Philippines, Negros Occidental, Roman Catholic Diocese of Bacolod, Parish Registers, - FamilySearch Historical Records: Difference between revisions

*When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. Save a copy of the image or transcribe the information. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details such as a title, an occupation, or land ownership. Add this new information to your records of each family. You should also look for leads to other records about your ancestors.

*Cite the record entry for future reference.  Save or print a copy of the image if possible.  The image citation is available by clicking on the information tab at the bottom left of the screen where you’ve found your ancestor.

*Use the marriage date and place as the basis for compiling a new family group or for verifying existing information.

*Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth of each spouse to find a couple's birth records and parents' names.

*Use the birth date or age and the place of birth to find the family in census records. See the [[Philippines Census]] for more information.

*Use the residence and names of the parents to locate church and land records. See the [[Philippines Land and Property]] for assistance.

*Use the parents' birth places to find former residences and to establish a migration pattern for the family.

*Continue to search the indexes and records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives who may have lived in the same area or a nearby area. For this step, it helps to compile the marriage entries for every person who has the same surname as the bride or groom; this is especially helpful if the surname is unusual.

*Witnesses often were relatives of the parents.

*New information is constantly being indexed, microfilmed or updated.  Periodically check back and see if your ancestor’s records have been added.  You can see if the area you’ve been looking in has been recently updated by going to [https://familysearch.org/search/collection/list Historical Records Collections] and notice the asterisk for recently added or updated records.

*Civil records are also a good source of genealogical information.  If possible, you should obtain copies of both [https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/Philippines_Civil_Registration-_Vital_Records Civil Registration] and church records, since they do not necessarily provide the same information. For example, baptismal registers sometimes provide the names of the fathers of illegitimate children when the civil registration does not.

*Vary the search terms. For example, search by either the given name or surname to return broader list of possible candidates which can then be examined for matches. Or try expanding the date range; this is especially useful in searching baptismal records, as it was not unusual for a child to be baptized weeks or even months after birth.

*Try searching the records of neighboring islands such as Guimaras and Panay.There is an excellent map [https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/Philippines_Genealogy showing the provinces surrounding Negros Occidental]. If you click on any of these provinces (ie. Benguet), a wiki page with additional resources is available.

*Vary the search terms. For example, search by either the given name or surname to return broader list of possible candidates which can then be examined for matches. Or try expanding the date range; this is especially useful in searching baptismal records, as it was not unusual for a child to be baptized weeks or even months after birth.