Creating a Research Plan for DNA Testing

Most people simply take a DNA test out of curiosity.  Some really want to the DNA to help them shed light on a family mystery or break down a brick wall.  Unfortunately, simply taking a DNA test will not help you to answer your questions.  These tests can throw open the closets on family secrets, but they also should be treated like another record source.

DNA is an excellent tool when used correctly.  I like to tell people to think of your DNA results the same way you would any other record.  It can give you some answers, but it can also leave questions.  To get the most out of your tests you need to know what questions to ask and which tests will answer those questions.

With that thought in mind you can easily incorporate DNA testing into your research plans.  What is crucial for you as the researcher is to determine which test you should use to answer your question(s).  Remember you may have to perform a variety of genealogical research as well.  This includes finding living descendants of your ancestors who could hold the genetic material you need.

There are 5 steps to successful a great research plan.  As a researcher, you need to:

1.      Ask questions

2.      Look for information

3.      Speculate about the answer

4.      Establish the facts

5.      Explore what else should be researched (like DNA)

You can turn this list into a written narrative or leave it as a simple list.  Whatever works the best for you is what is important.  I tend to do a little of both, which you will see in the example plan section below.  I can tell you that if you follow these steps you will go far in your ancestor hunting.

Ask: What do I want to discover?  Often this is called your objective or research question.  Ask yourself what specifically you want to find.  Be detailed and only ask one question at a time.  For example: Who was the father of John Jones, born in New York City, 24 May 1893?

That is a great specific question.  If you just asked “who were John Jones parents” that is too vague.  Which John Jones?  Where? When? You want to ask a question that will have only one correct answer.  It could ask about a person and their relationship to someone else, to verify a person’s identity, or for verification of an event that took place. 

Look: What do I know? After you decide what you are researching you should look at your files to determine what you already know.  Pull together all of your information into one place and start to analyze it.  You also want to take into consideration how reliable are the sources you are looking at.  Remember back to chapter 1 when we talked about types of sources, information, and evidence.  Those guidelines will help you determine how much credence you put into the documents laying before you.

Speculate: Do I have an idea of the answer? Sometimes after looking through all of the information you have gathered you might be able to make a hypothesis for the answer to your question.  You may hear genies talk about serendipity or that they were guided by their ancestors.  I like to say it was good detective work that gave them a gut feeling on what they needed to do next.

Whatever you would like to call it see if you can develop an idea about what happened.  You may end up with a handful of ideas, which is great.  Those will be the places you will want to check first in the next step. 

Establish: Where should I look? This can be one of the hardest things for a new researcher to do, determine where they should look for records.  Since you are new to the field it may seem like an uphill battle.  You will need to educate yourself on what is available for the location and time frame you are interested in.  Maybe you will need to start out by interviewing family members on the problem.  They could lead you to resources that you didn’t know existed. 

Explore: What should be done? Ok, now you should think about what you need to research.  Start to determine if there is a type of record you should look at first or maybe a database you need to consult before other research begins.  This part is where your plan comes together.  Take all this information and collate it into one document

Simply follow your research plan, tweak it was needed, and you will discover that research really is not that difficult.  For DNA testing the hardest part might be finding willing participants.  Persist, ask, and look for the people who potentially hold the answer to your questions.

Resources:

Genetic Genealogy in Practice by Blaine Bettinger and Debbie Parker-Wayne

The Family Tree Guide to DNA Testing and Genetic Genealogy by Blaine Bettinger

Family Search Blog: Using atDNA Testing in Your Genealogy Research https://familysearch.org/blog/en/fishing-tips-autosomal-dna-test-results-genealogy-research/

BCG Website: DNA and the Reasonably Exhaustive Search by Judy Russell http://www.bcgcertification.org/skillbuilders/skbld141.html

Getting the most from the Family Search & Stephen P Morse Websites

FamilySearch and the One-Step websites are, for many researchers, mandatory search stops no matter your level of expertise.  You are probably hoping that I will give you hints which will help crush a family brick wall by showing you how to master these types of websites.  Both have a great deal of information in many forms, but unless you have hours to spend every day researching most people never tap their true potential as an outstanding web resource.  In this handout I am going to give you a few strategies you can use on these sites for more success.  These tips are also great for other types of online genealogy research too, just in case you get stuck. 

 

Strategy: Start Broad, Then Refine

One of the simplest things you can do for a successful search is to use the process of elimination.  Beginning with a basic search that includes the minimum amount of information is key.  Sometimes too much information can get in the way. Start with a name, maybe a place, and a date range.  Date ranges are key since not all records have reliable dates on them.   If you have a large number of results start adding more information. One thing people forget about is using the friends, associates, and neighbors (or FAN) network in a search.  If you are looking for a family name that could be easily misspelled, mispronounced, or butchered in some other do not forget to look for as many variations on the spelling as possible.  That includes maiden names when known.  Think about all the ways someone could be found or how an office might have abbreviated a person’s name. 

Strategy: Using Advanced Menu Options

After you type in the basic initial information for the person you are researching you get a results page.  If there are a large number of hits this may seem like looking for a needle in a haystack.  Now is the time for you to narrow your results down by using any advanced search menus options available on many search screens.

Strategy: Using Boolean Searches and Wildcards

Hopefully most of you know what Boolean searches and wild cards are.  For those that need a refresher, in a nut shell, they are ways that you can make your searches broader and can cover a multitude of spellings. Investigate if the website you are searching allows these since it can help you find misplaced or hidden ancestors. Wildcards will give a large number of results however. Make sure you have an idea on how you will pare them down if you need to. 

Strategy: Record Collections

Instead of messing with the filters, because you know exactly the types of records you want to view, why not go directly to them. If the site has a listing of its collections make sure to investigate it completely.  I always use any “learn more” features to see if the information I want is there.  It really stinks to search for hours for a record that does not exist. 

Strategy: Explore the Entire Website

Many people want to hit a site and never go further than what is easy to find in a first search.  I am here to tell you that is a huge mistake.  Take the time to really explore.  Start out by looking for collections, databases, and etc. that your ancestors could be in and just go for it.  By using clues from other sources you can narrow your searches down to a few collections and weed through it all fairly easily. Take copious notes on what you find, and particularly what you don’t find.  One of the ways I track my progress through a record collection is by what I call carrot short hand.  I write each collection name or page and then with arrows I show the clicks I made to get to the next one.  This way when I go back to look at my notes later I knew where I went, what I looked at, and if I found anything.

Strategy: Publications

Did you know that there are entire digitized books out there on genealogy topics?  You can search many of these websites by generic topics (like a surname or a place) or titles if you know the book you are looking for.  Plus there are advanced search features available on many sites to filter by material types (periodical, gazetteers, or books) in addition to languages.

Strategy: Search the Catalog

Catalogs usually contain the listing of all genealogical materials available from a website.   These are really handy if you need to find a record again if you forgot to write down the identifying information the first time.  Or if you only remember part of a name for the record, but aren’t sure where you located it the first time.   Search the catalog and see what comes up.

Strategy: Exploring Wikis

For those of you who are still unsure what a wiki is, simply put it is a website that allows editing of its content and structure by its users through collaboration.   Subjects on genealogy wikis range from advice for researchers to the information you can find in various record collections.  The sites are updated frequently, so the key is to check back often to see if information you want to learn about it there. 

Strategy: Safely using the submitted genealogies

As genealogists, we live on clues and hints.  Do not be afraid to look to other people’s research for help.  Just realize that until you also confirm that information it is suspect.  That is just good research practice.  One good way to weed though the massive amounts of possible results is to look for trees that have source citations and no inconsistencies.

Resources:

Websites:

·        Family Search https://www.familysearch.org/

·        Family Search Wiki https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Main_Page

·        One-Step Website http://stevemorse.org/

·        Basic Search Tips and Advanced Boolean Explained http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Boolean.pdf

·        What is a Wildcard? http://apus.libanswers.com/faq/2235

·        Genealogy Searches Online http://genealogy.about.com/od/internet/u/search_online.htm

Books:

·        Dana McCullough Unofficial Guide to FamilySearch.org: How to Find Your Family History on the Largest Free Genealogy Website

·        W. Daniel Quillen Mastering Online Genealogy

Speaking Engagement: Beyond the Brick Wall Roanoke, VA

This Saturday 14 November 2015 from 1-4pm I will be presenting two case studies for the Virginia Room of the Roanoke Public Library at their event Beyond the Brick Wall.

From the Brochure:

The Virginia Room presents five professional genealogists who tackled our patrons’ toughest “brick wall” problems.

Learn how to deal with hard-to-slove family history questions, including:

• When to hire a professional to assist with a research problem

• What is a realistic expectation of time and effort required to achieve research goals

• How a research plan evolves within the process of discovery

• Where new sources for genealogical research can be found

• Why an effective research strategy can make the difference

If you are in the area I hope you come by and listen to myself and my colleagues talk about the brick wall cases that were submitted by the community.  It will be a very interesting series of presentations.  I am very curious to see how everyone's brick walls turn out!

I will also have my Richmond and DC books for sale for those that are interested.

Book Review: How to Use Evernote for Genealogy

I have a secret.  I am an Evernote drop out.  Yeah, yeah. I know. Bad on me. 

When it first came out I was actually all over it like white on rice, but I found it clunky and it didn’t do what I wanted it to do.  I briefly went back to try it again when my favorite note taking app, Penultimate, became sync-able to it.  It wasn’t long before I went back to my old ways though.  Tried and true, out of date, frustrating, but extremely comforting old ways of doing things.

Over the last few years Kerry Scott, who authored How to Use Evernote for Genealogy, has given me grief tried to convince me that I really need to check out Evernote again.  I listened to several of her webinars, learned how to do the web clipping feature, and did play around with some very cool features.  Still, I just couldn’t quite wrap my head around why everyone thought that this program was the best next thing to sliced bread.

I am a manual person.  No, let me rephrase that, I need hand holding to learn somethings.  I can be a real Luddite at times, and the thought of changing to something new can give me anxiety.  Usually I can overcome that with a tutorial and at times a workshop to help me with videos or demonstrations. 

That is why when I heard that Kerry had this book coming out I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.  Deep down I was secretly crossing my fingers that this would be the book to finally break me out of my Evernote using anxiety and come around to the digital age of genealogy record keeping.

I was not disappointed.

Even if you have never tried Evernote Kerry does an excellent job of holding your hand through all the steps, features, and program highlights.  Her quick wit and easy tone comes through to show you how set up your files with ease which made me feel a lot better about giving the program another try.

The book is also filled with images to help you along.  I am a very visual person so having pictures of the menus, drop down boxes, and the various screens you use in the program really helped when I pulled Evernote up on my computer.  For the first time in… a while.

I highly recommend this book for not only new users but also long time users of Evernote.  There are so many tips and resources in it that I am confident everyone will be able to learn something new.  For example she demonstrates how to use Evernote for keeping track of the genealogy related trips you take.  I don’t know about you but I take quite a few trips a year.  Conferences (local and far away), libraries, archives, cemeteries, family reunions, and so on.  I found the way she organized things in Evernote genius to keep her trips separated out and organized.  Actually, I am thinking about doing something similar to help keep track of my business expenses and income.

On that note, I am now trying to budget a few hours a week to transitioning to Evernote for my research.  It may take me a while but I am sure it will be well worth the time.

Upcoming and ongoing research projects

One of these days I will get back to researching my own family history again.  Probably not until this summer though, and it is killing me.  All those questions, half told stories, and loose ends just sitting there.  On the bright side I am finishing my two presentations (DNA and lineage societies) for the FRGS in May, still researching new tech gadgets and societies, and also helping a few friends get started with their family history search.

Mills family home in Alberta, Canada abt 1920.
The family is selling their wheat harvest in this picture.

This morning I realized I need to learn a bit more about Canadian Research and African American research.  The research would not only be for my family projects but for a few friends as well.  These are two subjects that I am not well versed in and if I am going to help people need to learn more about them.

My husband’s grandfather and his family went to Canada from New York as a boy before settling in Washington State.  According to my mother-in-law they almost starved to death there.  She, and I, would like to know more about the time they spent there.  On the other hand I have a friend who is from Detroit and had family going back and forth across the border frequently.  He is looking for help in tracking down the parts of the family who stayed just across the river in and around Windsor.  Should be easy, right?

Next I want to look into African American research for a close friend of mine who I have given the genealogy bug to.  It was evil of me to pass on this addictive hobby, huh?  His family is from Baltimore, MD and he has no information from before his grandparents.  He also has no idea of his history before them so this will be a fascinating project that will test my small genealogy toolbox.  I wonder what we will find.

If you have any suggestions for resources on these areas I would love to hear from you.  A recommendation from a fellow family history person goes further than me reading dust jackets trying to decide if the book is worth it or not.  Not that I don't like perusing the stacks of amazon, but hints are always helpful.

Finally I am in the process of negotiating my attendance at FGS with my husband.  I think I am winning the battle, but we will see.  If I get to go, and you are there too, I hope we run into each other and chat!

Off to write more and research more…

Lessons in research

I am still plodding away on the applications for the DAR and the GSMD.  Why did I think this would be so quick and easy?  Honestly, it is not that hard, just a bit on the tedious side. I mean, all I have been doing is gathering records, calling court houses, cajoling relatives into giving me copies of things, and etc.  While it is taking months longer than I thought to gather these items, I have learned a lot along the way.

First lesson:  how to talk to irate, and at times unhelpful, court clerks on the phone.  I would never have guessed that people who work for the public could at times be rude and condescending.  Not all of them, thankfully, but a few out of the dozen I have talked with on the phone had an unpleasant attitude.   Now, please understand, I am always polite, courteous, and clear when requesting information.  Just the way I was taught; easier to attract flies with honey instead of vinegar you know.  However, one woman actually told me that she had more pressing issues that dealt with living people and didn’t have time for my nonsense.  When I explained that I lived a thousand miles away and would be happy to pay the office for the time it took to retrieve the files and copy them she hung up on me.  Thankfully she wasn’t working when I called back.

Second lesson:  keep an accurate phone and mail log.  It is embarrassing to write or call the same person twice for the same information.  Lucky for me the librarian thought it was funny.  That embarrassment drove me to making an official log, like so many researchers do.  I had been using the inside of the folder I had made to collect the documents in as a on-the-fly note keeper.  That obviously had a flaw, one that I could still repeat, because I had to remember to keep the notes up to date.  So far so good now that I keep an official correspondence log with each file.  Also, this helps me keep a trail of places that I have contacted without success when tracking down where an ancestor’s record may be.  That information can lead me to the next place I should look or contact. 

Third lesson:  cite your sources immediately.  Nothing is more embarrassing than finding an awesome online record and forgetting where you got it.  Worse, is when you have to ask your readers to help you find those lost records (thanks guys!).  In the past I would copy the information or image and attach the web site to it.  Then, when I had the time, I would go back and insert the correct source citation.  For books and paper copies this is much easier since you can just photocopy the title page or write the source on the back of the page.  Now, I make a point to take the few extra minutes to do a correct source citation immediately.

Fourth lesson:  making a spreadsheet to keep track of what you have and what you still need.  Seems like a simple thing right?  Something someone should have started at the beginning of an epic quest such as this huh?  Well… sometimes my brain makes decisions contrary to what should be done.  I printed out the application forms and started to keep track of what I had on there.  However, after about 6 months of notes, additions, deletions, and multi colored pens the chicken scratch was hard to be straight.  My solution was a check list that I stapled to the outside of my paperwork folder.  Now I have a list off what is in the file and what I still need to gather for submission.  No need to try and read the scribble or hunt through each file trying to figure out what I still need. 

There you have it, the lessons that have now been firmly planted in my head about what to do and not to do when conducting a specific research project.  Now, let’s hope that I remember it the next time I start one of these!

Thoughts and thought patterns of an "oh shiny!" person

I have a very "oh shiny" nature (if you are not familiar with this syndrome lucky you) and it leads me into trouble sometimes.  On the other hand, it can lead to very interesting discoveries in the family tree climbing arena.  Of course, sometimes I feel like the dog, Dug, from the movie Up; but that is only when it is really bad.

Some days I wish I could get a grip on my surroundings so that I could fee like I accomplish things.  That trends to making lists, and yes, on occasion, I have been known to make lists of my lists.  Oh, and organizing my lists on my cork board to make the most of them and see them better.  This is where my friends and family giggle and tell me how much they love my quirkiness.

To give you perspective, this was my morning:

• I got up
• Went to retrieve iPad to read email in bed, dog barked
• Took iPad outside, with dog, to back yard
• Read article on lectures, forgot why I was outside...
• Came up with 2 ideas for lectures on stained glass (another passion of mine)
• Remembered dog, and that I needed breakfast
• Boys were up, told them to grab some food and also water/feed dog
• Walked into kitchen to pour cereal, decided I should load the dishwasher
• Unloading spoons made me think that I should write a blog post on something
• Brainstormed 6 idea topics
• Remembered my Cheerios
• Boys argued, had to end the bloodshed
• Came back to soggy cereal
• Walked past dishwasher and finished loading it
• Sat down to watch news, with even soggier cereal
• Article on the news made me remember that I had email to read
• Read email, facebook, and morning blog run on Google Reader
• Remembered that I had laundry to do, started another load
• Made me think that the trash should go out
• Gathering trash made me remember that I needed to sort socks, and that I need a place to put said socks
• Looked for another clothes basket
• Walked past the trash bag, went back to gathering trash

...and that was the first hour.

Now, this is also how my brain works when I sit down to do research on the family.  Something will trigger an idea (it could be an article, an email, TV, conversations...) and I will sit down. Then a quick search will end up a several hour marathon (particularly if I find something new) with kids looking at me like I have gone crazy again.  If I am lucky I have actually made progress on one of the lines.  If I am not so lucky I have done a whole lot of circling for a couple of hours.

For example, a simple suggestion yesterday took me on this little adventure:

• I need to go through the Hartford, Connecticut phone directories for the 1920s better
• Go to Ancestry.com and pull them up
• Find what I am looking for
• Get frustrated that I can't save it to a person but have to save the image to the computer
• Open Family Tree Maker to save files
• See that I have some leaves
• While FTM is syncing go back to the website
• Click on the hints
• Hmmm... this needs to be cleaned out, start clicking (accepting/ignoring) on hints
• Huh... that lead to more finds
• Wow, that pulled up Find A Grave
• Oh, look!  It has the whole family linked
• Put the web site into FTM and start adding information to research notes to follow up on
• Oh, that was a cousin!  OMG add new potential family member to look up
• Huh, I wonder what Google has to say on this person
• Well look at that, it pulled up an article, a family website, and a Google Book entry...

It is amazing that I ever get anything accomplished.   I do better when I go to libraries, but only moderately as I get pulled into a lot of different books that may or may not be helpful.  Tangents are easy to follow I guess.  Staying on task a lot more difficult. 

Which leads me to ask:  how do you organize yourself and your thoughts to have a successful research session?  Anyone have any hints, tips, tricks, or suggestions they would like to share?

Have you seen this blog post? The flow chart shown is from it, and it looks like it may work.  That is, if I can keep on task.