Today’s Genealogy Tip—Don’t forget to check with your local historical society for information on your family. You may be surprised at what you’ll find in their article repositories. Because most of these repositories are so little used, you may come across a gem that no genealogist has discovered before!

Today’s Genealogy Tip—Use land records. Available at the county level, land records show you where your ancestor lived, when he lived there, when he bought or sold land, and who he bought from or sold to. This information can help you establish important relationships between people. However, if your ancestor bought land from the federal government or filed a homestead claim, these records will be held at the National Records Administration.

Today’s Genealogy Tip—If your ancestor applied for a pension based on his military service, you can find all kinds of detailed personal information in the files. It’s not uncommon for relatives, or the ancestor himself, to write letters explaining personal circumstances that make a pension necessary. These letters, when they exist, are included in the pension file.

You can find military pension files in a variety of places online. Footnote.com is a good source, as is Ancestry.com. You can also order full copies of pension records from the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

Today’s Genealogy Tip—Use old newspapers. Many newspapers now have their historic archives available online. Finding an issue from your ancestor’s town during the time he lived there can produce a wide variety of genealogical gems, from obituaries and wedding announcements to business advertisements and even complete stories about any incidents your ancestor was involved in.

Try looking for your ancestors in records you may not have considered. Here’s a good example—U.S. Military Records. The U.S. government keeps detailed records on every person who has served in every war the U.S. has fought from the Revolution onward. These records contain valuable genealogical information, such as dates of service, unit or regiment, battles fought and injuries received. You can piece together your ancestor’s entire military experience from these records.

Today’s Genealogy Tip—To take your family back even further into the past, look for vital records such as wills, probate records, birth and death certificates, marriage licenses and land records, all of which are usually found in county courthouses or state vital record departments. You may find the names of relatives you never knew about listed in these records!

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Thanks! I appreciate it. Keep checking back for more daily genealogy tips!

Today’s Genealogy Tip—Use the U.S. Federal census records to help take you back even further. Once you’ve exhausted all of the family information you can glean from relatives, look into the census to find the parents, grandparents, and more of your earliest known ancestors. Census records are available in many librari…es, at LDS family history centers, and on Ancestry.com.

Today’s Genealogy Tip—Start with who you know. Think of the earliest ancestor you know. Is it your parents, your grandparents, your great-grandparents? Begin your ancestor search with them, using what you know about them to find their parents, their grandparents, etc., as far back as you can go. Even if YOU are the on…ly ancestor you know, then start with yourself. Every genealogical journey has to start somewhere.

Today’s Genealogy Tip—Get organized! You have a lot of different branches on your family tree. It helps to keep track of them all if you organize your research into different three-ring binders, with each binder made for keeping information on one particular branch. Be sure to label each binder on the front and side to keep track of your branches easily.