Researching your family tree is like putting together a giant multidimensional gigsaw puzzle. Each piece gives you more information about your families past. Keep in mind, we're not just looking for names and dates, though we do have to start there. We are looking to recreate the whole picture with all its sights, sounds and secrets. A picture of your family will emerge and it may surprise you. Family fortunes rise and fall for a lot of different reasons: political change, relocations, epidemics, war etc.. What outside circumstances propelled your family along its historical path? Let's find out.
If you are just starting to collect family data then you need to start with the basics.. Start with your parents and work backward to your grandparents, great grandparents and however far back you can go.
You'll want to find out where and when they were born, who they married, the names of all their children, addresses where they lived, when they died and where they were buried. Also, include occupations, church affiliations, military experience and any other bits of information that can be researched further. Don't forget to include all their brothers and sisters as well. Knowing the names of everyone in the family is helpful when trying to pick your family out of several in the census. The more information you start with, the easier it is to go back further. Of course, you won't have ALL this information, but every little bit helps. It is especially important to have information that goes back further than 1930. The 1930 census is the last census available to genealogists. The index to it lists everyone in the census (not just the heads of household). It is a key starting point, especially when you don't know much about your heritage.
This is where you begin to organize your information. I've included links to several charts that you can print or download. Start with what you know, like your parents names and birthdates, and fill in all the blanks that you can. Sometimes it is helpful to color code the charts by using different colored paper, for example, blue for your paternal line, pink for your maternal line. Keep in mind that you will be sending these charts to your researcher, should you choose to hire one. Now it is time to search for more information that is still close at hand. Before hiring someone to help, it is important to find out as much as you can on your own.
Where to find them
By now you are probably wondering where to find all this information. Here are some suggestions:
1. Start with all your living relatives. Interview them. Tell them you are researching your family history and need their help. They often know a lot more than they think they do. Write it all down. Get phone numbers and addresses of other family members from them. Ask if anyone in the family has already done some research.
2. Look in family Bibles, address books, on the backs of photographs, obituaries and other newspaper clippings and any place else your family might store written records. Begin collecting old family photos.
3. Check safe deposit boxes or file folders for family documents such as wills, birth, marriage or death certificates, land purchases etc..
4. A trip to the family cemetery plot may give you birth and death dates. You may also find more relatives buried with them. Don't forget to take your digital camera. Don't have one? Check out amazon.com for new and used cameras.
What's Next?
The next step is to find your relatives in the census and to collect birth, marriage and death records. You may need help with this step and that's where I come in...
JUST STARTING OUT 
