Have You Found Your Past?

A war hero, a pirate, an African tribe, or an Indian Princess – all of these people from the past could be in your family tree. If you know all about where you family comes from or have a written history, count yourself very lucky.

The truth is, most people only have a vague idea of where their ancestors came from and don’t know much about any of them. Knowing where your ancestors came from and who they were is a great way to help you learn more about your family tree and some of the hereditary conditions that you might face later in life.

Search the web for your whanau

Whether you have a burning interest or a general curiosity, genealogy sites on the internet make it easier than ever to track down you family line. You don’t need to stand in line, or hold on the phone, just search from the comfort of your home.

Before the Internet, people who wanted to research genealogy had to go down to the library and spend hours sifting through old microfiche forms and old newspapers to find traces of their ancestors and family tree. They would listen to the stories that their parents and grandparents told and then see if they could find any trace of those people in death records, birth records, and land records. It was a long and tedious process that most gave up on pretty fast.

There are thousands of great websites that can help you search through millions of databases and help you find your relatives, no matter where they are or where they came from. You can search through the death records, birth records, land records, marriage records, ship’s logs, immigration logs, and even through personal records that have been kept by millions of people. These great searches can turn those long hours of work into a few short minutes to find every branch in your family tree.

Specialist genealogy websites

Some sites are free, and some are paid sites, so you should look at each one carefully before agreeing to any type of fee. You need to know if they are free, and if not, do they charge per search or as a monthly membership fee? If you find that you cannot get any information, you can always email their support department for help or tips on what you might be doing wrong. Most of these web sites offer great email support to help you find your whole family tree.

So, if you want to know about your past, the best way to do it is to get into genealogy and seek out your ancestors. Search around several different Internet sites and see what you can find, no matter what, you will always find something interesting that you didn’t know before. Who knows, you might find a long-lost member of royalty or a great hero in your past!