Everybody has ancestors. Some people know who their ancestors were; some don't but wish they did. If you are curious about your forebears, you may wish to learn the history of the descent of a person or family from one or more of your many ancestors. Just as you had two parents, two grandmothers and two grandfathers, so did both your parents, and their parents, so you had four grandparents and eight great grandparents, and sixteen... well, you can see where this leads.

The best place to start is with yourself. That's easy, isn't it? Decide which line you wish to follow, and begin recording all the facts you know about yourself, your parents, and your grandparents in that line. As you move from generation to generation, get as many copies of birth, marriage and death certificates as you can for all those people you are recording. Certificates are not only proof positive, but they often include information that leads to an earlier generation. For the sake of clarity, say the main line you choose to follow is the Adams family. If your computer has a genealogy program, enter all the information you have about each person in your family. .

If you do not have a program, start with a 3x5 card file, and make one card for each individual. You will need three separate files for your cards. In the first, file cards alphabetically by given name of the family line you want to study. If your name is Joseph Adams, your card goes in the Adams file. If your siblings are John, James, Mary and Abigail, and you want to include that information, make a card for each of them, too. Make cards for your father and grandfather, and for their siblings if you know their names.

Start a second file for the women who married into the Adams family. This file will be arranged alphabetically by the woman's maiden name (if you know it), otherwise by her given name. Be sure to cross reference her card with that of the man she married. For anyone who is not an Adams by birth, you need a third file, arranged alphabetically by surname, cross referenced to the spouse or person who was an Adams either by birth or by another marriage. Make cards for your children, their spouses, and your grandchildren, too.

In a short time you will have several dozen cards to begin your genealogy.

CARDS: Each card should provide spaces for the following information:

 
   Sex:     
 Last name         First Name           Middle Name    Title (if any)                                   
 Date of birth     Place of Birth            
 Date of marriage  Place of Marriage
 Date of death     Place of death
 Name of Father    Name of Mother       Residence
       
 Spouse:
 Last Name         First Name           Middle Name     Title (if any)
 Date of birth     Place of birth       
 Date of death     Place of death  
 Name of Father    Name of Mother       Residence:  
 Cross Reference:
       
   NOTES: Where you obtained the information shown above.

In many instances you will not be able to show all the answers.
Just fill in those you can.

IMPORTANT: Be sure in every case to make a note telling where the
information came from.

       Sources may be: 
    (1) personal interview with individual on (date). 
    (2) Adams family bible, Helen Adams, owner, address, date. 
    (3) Family tree by Henry Adams 1966, George Adams, owner,
                 address, date
    (4) Fair Lawn Cemetery, Middletown GA, Adams lot.
    (5) Abigail Adams' will, Middletown GA probate, date of will
    (6) James Adams' deed transfer land to Joseph Adams, Mid.
                 Reg. Book __     Page __
    (7) Vital Records (VR) Town Clerk, Middletown, GA 
                Book __,      Page __
    IMPORTANT:  While you are getting information from 
    officials, obtain copies of birth, marriage and death 
    certificates, and keep these in a file along with other 
    important papers dealing with your study.
    (8) Church records, names, dates, 
    (9) Census reports. dates
    (10) Genealogy libraries such as Latter Day Saints in Salt
              Lake City,Utah
    (11) DAR & SAR national libraries in Washington, DC.
    (12) Local Historical Societies, libraries, newspaper files
    (13) Military records
    IMPORTANT: For  every record, be sure to note the place, name 
    of book, page #, and author

DEAD ENDS: Everyone runs into a brick wall at times. How to get through it? Look at all the data you have collected. See if there's an unusual name among them that might lead to new directions. . Look for possible variations in spelling. Census takers, town clerks, and church personnel often spelled names phonetically which led to overlooked links. Books contain typographical errors. Pictures can be mis-labeled or incorrectly identified. Newspaper articles are sometimes misleading. Verify everything you can.