Resources
National Archives Educational Series - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@USNationalArchives
Genealogy Companies
FamilySearch - www.familysearch.org - Free
Ancestry - www.ancestry.com - $$
MyHeritage - www.myheritage.com - $$
Find My Past - www.findmypast.com - $$
Newspaper Sites
Newspapers.com - www.newspapers.com - $$ (can be combined with an Ancestry subscription)
GenealogyBank - www.genealogybank.com - $$
Military Sites
Fold3 - www.fold3.com - $$ (can be combined with an Ancestry subscription)
Cemetery Sites
Find A Grave - www.findagrave.com - Free
Billion Graves - www.billiongraves.com - $$
Genealogy challenges: research related
Pick a relative and research their schooling records - what kind of student?
Learn about the origins of the odd name in your tree.
Write about a relative who traveled on a ship to this country. Learn more about the ship and its conditions.
Locate a letter or postcard written by an ancestor.
Send an email to one of your DNA matches.
Search Facebook based on surname for a family genealogy group.
Pick a relative and create a timeline for them.
Clean up your family tree - create a research to-do list for those members who are missing information.
1890 census brick wall buster - search for land records surrounding the 1890 date.
Choose an area where your relatives have lived and look for a Plat map to locate where they lived in the county.
Take a trip to a family cemetery and photograph family headstones.
Create a family honor roll for those who served.
Watch a YouTube video on a new topic in genealogy and share what you learned with someone else.
Choose a relative with sparse information and find 3 documents related to them.
Order civil war records of your relatives from the National Archives. https://eservices.archives.gov/orderonline/start.swe?SWECmd=GotoView&SWEPostnRowId=1-29XS&SWEView=GPEA+Product+Catalog+Category+Detail+View+FFO&SWEHo=eservices.archives.gov&SWEPostnApplet=GPEA+Product+Catalog+Category+Form+Applet+FFO
Create a list of research goals.
Start a family newsletter to be sent out to family members to share your research - a great way to update relatives - tree, newest collected information, choose one relative to highlight - send annually (think those Christmas family newsletter cards)
Which family member left the general area where your ancestors settled? Why and where did they go?
Create a residence record file - include address, photo, taxes, mortgage record, maps/survey, probate, and related census records.
Genealogy challenges: non-research related
Try food from your ancestor's homeland. (Find family recipes from ancestors)
Watch old family movies
Record a favorite family story
Write about one family tradition: do you know how it started or by whom and when?
Do you have an ancestor who played a musical instrument? Were they in a band?
Write the stories about a family trip and include photos
Create a cost of living comparison with a living relative
Create a genealogy deck of cards - play with family members. Cards can have photos and a short bio on them https://www.creativefamilyhistorian.com/design/family-history-game/
Start the story of your life to be added to your research
Search for church directories for your female relatives
Find a family history blog that is related to your research
Declutter your family photos. Choose those attached to your research (add a variety of ages)
Choose an artifact or object from an ancestor. Write about it and that ancestor.
Choose a relative and learn about their leisure time activities: did they fish, write, volunteer, quilt, etc?
Organize documents you possess ie birth, death marriage records
Record a family member telling a family story....save that recording to your family tree.
Plan a research fact-finding trip! Where? Why? What information are you searching for?
Which family members were involved in sports? is there a trend in your family? Any stars?
Do you have a colorful ancestor? Write their story.
Do you have a relative who had a scary event happen in their life? Tell that story.
Is there a family profession? if so what is it and which relatives followed this path?