I am all for people researching their own family trees – even if it does take work away from us professionals! I started researching my own family history long before I became a professional genealogist, and I think it’s a marvelous hobby to have. You never quite know where your searches might take you, and it’s an excellent way of learning a bit of history along the way. In fact, for me it was genealogy that inspired a lasting fascination with history that just didn’t happen at school.
But there are things that concern me about the rise in popularity of DIY genealogy. As I said in my last post, the internet has made it a lot easier for people to research their own ancestry, but it has also made it a lot easier to make mistakes. It is too easy to make assumptions without backing information up with documentary evidence, far too easy to believe someone else’s research just because it’s there in black and white. In fact, much though I love and applaud the internet, it has a tendency to make us all a little bit lazy. Despite the ease that the web lends to research, it is just as important as it has ever been to look at original documents, back up evidence where possible, and visit archives when necessary.
For the person just starting the journey in finding ancestors, the way ahead is exciting – but it is also a minefield of potential problems. How do you make absolutely sure that you are following the right tree? What do you do if your ancestor does not show up in the search results? It’s not as easy as the TV programmes and adverts would have us believe, and it takes a lot of hard, detailed work.
Rather than handing over the research to a professional genealogist, and missing out on all the fun, sometimes all you need is a little advice as to what to do next. Yes, there are lots of books out there, but they can only ever be generalised. In reality, each family tree is unique and sometimes what you need is some personalised advice that is geared to your specific needs. You may have all kinds of complications and difficulties that are unique to your family, but all you need is someone to tell you what you could try next.
I have just created a service whereby, for a small fee, I will look at your particular questions and problems, and send you detailed advice on what you need to do next, websites you could try and contact names of any researchers that could help you. I cannot, of course, guarantee that I can answer every question, or resolve every problem, but I will certainly give you the best professional advice of what you need to do – and if there is absolutely nothing I can help you with, I will refund your money.
The fee is just £15 (about $25), payable via Paypal. For more information and to use this service, go to my GENEALOGY ADVICE page. All I need from you is a description of your problem or question, details of the family tree you have so far, if possible, a family tree chart or GEDCOM, and which resources you have already used. This is important – I don’t want to waste your money by telling you things you already know!
I would like to think that this service will create ongoing relationships with clients. Once you have used my service, you can continue to use me as a guide and adviser whenever you get stuck. You will then always have a professional genealogist by your side, not doing the work for you, but guiding you whenever you get stuck.
