the power of we: an introduction to familysearch research courses, wiki, and forums

Leveraging the Power of We

A Watershed Event in Discovering Where to Find Your Ancestors

What we’ll do today

• Note the watershed genealogical event of this era & another event it is sparking

• Introduce three tools:– Research Courses– Research Wiki– Forums

• Learn about ways to give back and leave a legacy

NOTE TODAY’S WATERSHED EVENT

…and the new watershed event it is sparking

Today’s Watershed Event: Digitization (Lots of Records Online)

Census

Occupational

Newspapers

EmigrationBirth

Tax

CourtMarriage

Land

Immigration

Cemetery

Death

Obituary

Funeral Home

Military

School

Insurance

Religious

Local Histories

Biographies

Family Bibles

DiariesFamily Histories

Census

Occupational

Newspapers

EmigrationBirth

Tax

CourtMarriage

Land

Immigration

Cemetery

Death

Obituary

Funeral Home

Military

School

Insurance

Religious

Local Histories

Biographies

Family Bibles

DiariesFamily Histories

Challenge: Which records should I search

first?

Today’s Watershed Event: Digitization (Lots of Records Online)

Mass Digitization =Lots of Places to Look

FamilySearchRootsWeb

National

ArchivesAncestry

GenealogyBank

Footnote

ProQuest

Accessible Archives

Cyndi’s List

Google

VitalRec

Interment.netGenWeb

Libraries

American Battle Monuments Comission

American AncestorsChronicling America

DAR

FindAGrave INS

OneGreatFamily

BLM

Mass Digitization =Lots of Places to Look

FamilySearchRootsWeb

National

ArchivesAncestry

GenealogyBank

Footnote

ProQuest

Accessible Archives

Cyndi’s List

Google

VitalRec

Interment.netGenWeb

Libraries

American Battle Monuments Comission

American AncestorsChronicling America

DAR

FindAGrave INS

OneGreatFamily

BLM

Challenge: Where do I look for the records

I need?

Watershed Events Yield New Needs

Event• Lots of records

available• Lots of record

providers

Needs: Find out…• Which records to

search• Where those

records are• How to sift the

data into family groups

Needs Spark New Solutions

Needs• Know which records

to search• Know where those

records are

Solutions• Find people who

know– (Everybody knows

something that can help someone else)

• Compile everyone’s knowledge

• Put it in a place everybody can find

THE POWER OF WEWe used to have to rely on Web and book publishers for most research guidance. Now we can band together to leverage our collective knowledge.

Solutions from FamilySearch

• Three “We” solutions– Research Courses: Cool how-to videos on many

topics.– Wiki: 59,000 articles on how to find, use, and

analyze records in your ancestor’s area.– Forums: A place to ask/answer questions.

• All are free and community-built• All leverage the Power of We: collective

knowledge & rapid growth

RESEARCH COURSES

an introduction

Research Courses

• Over 160 lessons

Research Courses

• Over 160 lessons• Most by regional

experts

Research Courses

• Over 160 lessons• Most by regional

experts• Topic range:

Beginner to expert

Research Courses

• Over 160 lessons• Most by regional

experts• Topic range:

Beginner to expert

• 5-60 mins.

RESEARCH COURSES

examples

FINDING RESEARCH COURSES

on FamilySearch.org

THE RESEARCH WIKI

an introduction

What’s a Wiki?

• Wiki: Hawaiian for “quick”

• A place to collect community knowledge

• Anyone can contribute

• Writing: Easy as MS Word

• Write an idea now; add more later

FamilySearch Wiki• Research guidance

– Where to find records – Record contents– How to use various records – How to sort findings into family groups

• 59,000 articles. Growing by 50/day.• 100+ countries.• Not about specific ancestors.

New York Census

FINDING THE WIKI

at FamilySearch.org

FAMILYSEARCH FORUMS

Asking questions & getting answers

FamilySearch Forums

• Purpose: Ask questions & share expertise

• Scope: worldwide• Ten languages coming• Most questions get multiple answers• Mostly advice, but sometimes

lookups• Topics: Research, software,

contributing to the wiki

FAMILYSEARCH FORUMS

Live demo

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW?

Learn from the research coursesSearch the wiki

Ask in the forumsLeverage the Power of We

GIVE BACKLEAVE A LEGACY

Contribute a research courseContribute to the wiki

Answer questions in the forumsBuild the Power of We

What we did today

• Noted the watershed genealogical event of this era & another event it is sparking

• Introduced three tools:– Research Courses– Research Wiki– Forums

• Learn about ways you can give back and leave a legacy

COME JOIN US!

Michael Ritchey: ritcheymt@familysearch.org