Many
people don’t think about cemeteries when they first begin the search for their
ancestors, but cemeteries can be a valuable destination during your
investigation. In addition to possibly
providing the only physical representation left of the people you’re seeking,
they can also help to confirm dates, relationships and locales. Often, you will find tombstones of relatives
you didn’t know about: children who died young, or a sibling of someone you’re
researching. Generally, cemeteries have
offices in which you can inquire about your ancestors – most keep good
records – but don’t rule out a row-by-row search for your relatives. Once you can get past the eerie feeling of
walking among the dead, you might find that cemeteries can be as peaceful as
they are important for your research.
Step
Eight: What to do with your family tree information
So,
now that you’ve started to collect data of all kinds, what do you do with
it? If you have a generally complete
account of a certain branch of your family, you might consider publishing the
information in book form. There are also
many books on the market to direct you should you decide to write a family
memoir. Many small presses cater to
genealogy clients who will be printing small numbers of copies, for reasonable
rates. You may also want to donate a copy to the appropriate local library or
historical society so that others who might be doing research can benefit from
yours.
If
you still need more information before publishing, sending blank questionnaires
to members of your family might be the quickest way to gain information about
them and their immediate family members.
This can also be helpful when preparing for a family reunion; you can
take the information and pictures, and post them, tree-style, on a wall for the
reunion guests to peruse, and you can compile the information into booklets for
them to take home from the reunion. Not
only is this a nice parting gesture, but you’ve now insured that a copy of the
family’s ancestral information resides with each family group.