How to Recognize your Canadian Ancestor: Difference between revisions

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| '''What Do I Know About My Ancestor?'''

To print a copy of an analysis chart, click here.

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=== Step 3. Analyze and compare what you know about your ancestor with what you know about the possible match. ===

===Step 5. Write a brief summary of your research findings===

After your research, write a brief summary report about your ancestor. Either you can explain what records proved your ancestor's life events and can document his or her life history, or you can explain what records did not lead you to a definite conclusion. Either way, you will have made a valuable contribution to your family's genealogical research efforts. Be sure to include in your paragraph the title, author, and call number of the book or film of all the records you have searched. Background Description Once you find enough information about the person you are researching, you must decide if that person was 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. It is very important to develop the skill of analyzing carefully, and thus being able to come to good conclusions.  

==Tips==

Tip 1. How do I make a time line? To help you single out your ancestor, include on a time line: • Events in date order (the same order they happened in your ancestor's life). • Birth, marriage, and death information for each family member. • Dates of other events and the persons associated with these events, such as a neighbor purchasing land from your ancestor, or a witness to the will of your ancestor. • Information on events that are not yet proved but may help identify your ancestor. How to Recognize Your Canadian Ancestor Research Guidance Version of Data: 03/07/01 6 A word processor is a useful tool when making a time line, because you can easily insert new information between older dates. To print a copy of a time line, click here. You can also do a time line for just one specific record to help you see clearly the contents and value of that record. To print a working copy of a time line for a specific record, click here. Tip 2. Is this my ancestor? To answer this question, ask yourself: 1. Is the possible match person living in the right place to be my ancestor? 2. Is this event in the right time period to be within the lifetime of my ancestor? Ask yourself these questions: • Is the possible match person too young or too old to have been my ancestor? • Are names of children associated with the possible match consistent with what I already know about the children of my ancestor? • Do the ages of the children seem logical, or are they too young or too old to be my ancestor's children? 3. Is this the right spouse? To verify the name of a wife, check marriage records, birth records of her children, land records, cemetery records, church records, and probate records. 4. Are the economic conditions of this person consistent with the known family history? It is highly unusual for a wealthy person to suddenly be farming in a poor section of the county on a small rented acreage, or a poor person to suddenly be a noted county official, living in a mansion. The following records give a good indication of the economic condition of the family. • Census records: see the column listing property values. • Tax lists: see property tax and personal property taxed. • Land records: see acreage of lands owned, and number of properties owned. 5. Do the relatives and associates of your ancestor appear in records with the possible match? • Check land records of the possible match person for neighbors and witnesses of deeds to see if their names are the same people you know associated with your ancestor. • Check marriage records of the possible match person and his children to see if the bondsmen and witnesses are persons who you know associated with your ancestor. • Check church records of the possible match person, to see if the names of members in the congregation were also associates of your ancestor. • Check other records to see what the possible match person did after this record was made. Migration can be a good clue: - If the possible match person migrated to a new location, does that eliminate him or her because you have a burial record or other proof that your ancestor remained in the old location? - If the possible match person migrated to a new location, could this be your ancestor, and you did not know he or she had moved?