Thank you for registering for the online seminar, Expert Strategies for Getting Started in Family History Research!
Want to learn more about your family history, but don’t know where to begin? Have you already started researching, but are feeling overwhelmed and need a “reset”? Whether you are new to genealogy or have been conducting research for years, this five-week online course will provide practical steps for effective and efficient research, helping you find the answers you’re looking for! In each class, our experts will discuss in-depth the next step in the family history research process. Along the way we will cover essential resources (online and onsite), crucial tools (research logs, family group sheets, tree programs, etc.), and strategies for staying organized and for making consistent progress in your research. Thursdays, January 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30, 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.
This course includes five 90-minute classes and exclusive access to handouts and recordings of each presentation. These recordings and all course materials will be available for the foreseeable future.
CLASS TOPICS
January 2 - Class 1: Identify What You Know, presented by Melanie McComb
Whether you are starting your family history research from scratch or you’re working from inherited research, this first class will get you organized and recording your first pieces of genealogical information: names, relationships, dates and places of birth, marriage, and death. Senior Genealogist Melanie McComb will show you how to use standard forms, such as family charts and family group sheets. We’ll also provide guidance on how to interview family—and yourself!
January 9 - Class 2: Decide What You Want to Learn, presented by David Allen Lambert
Now that you’ve organized what you know, it’s time to determine what you want to know. In this class, Chief Genealogist David Allen Lambert will walk you through the process of formulating questions and goals, demonstrate how to use a research log, and provide an overview of key records that family historians turn to answer their research questions. He’ll offer helpful tips to keep you on task and not overwhelmed.
January 16 - Class 3: Identify and Locate Your Sources, presented by David Allen Lambert
Options for finding genealogical information exist online, in libraries, court houses, churches, and your own home. David will discuss how to find the records you’re seeking and build out your research log, filling in repositories and a check list for you to begin your research.
January 23 - Class 4: Research!, presented by Melanie McComb
It’s finally time to start researching! Using the research log you began in class 2 and 3, we’ll start to fill in your findings by systematically going through your to-do list. Melanie will discuss several online search strategies, tips for researching at repositories, and other best practices for gathering information, doing an exhaustive search, and staying focused.
January 30 - Class 5: Analyze, presented by Rhonda R. McClure
It’s important to evaluate your findings, not just read them. Who provided the information for the record? Was the informant a participant in the event? How long after the event was the information provided? Is there conflicting information from multiple sources? What new questions occur? In this final class, Senior Genealogist Rhonda R. McClure will provide you with strategies and tools for analyzing your findings and discuss next steps in your genealogical journey.
COURSE HANDOUTS
Class 1 Handout
Class 1 Slides (Large)
Class 1 Slides Worksheet
Class 2 Handout
Class 2 Slides (Large)
Class 2 Slides Worksheet
Class 3 Handout
Class 3 Slides (Large)
Class 3 Slides Worksheet
Research Log Template (Fillable PDF)
Annotated Research Log Template (Excel)
Class 4 Handout
Class 4 Slides (Large)
Class 4 Slides Worksheet
Class 5 Handout
Class 5 Slides (Large)
Class 5 Slides Worksheet
QuickLesson 10: Original Records, Image Copies, Derivatives
RECORDED PRESENTATIONS
Class 1: Identify What You Know
Original broadcast: 01/02/2024
Presented by Melanie McComb
Running time: 1:54:58
Class 2: Decide What You Want to Learn
Original broadcast: 01/10/2025
Presented by David Allen Lambert
Running time: 1:37:56
Class 3: Identify and Locate Your Sources
Original broadcast: 01/16/2025
Presented by David Allen Lambert
Running time: 1:40:34
Original broadcast: 01/23/2025
Presented by Melanie McComb
Running time: 1:42:10
Original broadcast: 01/31/2025
Presented by Rhonda R. McClure
Running time: 1:49:44
OTHER RESOURCES
Research Guide: Getting Started
Research Guide: Getting Organized
Research Guide: Genealogical Software
Archived Webinar: Preserving Your Family Treasures
INSTRUCTOR BIOS
David Allen Lambert, Chief Genealogist is an internationally recognized speaker on the topics of genealogy and history. He’s authored many articles in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, the New Hampshire Genealogical Record, Rhode Island Routes, the Mayflower Descendant, and American Ancestors magazine. He’s also compiled 11 books, including a Guide to Massachusetts Cemeteries. David is an elected fellow of the Massachusetts Historical Society in Boston, and a Life Member of the New Hampshire Society of the Cincinnati, and the General Society of the War of 1812. His areas of expertise include New England and Atlantic Canadian records of the 17th through the 21st centuries, American and international military records, DNA research, and Native American and African American genealogical research in New England.
Rhonda R. McClure, Senior Genealogist is a nationally recognized professional genealogist and lecturer. Before joining American Ancestors in 2006, she ran her own genealogical business for 18 years. She was a contributing editor for Heritage Quest magazine, Biography magazine and was a contributor to The History Channel magazine and American History magazine. In addition to numerous articles, she is the author of twelve books including the award-winning The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Online Genealogy, Finding Your Famous and Infamous Ancestors, and Digitizing Your Family History. She is also the editor of the 6th edition of the Genealogist’s Handbook for New England Research. Her areas of expertise include immigration and naturalization, late 19th and early 20th century urban research, State Department Federal records, New England, Mid-West, Southern, German, French, Italian, Scottish, Irish, French Canadian, and Atlantic Canadian research.
Melanie McComb, Senior Genealogist holds a B.S. from the State University of New York at Oswego. She is an international lecturer who teaches on a variety of topics including colonial through twentieth-century American military research, DNA, artificial intelligence (AI), as well as New England, Atlantic Canadian, Mid-Atlantic, African American, Jewish, and Irish genealogy. She is also an Honorary Fellow of the Massachusetts Historical Society. She has had articles published in American Ancestors Magazine and Fifty Plus Advocate. She is also a blogger, known as the Shamrock Genealogist.