January 19, 2024
Whenever I’m starting a new family history project, I begin my research with a peek at one or more of the big online family trees. By checking Family Search Family Tree and Ancestry’s Family Trees (these are just a couple that I use, there are many others), I can quickly tell how much research has already been done on a person. I can also get an idea of who else is researching this person.
I know that many people denigrate online family trees. They claim that they’re full of misinformation. They rarely, if ever, use them as part of their research. I agree that information from other people’s family trees should never be copied into your own tree without doing your own research to verify it. That’s a great way to perpetuate misinformation in your own tree.
However, not all the information on family trees is wrong. I have gotten leads on family trees that helped me break down longstanding brick walls. For example, for many years I tried, unsuccessfully, to find the father of my husband’s third great grandfather, Bagwell Topping. Then, on a routine check of online trees featuring Bagwell, I noticed that someone had posted Levi Topping as Bagwell’s father. They’d backed up their claim with a copy of a probate document stating that Levi Topping was Bagwell’s father. Furthermore, they included the source of the document. The document came from a record set held by the Library of Virginia. I was able to verify that the source was correct.
Many online trees now contain copies of original documents. The Family Search Family Tree is particularly rich in documents. Whenever you find something of interest on a family tree, be sure to check any attached sources. You never know what you may find. Thanks to an Ancestry family tree, my husband now has a named fourth great grandfather. The chances are that I wouldn’t have found the document on my own. I certainly wouldn’t have found it as easily as I did.
Not all online family trees contain sources, but they may still be accurate. If the information contained on a tree seems plausible, do some research to verify it. Check out census records, birth and death records, probate, and any other applicable records you can find before you add the information to your own tree. If you can’t find supporting documentation, it is still worthwhile to make a note of the information on the tree. You may be able to verify or disprove it later.
Another way to find out more about an online tree is to write the person who posted it. Trees usually have a way to contact the owner, either directly or through the hosting website. I have had reasonable success in contacting tree owners. Not all of them will respond. Some will, and you may find that they have further information to share. Some, of course, will respond, and you will find that they were guessing when the information to their tree. You never know until you try.
Online family trees are my favorite starting point when I’m beginning a new research project for myself or someone else. They can be a shortcut that will save hours of research time. However, I would never accept anything on a tree as true unless I had verified it myself. Trees are not a substitute for actual research.
Carol Stetser
Researcher
Larimer County Genealogical Society