This book aims to help genealogists at every level learn to trace descendants of ancestors, both direct line and collateral. With step-by-step guidance, methodologies, and practical examples, this guide will give you the tools and confidence to find and make meaningful connections with living family members. In fact, finding living relatives isn’t all that different from tracing your direct-line ancestors and their families. The same skills apply—researching, organizing information, and following clues—but with a focus on connecting the past to the present. This process, known as reverse genealogy, involves creating a detailed family tree, identifying relatives down both ancestral and collateral lines, and using modern tools to track them down.

Cheri Hudson Passey is a professional genealogist, instructor, writer, speaker, and owner of Carolina Girl Genealogy, LLC. She hosts the “GenFriends Genealogy Chat Show on YouTube, where she and a panel of professional genealogists meet weekly to discuss all things genealogy. Cheri began working as a genealogist researcher subcontracted by Eagle Investigative Services, Inc., for the US Army Past Conflict Reparations Branch in 2018. She uses her skills to identify and locate the next of kin, along with YDNA and mtDNA candidates for the families of World War II soldiers who are listed as missing in action. The goal is to use DNA to positively identify remains and, with the permission of next of kin, bring our war heroes home.

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Mr. MacEntee starts with general information about AI and gradually drills down to its application to genealogy. First, comes a discussion of different AI platforms, such as ChatGPT, which is capable of producing human-like text based on mere fragments of information. AI capabilities can also significantly enhance genealogical research by providing detailed and accurate family histories, streamlining the research processes, and improving the overall family history experience. Here are just a few AI applications for genealogy currently in use:

• Automated Record Matching: AI algorithms quickly analyze large volumes of historical records, identifying matches and connections that might be missed by human researchers.
• Optical Character Recognition (OCR): AI-powered OCR converts scanned documents, such as old handwritten records, into searchable and editable text, making historical data more accessible.
• DNA Analysis: AI analyzes DNA test results, identifies genetic matches, and infers ancestral origins.
• Recommendation Systems: AI suggests potential relatives, documents, or records based on user data and search history, making the research process more intuitive.

The balance of this guide discusses some of the cautionary issues associated with AI. Among them are matters of fair use, and proper source citation. The author then cites a number of pros and cons. On the positive side, AI can establish family connections far faster than humans, whether by translating, transcribing, analyzing, or assimilating it. Conversely, users of AI will may find it difficult to determine the source of AI-driven data, contend with bias, risk copyright infringement, violate other persons’ privacy, and fail to detect false information.

It concludes with a glossary of technical terms users will encounter when using this brave new technology.

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Family history is different. If you want others to learn about where you and they came from, you must command their attention. As Doug Tattershall states in the Introduction to his new book, “We work hard to discover our family tree. But what we [and the people we are writing for] really want to know is our family story.”

So, how does a genealogist transition to family history? You will find the answers here. In fewer than one hundred pages, Doug shows how to start and stay on track in transforming the skeletal outline of a genealogy into an engaging family story. Chapter One discusses the elements of a good story: strong characters, a good plot, and the theme or point of the story—all based on the facts uncovered by your research. Doug draws on his own and others’ family stories and images to make his points. Chapter Two, “The Stuff,” explains how to research with biographical detail in mind, gathering from interviews (oral history), personal letters and diaries, newspaper articles and obituaries, lawsuits, local histories, etc. Chapter Three, “Puzzle Pieces” emphasizes the importance of establishing a timeline to your story, while Chapter Four illustrates how things like paintings or photographs, geographic details, and mementos can add specificity and immediacy to it. In Chapter Five, “Format,” the author draws on his journalism experience and the experience of five other contemporary family storytellers to compare the merits of the various media you can choose from: written narrative, audio, video, blogs, and podcasts. The final chapters emphasize the importance of creating a storyteller’s outline to keep everything together, examples of “Good and True” storytelling, and a helpful family story worksheet.

As Doug Tattershall reminds us, “We research our family histories to satisfy our own curiosity about our past, but we quickly find that we want to share what we have found . . .Telling your family story deserves an effort that incorporates the best practices of the dedicated storyteller. . . Your family history is a story worth telling and, therefore, a story worth telling well.”

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Outside of the U.S., the books are available from Amazon and bookstores in the Ingram network. The color supplement can be downloaded anywhere, as is the case with our eBook.

FamilyTreeDNA, founded in 2000, was the first and is still the only company to offer three kinds of DNA testing for genealogy.

• The Family Finder autosomal DNA test provides you with your ethnicity breakdown, plus matches to close and distant family members on both the paternal and maternal sides of your family.
• Mitochondrial DNA tests your mother’s direct maternal line, providing recent matches and deep heritage.
• Y-DNA tests the direct paternal (surname) line for men, providing matches to males who are both recently and distantly related.

All three DNA tests are indispensable for both genealogists and people searching for unknown parents and other family members.

For Both New and Existing Customers!

This book explains each kind of test, when it’s most useful, and how to incorporate the results into your genealogy. Author Roberta Estes provides clear, step-by-step instructions for understanding each test individually, and for deploying them together. If you’ve already tested at FamilyTreeDNA, this book is your one-stop source for understanding and using your results most productively. If you are new to FamilyTreeDNA testing, you’ll learn which test(s) to start with, then upgrade later as warranted. You will also be given purchase advice and learn how to fine-tune your results.

More Value!

In addition to the value of your personal test results, you will discover how joining Surname and other DNA Group Projects supported by FamilyTreeDNA promotes collaboration between genealogists with similar research interests. This book will help you to locate the most beneficial projects to join in order to maximize the value of your investment in DNA testing.

What’s Covered?

Here are just a few of the topics covered in The Complete Guide to FamilyTreeDNA:

• The Science behind DNA tests – written for everyday people
• Y-DNA – Your Father’s Story – types of markers and how to use your results
• The Big Y test and how to interpret the results
• Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) – Your Mother’s Story – matches and what they mean
• Autosomal Family Finder Tests – Matches to All Your Family Lines
• Shared Matches
• Autosomal matches automatically assigned maternally or paternally
• Your Ethnicity Percentages from around the world plus maps and chromosome painting
• Finding, joining, and utilizing Group Projects
• Public Tools for Y-DNA and Mitochondrial DNA
• Creating Your Own DNA Pedigree Chart
• Detailed Glossary of terms used in genetic genealogy

This comprehensive guidebook makes use of multiple visual aids. You will see screenshots like the ones you can expect to view on your own computer; roadmaps and checklists with instructions on how to proceed; plus, an extensive glossary to help you decipher the technical language associated with DNA testing.

 About the Author

Roberta Estes, author of the popular blog www.DNA-eXplained.com is a scientist, National Geographic  Society Genographic affiliate researcher, Million Mito team member, and founding pioneer in the genetic genealogy field. An avid genealogist for the past 40 years, Roberta has written over 1,600 articles about genetic genealogy and provides consulting to major publications and organizations. Additionally, Roberta’s book, DNA for Native American Genealogy, complements her website, the Native Heritage Project, at www.nativeheritageproject.com. Roberta took her first DNA test in 1999 and hasn’t stopped.

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However, all records are not created equal, and history is not just a collection of “facts.” Critical analysis is essential, and since 2007 Evidence Explained has been the definitive, go-to guide for those who explore history and seek help with understanding, analyzing, and citing the materials they use. Evidence Explained has two principal uses: it provides citation models for historical sources—especially materials not covered in standard citation guides such as The Chicago Manual of Style. Beyond that, it enables researchers to understand the nature of each source so that evidence they cite can be better interpreted and the accuracy of their conclusions properly appraised.

In the six years since the last edition was published, changes at major repositories and online information providers–as well as the ever-evolving electronic world–have generated new citation and analysis challenges for researchers. As a consequence, Mrs. Mills has once again updated her citation models and added descriptions and evaluations of numerous contemporary materials not included in the Third Edition Revised.

Evidence Explained’s new fourth edition significantly reexamines historical resources and simplifies long-standing practices. Highlights of the Fourth Edition include:

• Updated Chapters One and Two (“Fundamentals of Analysis” and “Fundamentals of Citation”), continue to lay the foundations for successful research.
• An entirely new Chapter Three, “Building a Citation,” provides a tutorial for the construction of citations. Here, you learn to work with seven basic building blocks that can be mixed and matched to create a citation for any kind of source.
• Chapter Three’s 14 streamlined templates replace the previous 170 QuickChek Models, assembling the basic building blocks as needed to create citations for every type of material—whether accessed as an unpublished manuscript, print publication, database, or online image delivered at a specific URL or through a complex path and its waypoints.
• All examples in the twelve “Records” chapters (Chapters Four through Fifteen) are keyed to the specific templates that work best for each source or situation.
• Hundreds of new citation examples emphasize modern modes of access, particularly the layered citations that modern media require.

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY . . .

“This book is a necessary work for every researcher’s  bookshelf or desktop, or reference book computer file folder.  I used the digital version of the First Edition for seven years, and the Third Edition for 9 years, and can’t do without them.”—Randy Seaver, “Genea-Musings,” 02/18/2024

“Since the first edition was published in 2007, this has been the gold standard for understanding and citing genealogical sources.  Actually, it’s the platinum standard because of the clear, robust explanations about the wide variety of resources we use to research and document our ancestry. Mills well goes beyond how to cite specific sources–she delves deep into source quality and what that means for the credibility of evidence and, ultimately, the credibility of our conclusions.—Marian Wood, “Climbing My Family Tree,” 02/25/2024

“Elizabeth Shown Mills spent almost a year working on Evidence Explained, Fourth Edition; she has done a fabulous job! I really like this “slimmed down” version of the best guide out there that teaches us how to correctly record all the necessary details to build accurate citations for our genealogical research. . . . The Fourth Edition, with Chapter 3 leading the way, makes the process of creating source citations seem much more manageable.”—Linda Stufflebean, “Empty Branches on the Family Tree,” 02/24/2024

“The definitive guide for how to cite every conceivable kind of source a historian might use, from traditional archival materials to digital media to the most arcane sources imaginable.”–John B. Boles, William P. Hobby Professor of History, Rice University

“Evidence Explained has a fantastic opening section that really changed my perspective on ‘evidence.’ The citation formats are handy but honestly, it’s the commentary from ESM that made me want to buy myself a personal copy sooner rather than later.”–Kim Phillips-Sasso, Clarksville-Habersham County [Georgia] Library, as quoted on Goodreads

“Historians will welcome the publication of this detailed guide to citations. Even avid users of The Chicago Manual of Style regularly encounter sources for which that handbook gives no guidance. Now we can turn to Elizabeth Shown Mills’s comprehensive work.”–Journal of Southern History

“This is an essential resource for family historians; highly recommended for all libraries.”–Library Journal (First edition: Library Journal Best Reference 2007)

“I purchased two copies of this book, one to mark and one to keep in “great” condition. I am underlining, circling, adding sticky notes and such to assist in assimilating what Mrs. Mills has put forth in this definitive work.”—Dear Myrtle

“A staple for any genealogy library. It should be one of the top ten books in any genealogist’s collection.”—Deborah Sweeney, as quoted on Goodreads

“Meant not only as a style guide for the types of source citations used by historians and genealogists, this book also discusses why analysis of information within the total context of a source is imperative to understanding the nature of a fact. Citations not only tell where the source was found, but also can indicate a level of confidence to knowledgeable researchers.”–Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly

** Library Journal’s Best Reference 2007 **
** Winner of the National Genealogical Society’s 2008 Award of Excellence**

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Author Drew Smith has organized the chapters according to the actual process used in genealogical research: Start with yourself, then move on to living family and relatives, and then move backwards in time, generation by generation. Each chapter describes a time period and the kinds of records available for that era, allowing beginners to learn about new types of records just as they need them.

The guide is divided into two parts. Part I (“For All Generations–Preparing to Research”) discusses such things as relationships between family members, naming practices,  genealogy software, how to review existing research, and the basics of DNA testing. Part II (“Generation by Generation—Doing the Research”) begins with a discussion of the major genealogy websites, and then explains the most important record categories for all generations from the present day back to the colonial era. There are also chapters devoted to searching for the origins of American families in the records of Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, and non-English-speaking nations.

This book is written in a clear and charming style. It makes ample use of consecutive Internet screen shots to take the mystery out of online searching. And it is written by an expert genealogist and teacher who is equally conversant with  traditional search methods and the digital world. There is no other book like it.

About the author: Drew Smith is the genealogy librarian at the University of South Florida Libraries in Tampa. He is co-host of The Genealogy Guys Podcast and host of the Genealogy Connection podcast. Mr. Smith is a founder and administrator of The Genealogy Squad Facebook Group with over 53,000 members. He writes a regular productivity column for the Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly.

Reviews

On March 20, 2023, Margaret M. McMahon (Dr. Mac), who writes the blog A Week of Genealogy.com, says, ” ‘Generation by Generation: A Modern Approach to the Basics of Genealogy’ is a concise way for new genealogists to benefit from Mr. Smith’s wisdom as well as enjoy his warm and approachable manner. . . Part I of the books lays a solid foundation of key knowledge and skills a reader needs to conduct successful genealogical research. In Part II, readers are guided while they actually research their own ancestors. . . This is a book to read and use. It is a way for a reader to bring Mr. Smith home and have him alongside while taking significant steps to research family history.” According to Dr. Mac, Generation by Generation introduces beginners to the main ideas, terminology, and pitfalls of genealogy thereby giving them a strong foundation for more detailed research .

The review by Marian B. Wood, author of the blog, Climbing My Family Tree is succinct and to the point: “Know any newcomers to genealogy? I encourage you to point them toward a new book designed specifically for people just starting their journey into family history. . . . At 170 pages, this large-format book is well-illustrated and highly readable, making the genealogy process accessible to newcomers.  In short, I highly recommend Generation by Generation.”

Thomas MacEntee, writing on his blog, “Genealogy Bargains” on March 8, remarks that, “Over the past year or two, I’ve been hoping for a guide that distilled what can be an overwhelming process into just the “basics.” My hopes have come true, and Generation by Generation is just what the genealogy sphere needs right now . . .” MacEntee views the book as an excellent resource for beginners, easy to understand, full of a librarian’s tips, fair and balanced in its treatment of online sources, and helpful to beginner’s looking for previously published works on their family. MacEntee concludes,  “Isn’t it great when you encounter an instructional guide or website, and you say to yourself: “This is EXACTLY what I needed!”? Or in my situation as an educator, you say “This is EXACTLY how I would have organized and written this book.”

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With images, charts, transcribed documents and in-depth commentary, Mastering Spanish Handwriting and Documents: 1520-1820 addresses fundamental handwriting concepts and challenges relevant to Spanish-language documents. Multiple examples familiarize readers with records written in both Humanistic hand (itálica) as well as the older, more difficult Secretary hand (cortesana or procesal), in the process giving users a deeper, more accurate, and more fulfilling research experience.

Beyond letter forms, the volume’s comprehensive textual discussions examine the format and procedures underlying ecclesiastical and legal record types—from a parish marriage record to the Spanish inheritance system—giving readers the context for a document’s vocabulary and format. Forty-two transcribed and translated Spanish-language documents form the book’s showpiece, adding depth and personality to the text. A “Notes and Comments” section at the end of each translation conveys document-specific commentary, ranging from a discussion of a priest’s handwriting idiosyncrasies, to weights and measures used in an inventory, to methodologies for determining the most likely correct translation for an obscure legal phrase.

Spanning three centuries of Spanish-language documents and with content applicable for researchers at all levels—including native speakers unfamiliar with early handwriting– Mastering Spanish Handwriting and Documents: 1520-1820 uniquely synthesizes the life and career of George R. Ryskamp (1950-2022), whose passion for and expertise in teaching Hispanic genealogical research lies behind every sentence.

George R. Ryskamp (1950-2022) practiced law in Riverside, CA, as a Probate and Estate Planning Specialist for fourteen years. In 1993 he joined the History Department at Brigham Young University, creating and teaching courses in Southern European research and paleography with a particular emphasis on Spain, as well as courses on United States probate, land, and legal systems and documents. The combination of both careers spanned nearly fifty years of experience in the archives of Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, Mexico and most other Latin American countries, the Netherlands, and the United States. He viewed his numerous opportunities to mentor students while doing on-site research as the highlight of his teaching experience. Beyond authoring numerous books and articles on Hispanic and United States research, he lectured regularly at national and international conferences.

Peggy Ryskamp, cg, first became intrigued with the contents of a Spanish parish book thirty-five years ago and has since worked in repositories ranging from local parishes to provincial and national archives. She enjoys sharing her enthusiasm for Spanish-language genealogical research in the classroom, and she has taught Family History at the university level and lectured at multiple conferences and institutes. With her husband, she has co-authored two books and mentored students in archives throughout Spain and France. In January 2020, the couple was presented the Utah Genealogical Association Silver Tray Award for Publishing Efforts and Contributions to the Field of Genealogy.

2000. Leandro Soria, a native of Santa Fe, Argentina, came to the United States as a student at Brigham Young University in 2000. While completing his BA in Spanish Translation and Interpretation, with a minor in Family History, he spent two spring terms as an intern gathering records and researching in archives throughout Spain, Italy, France, and Portugal. He was the supervisor of the team of BYU students who initially developed script.byu.edu under the auspices of the Center for Family History and Genealogy. Since leaving BYU in 2010, he has been employed by FamilySearch in Collection Operations, supporting the acquisition, publication, and indexing of genealogical records from Latin America, Spain, and Portugal.

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Figuring out how to incorporate DNA testing into your Native American genealogy research can be difficult and daunting. What types of DNA tests are available, and which vendors offer them? What other tools are available? How is Native American DNA determined or recognized in your DNA? What information about your Native American ancestors can DNA testing uncover? This book addresses those questions and much more.

Included are step-by-step instructions, with illustrations, on how to use DNA testing at the four major DNA testing companies to further your genealogy and confirm or identify your Native American ancestors. Among the many other topics covered are the following:

• Tribes in the United States and First Nations in Canada
• Ethnicity
• Chromosome painting
• Population Genetics and how ethnicity is assigned
• Genetic groups and communities
• Y DNA paternal direct line male testing for you and your family members
• Mitochondrial DNA maternal direct line testing for you and your family members
• Autosomal DNA matching and ethnicity comparisons
• Creating a DNA pedigree chart
• Native American haplogroups, by region and tribe
• Ancient and contemporary Native American DNA

Special features include numerous charts and maps; a roadmap and checklist giving you clear instructions on how to proceed; and a glossary to help you decipher the technical language associated with DNA testing.

About the Author

Roberta Estes, author of the popular blog www.DNA-eXplained.com is a scientist, National Geographic Genographic affiliate researcher, Million Mito team member, and founding pioneer in the genetic genealogy field. An avid genealogist for the past 40 years, Roberta has written over 1,500 articles about genetic genealogy, many for the Native Heritage Project at www.nativeheritageproject.com. Roberta took her first DNA test in 1999 and hasn’t stopped.

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With an emphasis on publications, manuscript sources, and archival records, Dr. Dobson highlights ways to trace Scottish ancestors using alternative sources, primarily those covering the years between 1550 and 1850. For each research topic—including statutory registers, church records, tax records, sasines and land registers, court records, military and maritime sources, burgh and estate records, emigration records, and much more—Dr. Dobson has compiled an extensive list of the publications and archival records that will enable family historians to advance their research. It would take years for any individual to compile such a far-reaching bibliography and compilation of relevant records in Scottish archives.

Another unique feature of this guidebook is the inclusion of numerous excerpts from publications and archival records, which will help lead researchers to the sources most applicable to their research. All surnames that appear in these examples are listed in the surname index at the back of the book.

About the Author

Dr. David Dobson was born in 1940 in Carnoustie, Scotland, and was educated at Dundee College of Technology (now University of Abertay) and the University of St. Andrews, and finally at the University of Aberdeen. Most of his working life was spent at Madras College, St. Andrews. He has been an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Aberdeen, the University of Edinburgh, and at present, at the University of St. Andrews. Since 1983 he has been researching the Scottish Diaspora in archives and libraries throughout Scotland, London, Ireland, Copenhagen, the Netherlands, Madeira, Canada, the United States, and the West Indies. He is the author of more than 200 books, including Scottish Emigration to Colonial America, 1607-1785, Scottish Trade with Colonial Charleston, 1683-1783, and numerous historical and genealogical source books, plus he has contributed to many other publications, such as An Atlas of Scottish History to 1707, Scottish Communities Abroad in the Early Modern Period, and Scotland and the Flemish People. He now lives in Dundee and is working on further source books.

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Mr. Grenham’s work combines all the best features of a textbook and a reference book, expertly describing the various steps in the research process while at the same time providing an indispensable body of source materials.

This fifth edition retains the familiar three-part structure, combining a detailed guide for beginners with thorough descriptions of all the relevant sources and county-by-county reference lists. All the information has been expanded and updated, and the extensively expanded index makes the book even easier to use.

Genealogical research in Ireland has always depended on records that are more fragmented, localized, and difficult to access than anywhere else. The Internet is changing that. More and more of these records are coming online. This book is an indispensable guide to what these records are, where they are, and what they mean. It serves as a directory to online records, discussing their uses and outlining research strategies. Most useful are the subsections to each of the county source lists, showing county Internet sources. References are given throughout for any online versions of the records dealt with.

With its step-by-step instructions in the location and use of traditional genealogical records, its discussion of civil records of birth, marriage, and death as well as land records and wills, and its list of Roman Catholic parish records and source lists, this guide is easily the most useful book in Irish genealogy.

John Grenham wrote the “Irish Roots” column in The Irish Times for years and ran the Irish Times Irish Ancestors website. He is a fellow of the Irish Genealogical Research Society and the Genealogical Society of Ireland, having come to professional genealogy in 1981 as one of the panel of researchers in the Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland. He features frequently in the popular TV series Who Do You Think You Are?

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