One of the most common expressions in genealogy is “If I only knew then what I know now.” We most often use it to lament not asking questions of a now passed relative. Many times, I have had a question for my mother who passed 30 years ago. Often, too, that regret is accompanied by the knowledge that I asked a question casually and now have forgotten the answer. My sister Sherill and I both asked her at different times, where in Ireland her family came from. Neither of us remembers the answer! Knowing that now would give us at least the possibility of finding her family.
My grandfather passed when I was in eighth grade and left behind box after box of letters and mementos; most of which went to the dump when Mom’s house was sold. If I had only known then what a treasure trove they contained! We have been able to trace his family line back to the ship “Fortune” — the second Pilgrim ship — which arrived in Massachusetts in 1621. Knowing his line of descent, the questions I never asked him would be more about his people, and how they behaved, thought and felt.
One last genealogical regret is not using a research log, which is a way of keeping track of what you have and haven’t found, where you’ve looked and future goals. The log can save you from hours of time wasted searching places you have already looked, or from looking in the “wrong” resource. A well-designed research log can really help you figure out your best next steps. I read about the research log idea when I got started, but dismissed the idea as 1. Too much work, 2. Not worth it because I would remember stuff, (ha ha ha) and, 3. Too much work.
I cannot deny that a research log requires work to design and keep up. But if you can develop the habit, you will be well rewarded for your trouble. There are many forms in books, magazines and online which you can photocopy and keep by hand. Better, let your computer do the work.
My final suggestion is to learn to use a computer database, which is easier than it sounds. You can learn by designing a very small database and learning how to sort out the columns and rows. Several years ago, I found that I had a great uncle Charles Gallagher who lived in Hartford, Conn. most of his life. But there were five Charles Gallaghers in Census records and city directories. I spent the better part of two weeks trying to organize the information so I could analyze it and figure out which records belonged to my Charles.
If I had been thinking, I would have developed a database with fields for address, household members, record source and date. Something so simple would have allowed me to sort the records in many ways to illustrate and help me answer those questions in a few hours rather than a few days or weeks. I have seen some brilliant examples of this technology put to good use.
Sometimes a little forethought can really lighten your load, making it much more fun.
Columnist Nina Brawn of Dover-Foxcroft is a longtime genealogy researcher, speaker and teacher. Reader emails are welcome at ninabrawn@gmail.com. Her semimonthly column is sponsored by the Aroostook County Genealogical Society which meets the fourth Monday of the month except in July and December at Cary Medical Center’s Chan Education Center at 6:30 p.m. Guests are always welcome. FMI contact Edwin “J” Bullard at 492-5501.
