How to Recognize your United States Ancestor: Difference between revisions

How to Recognize your United States Ancestor (view source)

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-= Build the identity of your ancestor  =
+= Introduction =
-As you research, your goal is to build an identity of your ancestor. This allows you to recognize him or her in the records you search.&nbsp;Your ancestor's&nbsp;identity&nbsp;also helps&nbsp;you not be sidetracked when you find other people with the same name.
+Imagine you have searched a record and found a person who is a possible match for your ancestor. Recognizing a person as your ancestor is one of the true joys of genealogical research.
-As you research, you will find records&nbsp;that match the&nbsp;name, but may not be for the same person. The skill is to be able to recognize whether that person is or is not yours.
+However, there are pitfalls along the way. Sometimes researchers want so much to find&nbsp;their ancestor&nbsp;that they ignore these pitfalls and end up on the wrong family line. Correct connections come from building the identity of your ancestor and comparing that with what you learn about each possible match.
-<br>
+This guide will help you ask the questions which will help you decide if a person is, in fact, your ancestor.
-You can tell by the events of their lives which of two or more possible matches was your ancestor, or whether none of the possible matches was your ancestor.
-Too many genealogists find a hopeful individual with the right surname and then try to establish a connection between that person and their known ancestors. Almost always, such attempts end up with erroneous connections. Correct connections must be built by working back from known information to the unknown.
-You must develop the skill of analyzing carefully to come to good conclusions.
+As you compare what you already know about your ancestor against the new information you found in a record, you can decide whether you can feel reasonably sure that you have located your ancestor. <br>
 <br>
-= Getting Started  =
+= Steps  =
-You have searched a record and found a person who could be a possible match for your ancestor. Recognizing a person as your ancestor is one of the true joys of genealogical research. However, there are pitfalls along the way. Sometimes researchers want so much to find a person that they ignore these pitfalls and end up making inaccurate connections. This guide will help you ask the questions which will help you decide if a person is, in fact, your ancestor.
-As you compare what you already know about your ancestor against the new information you found in a record, you can decide whether you can feel reasonably sure that you have located your ancestor.
+Once you have found a person in a record who may be your ancestor, the following&nbsp;steps will help you determine if you have, in fact, found your ancestor.
-<br>
+=== <br>Step 1. Build an identity for your ancestor.  ===
-= Steps  =
+As you research, your goal is to build on the identity of your ancestor. You need to know enough to be able to recognize him or her in the records you search. Your ancestor's identity also helps you&nbsp;to not&nbsp;be sidetracked when you find other people with the same name, called a possible match in this article..
-Once you have found a person in a record who may be your ancestor, the following 5 steps will help you determine if you have, in fact, found your ancestor.
-=== <br>Step 1. Review what you already know about your ancestor.  ===
 Do the following to identify your ancestor clearly:
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 Do the following to identify this person clearly:
-*Make a time line of information given in the record of the possible match person. This time line may be quite small but will establish dates and places clearly.
-*On your time line, include other persons mentioned in the record who were associated with the possible match.
+*Make a time line of information given in the record of the possible match person. This time line may be quite small but will establish dates and places clearly.
-*Use an analysis chart to identify and evaluate what you know.
+*On your time line, include other persons mentioned in the record who were associated with the possible match.
-*Evaluate what that information may suggest.
+*Use an analysis chart to identify and evaluate what you know.
+*Evaluate what that information may suggest.
 <br>To print a working copy of a time line for a specific record, click here.