Track All the Spouses-Even the Ones Whose “Origins Won’t Help”

Sometimes it can be tempting to focus on the spouse of an ancestor from whom we descend or only those spouses with whom an ancestor had children. That can be a mistake. Don’t ignore “short term” spouses or spouses with whom the ancestor had no children. There may be some clue that spouse’s life that helps you on the actual ancestor. That “short term” spouse may have had a connection with the ancestor than spans back years and may help you to learn more about your ancestor’s life as well.