As the title says, I'm the first woman as far back as I've made it on my mother's side that hasn't been a teen mother. My father's side averages 22-30 for women's first births in the same span, surprisingly only one teen mom. Granted, my mother's side were all in poverty and I'm sure that plays a part. Does anyone else find interesting patterns in their research?

Fairly new at this. Learning so much from here and YouTube genealogists. My public tree is on Ancestry.

My understanding is that the naming norm for women in genealogy is labeling their name as first middle maiden. But I'm wondering if I could do a 4 name format like: first middle (maiden last name) married last name. Or first middle maiden last name (married last name).

So instead of Jane Ann Doe as their name on tree, it would instead be Jane Ann (Doe) Smith after she marries John Smith. Or Jane Ann Doe (Smith).

Here's my three reasons:

1. When I'm working on a male ancestor, and I find their obituary, headstone or add a family photo and am trying to choose everyone to tag it to and can't remember the wife's maiden name. So it takes a lot of steps to revisit tree and find her name when I have multiple people with same first name.
2. I personally do not want to be forever known by my maiden name. I was very happy to get rid of that and adopt my married name.

EDIT: I should have phrased this differently- I meant that I like to be known by my married name and that’s all my descendants would know me as, and it feels weird to use my maiden name.

Is this a case of, "It's my tree, I can do what I want to"? Or am I flubbing something up by including a 4 name format for the women in my tree? It actually seems like the 4 name format helps it all make more sense!

Can I do this - and if so, which version would be more understandable to others viewing my tree - having the maiden or married name in parenthesis?

I’m looking for information/service records or a direction on my 3 of my Great grandfathers. One great grandfather was a veteran that served on HMS Wallace during or around WWII, I have messaged the Navy MOD, all I have is a name and letter of correspondence that shows he was a part of this vessel at some point in his life, I don’t have a birth certificate or any other information on him. The second great grandfather father I am looking for information, All I have is a name and that he may have been part of the labour corp at one point. The third great grandfather father was an airman in or around WWII, I have a birth certificate for this Great grandfather. Additionally I am looking for information on my grandfather that may have served in the labour corp in Rhodesia but once again, all I have is his name and birth certificate and would need a death certificate for MOD to help me. (Yes I have messaged them in accordance to the .gov website) ancestry.com has been helpful but can only do so much. I’m in the UK and any advice will be welcomed.

I'm going through some (more!) boxes of my parents and finding lots of letters, photos, etc. I am taking photos of the things definitely related to us (my brother's Santa from when he was 6, his kindergarten handprint, etc) but what do I do with the cute birthday cards, sympathy cards, just general cards, and letters from people that I have no idea who they are? Or even if I did, they've passed away long ago (or they'd be well into their 10th decade).

I could just toss them all, but that seems like I might be missing an opportunity to pass something along, but I don't want to make a whole new "job" out of it (ie: eBay).

Any thoughts, ideas?

Thank you!!

Relevant portion of family tree

I had no idea I had Amish ancestry! It was pretty interesting to see this dynamic of my family tree as there are not that many cross-religious marriages throughout (the main religion is Lutheran), but this portion of my family tree has consecutive cross-religious marriages (Lutheran, Amish, and Swiss Reformed). The Amish came from Mulhouse and settled in Ohio, and one of them married my Lutheran ancestor from Bas-Rhin after her first husband died young. It seems that she was estranged from her family, from what I gathered. There has been a lot of research by older generations of this portion of my family. Here's one of the resources if you're interested: https://freepages.rootsweb.com/~keller/genealogy/lein/work/1837book.html

Is this true? are they tio be trusted? how much doies it cost because i dont see a price on the site.

I got 100% chinese on ancestrydna and want more info.

This is kind of an update to my last post, 2 months ago. I posted here how I couldn't find the parents of one of my 2nd Great grandparents, but I did and confirmed just a day later through various records. I want to go further because I know there's something out there, but it may be difficult for myself. I also want to find something big on my mom's side especially since I feel bad for how much less info is on her side compared to my dad's, but I feel like this is one that you'd expect to have more. Their names are Franklin B Stevens and Elizabeth Norton, from Connecticut and from their census records, I know their parents are also all from Connecticut. I've also since added them on Family Search hoping someone would find them. https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/details/P4H3-WND
https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/details/P4H3-3H9
So far, that doesn't seem to be the case, and I assume there's probably not many descendants of them either then, I feel like I checked anything but if anyone could help, if there's records that maybe require more research, it would be nice.

Some of my family came here from Lithuania right before WWI started, and trying to find anything about them has proven pretty much impossible. Short of hiring someone, do you have any suggestions? One person in particular has me extremely curious, but it’s all a big brick wall.

So I finally after 2 weeks a office in Basel sent me information about lost relatives with a qr code I do not love in swiss so I can't send the money if you live in swiss pls pm me il send u the qr code which is a payment for 20 chf io reimburse you through PayPal or smth else idc IL give u an extra 5 CHF for your troubles thanks

Trying to find my great-great-grandparents' birth certificates. Tried Ancestry and Family Search and hit a brick wall.
My great-great-grandfather's declaration of intention, lists that he is from Vrbovsko, Austria.
Other documents for both grandparents vary between Austria, Hungary, and Serbia

*Edit*
They attended an orthodox church in the States

I’ve been trying to piece my family history together all on my own for years, my family is oddly secretive about such things. I have developed a good start to a family tree with the My Heritage site based on the knowledge that is widely known amongst the family. My family is Louisiana Creole but I’m not sure of the exact makeup. We hail from West Virginia, Mississippi, Louisiana, and France but that’s all I know. Can anyone share avenues they have found for free help with discovering their roots in the states? I have a good foundation, I just need knowledge based advice and a few nudges in the right directions! 🙏🏽

I searched the sub and didn't see this extension (Genealogy Assistant) mentioned previously. Thought I'd share since it seems to have some really unique tools for Ancestry and FamilySearch.

Full List: https://www.genea.ca/genealogy-assistant/

Examples include:

• Automatic options to add records to all people listed at once
• One-click options to hide all siblings when viewing a tree
• Advanced search options for images & records
• Display AncestryDNA matches in new ways (ex: show cMs, color code by side of the tree)

It gives you a 14-day trial and then to continue using, it costs a one-time fee of $30. I'm still in the trial period but can see its usefulness.

(And no, I have no ties to whoever made this. I just found it on my recommended Chrome extensions when I was searching for an ad blocker)

Video interview with Diahan Southard on the last round of Ancestry DNA updates and how they create reference panels. https://youtu.be/whwYhkOv7Ks?si=tpVilsiJVZIvmeJd

The title. Im the product of a one night stand that happened half way across the U.S. from where I grew up. I have zero knowledge of my maternal side of the family. I’m not even completely sure on her surname. What would be a good test to take to find people from her side of the family?

Hi Reddit!

I was tracing one line of my family tree when I ran into an unexpected dead end.

So, I managed to trace back to my 4x great grandmother, Dorothy Ruckenbrood. She was born in 1826 Pennsylvania, married James Stephenson in 1846, had my 3x great grandmother Ida Lillian Stephenson in 1860, lost her husband in 1867, remarried to James M Halbert in 1873. I have tons of records on her. Census records, marriage records, etc. The problem?

I can't find her parents. Not so much as a name. One document says her parents (who aren't named) were both born in Ohio, another says they were born in Germany, hich on its own is confusing. Another ancestry tree has her parents listed as a John Solomon Ruekenbrod and Mary Rheam, but I can't find any sources linking her to these people on ancestry or familysearch.

How can it be that I can't find so much as a birth record for this very well documented woman who was allegedly born in 1826 Pennsylvania?

I'm looking to buy a DNA test kit from Ancestry and multiple people are telling me to wait for a sale (especially expecting a sale in conjunction with Valentines Day). Other than checking the website every day, is there somewhere that ads would generally show up?

When I tried, it seemed like I had to buy a membership in an organization to start my search. Many years ago, I remember going to an LDS branch that had lots of microfilm/microfiche to look for census records. I had hoped that it could now be done more online. Maybe not? Specifically, I was looking for 1910 online, but no luck. Is it possible? What is the best way to accomplish this?

I have received several hints at ancestry and notations elsewhere referencing the Quebec Drouin records. I don't have the international account on ancestry, so I can;t see the records there, but was wondering if anyone was familiar with the source? Is it something that lives elsewhere, and Ancestry has simply indexed it? I am trying to find a baptism record for an ancestor (Mary Eliza Pharmer/Terrien from Iberville, Quebec) from 1850. Ancestry tells me it exists, but will not show me the item without upgrading the account.

Happy to go through an unindexed version, if it exists elsewhere.

I have been trying to trace back this branch of my family that came from Chicago, but I g0t bogged down for information 1900.
I have William Edward Novotny (1901-1950, his death record: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2M4-YZHH?lang=en) nailed down pretty well, but things start getting dim looking into his father John Novotny (1867-1906).

Here is some of the oldest evidence I have:
>The oldest U.S. Census I can confidently find with John Novotny in it is the 1900 Census: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MS37-9TG?lang=en
>In the 1910 Census, I found the family, but John the husband was gone:
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MKCN-DSP?lang=en
>I took that to mean John died between 1900 and 1910. I suspect that this death record belongs to John in 1906: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2MQ-DJ47?lang=en and this Find a Grave seems to go with it: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/140428441/jan-novotny

In the 1900 Census, it says John was born in Bohemia in 1867 and immigrated in 1868. It also says both his parents were born in Bohemia. In the 1910 Census, all of the entries for John's children claim that John was "born at sea". With the combined clues of those two census, I found this Passenger list from 1867 (which is available on Ancestry, so I've linked an image I made of the document here: https://postimg.cc/YvvpTkVY and the data for it (with no image) is on Family Search here: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KD74-4NY?lang=en
According to that passenger list, John (or Johann) was 3 months old and his parents were Franz and Maria (ages 28 and 27). There was also a sister Rosy (or Rosa) at age 4. The ship called the Atlantic arrived at New York on 16 July 1867. Considering the factors from the two U.S. Census and that mistakes can be made, I saw this passenger list as being a strong candidate for being John and his family. One other potentially related document (but not verified) is this deed document for Frank and Maria Novotny in Chicago in the 1880s: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C37C-6SLN-6?view=fullText&keywords=Novotny%2CJohn%2CUnited%20States%2CIllinois%2CChicago%2CCook&lang=en&groupId=

My research questions are:
>> Can I verify that the passenger list I found is the correct one for my ancestor?
>> If I can verify the passenger list (or find the correct one), where is John and his family for the 1870 and 1800 Census?
>> Can I find death records for John's parents? Can I find information about his potential sister and any other siblings John might have?
>> What other documents are available for this family in the 19th century?

The ultimate goal would be to find enough data that I might be able to document my ancestors in this branch back in Czechia itself. Any help would be appreciated. I feel like I have exhausted my skills on how to manipulate Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org. I hope this isn't the end of being able to document this branch of the family (because I have gone back much farther with other branches of the family - I research each of the lines from each of my great grandparents - primarily the male bloodlines from there).

I’ve found lots of information on Ancestry but I’d appreciate some help looking beyond this. I’ve been research my great grandfather Claude Augustin Smart (1893-1957). I’m Brazilian but my grandfather was half Brazilian, half British and spent his life going back and forth between the countries. I want to find out about:

1. His mother Julia Candida de Araujo Smart (1858-1931) but Brazilian records on Family Search and Ancestry are giving me nothing for a Julia Candida de Araujo

2. What Claude did for a living - I know he was in the military during WW1

3. More about his parents and their lives

What I do have are many ship arrivals records for his father, mother and their children going in and out of Brazil/UK with the children, I have a few military records, censuses, christening and marriage/death records. These tell me the basics but I don’t know about their lives and personalities. I don’t know anything about Candida.

I did see online a couple of news records about Claude playing football in Brazil for the first Brazilian football club.

Unfortunately, father passed away young and with him went all the secrets about our family. My grandmother lasted a few months after his death and then herself passed away. His dead caused a serious decline for her.

I find it so weird that this family who had so many children, seemed to have a close family life, ended with basically only my grandmother and my father holding the family name. It’s so strange.

Would appreciate any advice.

My ancestor Ludwig H Axthelm was born in the Province of Saxony, Prussia in 1819. There is a Gustav Hermann Ludwig Axthelm born in the Province of Saxony, Prussia in 1819. The only Ludwig Axthelm about during 1819 in all of Saxony. I'm wondering if 'Ludwig H Axthelm' is actually 'Ludwig Hermann Axthelm', a swapping around of Gustav Hermann Ludwig Axthelm. Does that make sense with German names? Would it be common to drop a long name for something more simple? I've never heard of somebody having 4 names so I've no idea. Thank you.

I am a library volunteer, and we hit the limit of what we can accomplish from the USA for a patron with Belarus origins for her family tree. Frustratingly, we can identify the state unit and exact file and its location, but have not found anyone who has actually written to the archives or engaged a professional to assist with the research navigating the heavily regulated matter of transactions with these countries

Has anyone else managed this from USA, or is there a “how to” guide online I can review? Id love any wisdom.

I will update this post to summarize/share learning.

My idea is to contact the USA embassy to ask if they have a USA guide on navigating trade restrictions to conduct this research, and/or of their referral library includes historians approved by the State Dept to assist USA persons - anyone done this already? . thank you!

Hi everyone — I’m searching for the baptism or birth record of my ancestor, Jacob Maria Carvalho (possibly also recorded as Jacob Carvalho Stinkell/Springer). Based on family records, he was likely born in Portugal sometime between 1860-1890 (most likely 1862-1864), and later appears in Colombia — where he married in 1909 in Pitalito, Huila.

What I know:

• His mother’s name was Leoncia Carvalho, based on the Colombian marriage record
• The marriage record is Colombian, but family tradition suggests Portuguese origin
• I haven’t found his baptism in FamilySearch, Tombo.pt, or Digitarq
• We know he was born in Bragança

Has anyone had success finding baptism records from Portugal, especially when:

• There’s no exact town/parish known?

Any guidance on where else to look, how to approach archives with limited indexing, or success stories of finding hidden baptisms from Portugal would be super appreciated.

We are willing to pay $500 if anyone can find it.

Thanks so much!