How to find ancestors, of which you know almost nothing

How to find ancestors, of which you know almost nothing


Family ties are one of the most intimate links,defining the social structure of any society. But not always every family has complete information about their ancestors. To find relatives, about which there is almost no information, one has to turn to the methods used in the compilation of the genealogical tree.



How to find ancestors, of which you know almost nothing


You will need



  • - Notepad;
  • - fountain pen;
  • - Dictaphone;
  • - documents from the family archive;
  • - Information obtained from state archives.


Instructions


1


Begin your search for ancestors by interviewing your nearest anddistant relatives. Explain to them that you want to restore information about a particular person so that the communication of generations does not break. From casual conversations with relatives it is possible to gather the most necessary initial data, including a surname, a name, a patronymic, a birth date and a residence of the ancestor. Record the results on paper or use a dictaphone. This will not lose valuable information and turn to it later for analysis.


2


Search the family archive. The source of information about a particular person may be old photographs, birth and marriage certificates, a certificate of secondary education, a diploma of higher education. Often in the archives there are various kinds of references containing the setting data. But the most valuable material for research can be the letters of previous years. Of course, to get acquainted with them, get the consent of those to whom they are addressed. If possible, make copies of documents of interest to your inquiries.


3


Gathering primary information about the wantedancestor, ask for help in archival institutions. In the local and central archives for a long time, many of the documents that may be key in your search are stored: data on places of residence and work, on service in the armed forces. There are specialized archives of enterprises, organizations and institutions, where information on types of activities is stored. So, if your ancestor participated in the Great Patriotic War, his track record or information about the awards can be found by contacting the Central Archive of the Ministry of Defense.


4


Sort all collected information and conducttheir analysis. Make a list of all family ties through which you can access additional information about your relative. As a result, you will certainly be able to find those individuals with whom he maintained family or friendships, worked together or served. The most valuable thing is that your information search can be the beginning of a large and useful work on compiling a family tree.


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