Here are some ideas for you if you are starting your research in 2020.
David and Debra Waters run a Family Tree Research business, offering a low-cost entry into this fascinating pastime.
1. The very first action we recommend when you start to research your family is to talk to other members of your family. It may be that a cousin or aunt has already started some research that you would only be duplicating.
2. Talk to the eldest members of your family also and make notes of the dates/places that they mention. Names of brothers and sisters or addresses where people lived can be invaluable when you are trying to identify a particular person in old records.
3. When you begin to research, it may well feel the only important job is to add names. In the long term, the most interesting part is understanding where our ancestors lived, how they lived and what was happening at the time.
I have an ancestor that was a cheesemonger, and in 1888 had a shop in Bethnal Green Road, East London. So much for adding his details to our tree. We later learned that his handbill (advert) was found on the body of one of Jack the Ripper’s victims. Now we mentally place him in those mean streets at the time of those vicious murders.
4. If you wish to commence research yourself and not use us to begin your tree, (currently just £40) you will almost certainly need to join one of the sites that has information online that you can research from home. There are various levels, but for good ‘England only’ records that can help you start your tree.
We use Find My Past which is currently £120 for 12 months and Ancestry which is also currently £119.99 for 12 months. Both are great.
Why not try us to start off your research and let us advise you how to proceed in the best manner.