Genealogy Chat

In my own notes I sometimes collect all the examples of any of my more unusual surnames in an area. I did this while trawling through records in my local Records Office. This has proved really useful because they often turn out to be distant cousins eventually. It has also meant that occasionally if someone contacts me on GR thinking they have a match I can sometimes help them even if that isn't the exact person on my tree. It has also enabled me to solve some of my own puzzles. My 2x greatgrandfather married 3 times and I was able to recognise who his last wife was because I already had her on file as the wife and later widow of one of his cousins. On my GR tree I usually stop at spouses and first generation down cousins but I make occasional exceptions. Recently I came across a tree on Rootsweb which hadn't been touched for about 4 years and the e-mail link to its creator no longer works. I know that that tree begins with the niece of one of my ancestors but that tree doesn't know her ancestry. I have a couple more generations I could share so I've made sure that I've put that woman and her husband and some of her descendants on my tree. I'm thinking that maybe someone will find one of them on a Hot Match one day if someone descended from her joins GR. My husband's grandfather did a good family tree many years ago but a lot of people on that are sideways relations and are very distant cousins. It's interesting but I haven't put them all on GR. As others have said I think you do whatever you like! Just don't put living people on any online tree without their permission. If you are stuck going backwards then I see no problem with looking for distant cousins instead. Sometimes this leads to new living contacts who have useful information to share. Good luck Sue

I just keep on searching for any bit of info that is family connected. I do not show it is my 'official' tree, but in a scruffy, pencil, handwritten one. When I reach a brick wall with 'proper' searching, I give myself a break and look further afield. This way I have discovered that I am distantly related to an old man in the village, who was village born and bred, when I was born in London. He does not know of the connection, but one day I will pluck up the nerve to show him. Kathlyn

Yes, that's odd, I find I have little interest in 20th century relatives, other than adding them to my tree (sometimes) and exchanging notes where possible. My real interests lie further back and it has certainly paid me to follow 'married-in' back a few generations, at which point they usually turn out to be related to me by blood anyway - my distant ancestors rarely married complete strangers. OC

I stop at about 1900 going forward except for immediate family I am a medieval historian by training (lol). I don't want to upset people needlessly other than that I follow what interests me. I usually try to find parent's names for spouses. I recently found a lady whose parents were Grace and Cornelius. When I found her first two children were William Cornelius who died and John Cornelius who survived I was fairly certain I had found the right family. I also have a connection to an iron foundry and I found one of my relatives marrying a blacksmith's daughter. Old wills showed this Blacksmith's shop and tools passing down at least three generations. Later census show the grandad as an iron founder employing his grandsons as Iron moulders. I would have missed this connection if I had kept to my bloodline as my relative remained a carter all his life. It is your tree do what interests you. Anne

I will put people into my tree if they are related to me( What a good answer if I say so myself)

So Melvyn, When are you going to stop?? Rod

Thank you all for the help

Personal choice really but I can't imagine ever completely stopping until I am in my dottage (some might say not long now then). seriously, the more I find the more I want to find. Ann Glos

I was doing blood only, but have recently found 4 people on here related by marriage. I've started to enter a lot of the info into my records as a lot of them come fromthe same sort of area and I think, who knows, there could be a link between the families further on. For ages I said I wasn't going to do marriage relatives, but now I am and it's great as it gives me even more to research (as if i didn't have enough already!!!!) I think it's just a case of personal choice. Laura x

Thanks to you both

You stop when you want to, I find the more I uncover, the more I want to go on, after seventeen years I can't imagine ever stopping. I'm and addict. Jennifer

Melvyn I never stop, as long as there is any blood connection between us. If the connection is by marriage only, then I usually do one generation either side, to sort of tidy things up. However, the further back you go, the more likely you are to find previous connections between families, particularly if, like mine, they came from a very small village. My attitude is, if I have been given the information AND it checks out, then it would be criminal to waste it! But it is your tree and you can do whatever you like. OC

When do you stop putting people into your tree. I have got in contact with my Great grandad's sisters family and and it goes on for four generations when do I stop putting people in? or do I stop? don't know what to do help needed. Thanks