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  • Newbie really needing help

    Hi everyone,

    I have just started to work on my family tree, but I am working on it alone, because I do not have anyone to help me with it, as they are all passed or just don't care. I have somewhat started with a few names and found their DOB's, DOD's & social security numbers, but that is as far as I have gotten. I have looked and looked and looked but I cannot find any places online that actually let you look for anything for free and I am on a very tight and limited budget, so any advice would be greatly appreciated. So far I am only back to my great-grandparents births, so it is of course still in the US. But I would like to be able to go to a site to see maybe their parents names in information so that I can go back further until there is no further back to go. So again, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

    Have a wonderful New Year everyone
    Beckie
    Beckie

  • #2
    Hello Beckie and welcome

    There are folk on here who may be able to help - if you post a few details, I hope that someone will be able to give you a lead.

    Gwyn
    Freya - a lovely, funny human-friendly disaster waiting to happen....

    Comment


    • #3
      Hi Beckie, welcome to Family Tree Forum.
      As Gwyn says if you can give a few more details then some of our members may be able to help you. I should just point out that we don´t allow details of living people to be posted on the forum without their consent, so you might have to omit their names - if someone thinks they can help you then you can send the information to them by PM (personal message).
      From what you say in your post, I presume that the first part of your research is in America - if that is the case then it would be helpful to know the state where births, marriages, deaths have taken place as resources available and means of research vary from state to state.
      Elaine







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      • #4
        HI Beckie

        Welcome to the site.
        Elaine bet me to it so I've deleated mine but I will add I for one will be happy to help you out if I can.
        WendyP

        Comment


        • #5
          Welcome to FTF, Beckie

          Once you get back to UK info, there are a number of free sites available - but they're mostly transcriptions, which are only as reliable as the transcribers. That doesn't mean that they aren't any use - just that they are less reliable than being able to see original records - or images of them.

          You say that you are on a restricted budget... Do you have membership of your local library? I ask because that can sometimes get you access to Ancestry.com, which is a huge resource - and has lots of images. My friends in Virginia use Ancestry that way. It means they have to go to the library to use it, and may have to book time on the computer to get the access, but it does mean that they don't have to pay their own subscription. When I use Ancestry.com through my local library here in England, I am able to copy records onto a flash drive to bring home.

          Christine
          Researching: BENNETT (Leics/Birmingham-ish) - incl. Leonard BENNETT in Detroit & Florida ; WARR/WOR, STRATFORD & GARDNER/GARNAR (Oxon); CHRISTMAS, RUSSELL, PAFOOT/PAFFORD (Hants); BIGWOOD, HAYLER/HAILOR (Sussex); LANCASTER (Beds, Berks, Wilts) - plus - COCKS (Spitalfields, Liverpool, Plymouth); RUSE/ROWSE, TREMEER, WADLIN(G)/WADLETON (Devonport, E Cornwall); GOULD (S Devon); CHAPMAN, HALL/HOLE, HORN (N Devon); BARRON, SCANTLEBURY (Mevagissey)...

          Comment


          • #6
            hello Becky and welcome!!

            I know just how you feel - at first it's a minefield and a puzzle, myself and others have been there too. Not knowing where to go to get info and it all seeming to cost so much.

            But I found that many people helped me and got me underway and I'm sure that will happen for you. There are a few sites where you get good basic info for Free, at least up until you've just got to pay to get final confirmation. I have to admit I've not had to research the USA so can't offer much help there. Although in searching my own family name I find a lot of ancestors did go over there so I do find the name in the USA sites, but haven't got as far as chasing info yet.

            I find everyone so helpful with this 'hobby' and willing to help with research. So just give us a few details, watching that you don't give out sensitive info, and let's see if we can get you started. :smilee:
            Dorothy G

            searching Gillett (Preston/Sheffield). Campbell and Hepburn in Glasgow

            There's no such thing as a Free Lunch

            Comment


            • #7
              Hello Beckie and welcome to FTF.

              Family History is an expensive hobby, no doubt about that.

              However, there is a lot you can do for free, certainly whilst you are constructing a sketch tree. Taking advantage of any Ancestry sub your local library might have is one very good source. Another is not free, but relatively cheap - a month's Ancestry sub is about £12. If you save up all your census lookups and so on, then have a big splurge for a month, it doesn't seem so bad. You can also take advantage of a 14 day free trial offer, but you must remember to cancel this before the 14 days are up otherwise they will take a year's sub off you!

              My advice - make sure you have a decent tree programme, there are several free ones which you can download. Enter EVERYTHING on there, including your sources. This makes it much easier to see what is proven and what is just secondhand info.

              Don't be afraid to ask for specific help on here, there is always someone around who is glad to help.

              OC

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              • #8
                Picking up on what OC has suggested - have you looked at what shows up on the Starting Out on Your Research link at the top of this page?

                Christine
                Researching: BENNETT (Leics/Birmingham-ish) - incl. Leonard BENNETT in Detroit & Florida ; WARR/WOR, STRATFORD & GARDNER/GARNAR (Oxon); CHRISTMAS, RUSSELL, PAFOOT/PAFFORD (Hants); BIGWOOD, HAYLER/HAILOR (Sussex); LANCASTER (Beds, Berks, Wilts) - plus - COCKS (Spitalfields, Liverpool, Plymouth); RUSE/ROWSE, TREMEER, WADLIN(G)/WADLETON (Devonport, E Cornwall); GOULD (S Devon); CHAPMAN, HALL/HOLE, HORN (N Devon); BARRON, SCANTLEBURY (Mevagissey)...

                Comment


                • #9
                  Hi everyone, thank you all for your responses. I guess I should have been a little more forthcoming with the information that I have collected thus far. I have the information on the following so far. From my mothers side (all deceased) mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, from my fathers side (all deceased) father, grandmother, both great-grandparents. My mothers maiden name is Sims, but I have not been able to locate her fathers name or information as he passed away when she was a child. My fathers name was Smith and the same applies with his father, no information at all due to the same circumstances. But being that I was raised by my great-grandparents with the last name of Kindle, I do have their information, but this is where my brick wall begins. I was able to collect only the information on the ones I have mentioned above and no further. And they were all each born and raised in Texas, however I believe that my great-grandparents family from my fathers side came from Virginia or West Virginia. At one point a few years ago I had found a wonderful but tedious site where I could see a list of the child that was born and who the parents were, and all for free, but shortly after that my computer crashed and all of my info was gone in a snap, since then I have never been able to find that site again and am not sure that it even exists any longer. Well, that is all that I can think of again and I do thank you all so much for any help and advice you can offer. Thank you all and have a happy new year.
                  Beckie

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    The USA 1930 census gives PoB for parents, as well as for the individuals in question. But it doesn't give parents' names - unless the person is living with them.

                    Christine
                    Researching: BENNETT (Leics/Birmingham-ish) - incl. Leonard BENNETT in Detroit & Florida ; WARR/WOR, STRATFORD & GARDNER/GARNAR (Oxon); CHRISTMAS, RUSSELL, PAFOOT/PAFFORD (Hants); BIGWOOD, HAYLER/HAILOR (Sussex); LANCASTER (Beds, Berks, Wilts) - plus - COCKS (Spitalfields, Liverpool, Plymouth); RUSE/ROWSE, TREMEER, WADLIN(G)/WADLETON (Devonport, E Cornwall); GOULD (S Devon); CHAPMAN, HALL/HOLE, HORN (N Devon); BARRON, SCANTLEBURY (Mevagissey)...

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Hello Beckie and welcome.

                      You may find some useful website links and information in our Wiki. This is the section on Texas



                      You can also put any other search words in the 'Search' box on the left hand side of that page and click 'Go' - for example, Virginia.

                      The FamilySearch pilot site also has some US records and they are adding more on a regular basis

                      Discover your family history. Explore the world’s largest collection of free family trees, genealogy records and resources.
                      Jackie

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