, and death to uncover the rich details of your ancestors’ lives?
In this blog post, we’ll explore different sources to help you find your ancestors’ stories. From newspapers to genealogical records, and even some unexpected places, we’ll cover everything you need to know to bring your family history to life.
I love to walk in my neighborhood. My usual route passes by a house with quotes or sayings written on a blackboard on its fence. Here’s what I discovered on this particular day:
“In the end, we’ll all become stories.” – Margaret Atwood
This is so true! What we do today becomes what our descendants will talk or write about in the future. So let’s find those stories and make our ancestors come alive! The first place I look is newspapers:
Newspapers
Newspapers are an excellent resource for uncovering your ancestors’ stories. They give us a glimpse of the past, capturing details of everyday life, major events, and everything in between. Here’s what you can find in newspapers:
- Obituaries: These often provide amazing information, including details about the deceased’s life, family members, and achievements.
- Announcements: Look for birth, marriage, and anniversary announcements. These can give us relationships, important dates, and information about friends and neighbors, the FAN Club. For more on the FAN Club, read this blog post.
- Local News: Articles about local events, crimes, or accidents can add a social element to your ancestors’ lives.
- Advertisements: Sometimes, you can find business advertisements or public notices related to your ancestors.
Where to Find Historical Newspapers:
- Chronicling America: A free resource from the Library of Congress.
- Newspapers.com: A subscription service with a huge collection. Ancestry.com owns Newspapers.com.
- GenealogyBank: Another subscription service that offers a mix of newspapers and other records. Their collection dates back to 1690.
An example:
Outside of the normal/usual things you find in newspapers, sometimes you discover something a little more interesting. Look at this announcement made by my 3x great-grandfather, Henry Dirk, about his daughter, Sarah Jane:
Doesn’t that make you want to know more about Sarah Jane? Next let’s look at the records:
Records
Genealogical records are the heart of any family history research. While they often provide the basic facts, they can also give us clues that lead to more detailed stories.
Vital Records:
- Birth Certificates: Look for parents’ names, occupations, and place of birth.
- Marriage Certificates: These often include ages, places of residence, and parents’ names. You may also discover whether an ancestor had a previous marriage and how that marriage ended. That could lead to more records.
- Death Certificates: Besides the cause of death, look for birth place and date, parents’ names and birth places, occupation and burial information.
Census Records:
- Track changes in your ancestors’ lives over time. Pay attention to occupations, family members, and neighbors. Federal censuses occurred every 10 years, but did the state in which your ancestor lived conduct its own census?
Check out the following blogs about census records that will help you get started using them in your research:
3 Reasons Why Census Records Are Significant In Genealogy Research
4 Ways “Other” Census Records Can Help Your Genealogy Research
Unique Census Questions Uncover More About Your Ancestors
Military Records:
- Service Records: Details about your ancestor’s service, including battles and ranks and if they were injured.
- Pension Records: These can include personal letters and testimonials.
The 100+ page Compiled Military Service Record for my 2x great-grandfather, John Dunahoo, included a letter he wrote detailing his early life. Not only is it in his handwriting, but he gave his birthdate along with information about his parents and siblings. It is a wonderful keepsake and the only place I’ve found this information.
Immigration Records:
- Passenger lists, naturalization papers, and border crossings provide information about your ancestor’s journey and new life.
- Remember to also look at your ancestor’s FAN Club in these records. One member of my Astle family kept a diary of his journey crossing the Atlantic Ocean to America. He was not my direct line, so if I had not looked at other family members, this important piece would be lost.
Church and Cemetery Records
Churches and cemeteries can be overlooked but are rich sources of information.
Church Records:
- Baptisms, marriages, and funerals are often recorded in church registers.
- Depending on the area you are researching, church records may be the only surviving records you have.
Cemetery Records:
- Gravestones can reveal birth and death dates and maybe family relationships. Remember to use this information as clues in your ancestors’ stories. The information provided is not always correct. If you can’t make it to the cemetery to see a gravestone in person, make a request on Find-A-Grave.
- Cemetery records and plot maps can also offer clues. People were often buried with other family members, so look around to make sure you don’t exclude anyone.
Personal Letters and Diaries
Personal letters and diaries are what genealogists dream about. They provide first-hand accounts and intimate details that you won’t find in official records.
- Family Letters: Reach out to relatives to see if they have any old letters tucked away.
- Diaries and Journals: These can sometimes be found in family attics or donated to local historical societies.
Even if the letter or diary is not specifically about your ancestor, the time and place will be accounted for. You can apply that information to your ancestors’ stories.
Oral Histories
Oral histories can be incredibly valuable. They capture stories passed down through generations that might not be recorded anywhere else.
- Interviews with Relatives: Take the time to talk to older family members. Record these conversations if possible. Do it now, before it’s too late!
- Local Histories: Sometimes, local historical societies or libraries have oral histories collected from community members.
Photographs and Family Heirlooms
Photos and heirlooms often come with stories attached. A single photograph can tell you a lot about an ancestor’s life.
- Family Photo Albums: Look for notes on the back of photos. See how they are grouped together. Does that tell a story?
- Heirlooms: Items like jewelry, furniture, or tools can sometimes be traced back to a specific ancestor and come with a story.
I’m so thankful to have several photo albums and scrapbooks from my dad. He passed a while ago and so this is all I have to continue telling his family’s story.
Local Histories and Biographies
Local histories and biographies can provide context and sometimes specific information about your ancestors.
- County Histories: These often include biographical sketches of important citizens. Whether or not your ancestors are mentioned, you’ll learn a lot about the community in which they lived.
- Biographies: Published biographies of locals may mention your ancestors if they were connected in some way.
Google Books, Hathitrust, and Internet Archive are wonderful places to search for information about ancestors and local histories. You may not always find what you’re looking for, but you won’t know for sure until you search.
Archives and Special Collections
Don’t overlook the amount of information in archives and special collections.
- Local Archives: Town or city archives often have records not available anywhere else.
- University Archives: These can include collections of letters, diaries, and other personal documents.
- Special Collections: Libraries and museums sometimes have special collections focused on specific families or communities.
- State and Local Historical Societies: These societies are wonderful places to go to learn about your ancestors’ stories in specific areas. Just because you don’t live near that locality doesn’t mean you can’t belong to that society.
Putting It All Together
It’s now time to put it all together. Each piece of information you find adds to the picture. Here are some tips:
- Create a Timeline: A timeline helps you see your ancestor’s life in chronological order. This is so helpful in identifying gaps of information you may be missing. See my blog post about timelines here.
- Put Ancestors in Context: Place your ancestors in the time and place in which they lived. What was happening in their town, country, or the world at that time?
- Collaborate with Relatives: Share your findings with other family members. They might have additional information to add to your ancestors’ stories.
- Write: This cannot be emphasized enough! Turn your research into a story. Write about your ancestor’s life and include as many details as possible. I use Word for writing, but there are many tools available to help you write, and companies that do the writing for you.
Online Resources
Here are the “Big 4” companies that offer online resources to help you piece together your ancestors’ stories:
- Ancestry.com: A comprehensive resource with access to many types of records, books, DNA, and more.
- FamilySearch.org: Free access to a wide range of records, books, and compiled genealogies.
- Findmypast.com: Focuses on records from the UK and Ireland.
- MyHeritage.com: A resource that offers a global perspective. They also have DNA testing.
Finally
Researching your family history is a journey filled with many wonderful discoveries and perhaps a few surprises. By exploring newspapers, genealogical records, personal documents, and more, you can uncover the rich stories of your ancestors.
Genealogy tip: I encourage you to write everything down. It doesn’t have to be a literary masterpiece, but if you care about your ancestor’s stories, you’ll want to share them. You can upload your narratives to Ancestry or FamilySearch so that others can see what you’ve discovered. It’s the only way to make sure our ancestors are remembered.
Are you looking for someone to help write your ancestor’s story? I’d love to hear about your latest project and see how I can help. Click below for a free consultation.
