[Genealogy] Have You Ever, Do You Know--or Think, FamilySearch Catalog, Revised Full-Text Searching

[Michael John Neill]

** Using the FamilySearch Catalog-Webinar
** Have You Ever?
** Revised Full-Text Searching at FamilySearch for 2026--Webinar
** Do You Know, Do You Think You Know, or Were You Assuming?
** Consultations


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Using the FamilySearch Catalog--Webinar
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Delivery date of 11 January 2026

Pre-order at $20.00 <https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/WAF85QETY39FW>.
Normal price is $28.00

Confused about what is on FamilySearch? Having difficulty knowing what is
online there and how to access it? This presentation will lead you out of
the confusion.

Contents will include:

Various ways the catalog can be searched–the six verbal ways (location,
title, keyword, surname, author, subject) and the two more numeric ways
(call number and film/image group number). We will see how to:

   -

   effectively navigate the catalog search results,
   -

   determine how catalog materials can be accessed,
   -

   be aware of all geographic levels for a specific location,
   -

   determine what indexes and finding aids are available
   -

   see ways to avoid searching the same set of records multiple times
   accidentally,
   -

   see how common record types are frequently cataloged,



Preorder today and save $8.
<https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/WAF85QETY39FW>

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Have You Ever?
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*Note: A somewhat longer version of this article ran in the *Ancestry Daily
News on 11 December 2002.

Today we’re asking questions of ourselves that we should also ask of our
ancestors. If any of your ancestors are still living ask them the questions
yourself (as politely as possible though, as some are somewhat sensitive).
Most of us will not be able to get direct answers to these questions from
our ancestors. However, thinking about how we might have responded
ourselves might get us thinking differently about some of our own family
history problems. Sometimes we tend to forget our ancestors were human and
susceptible to the same frailties as we are. Putting yourself in your
ancestor’s boots, shoes, moccasins, or clogs might help you get over that
brick wall. There are no hard and fast answers—just questions and
suggestions.

General advice on the problems we’ll be discussing is to learn about the
time period, the geographic area, the cultural and political climate, and
the records themselves. Asking questions and being willing to learn is an
excellent starting point.

*Have You Ever Answered A Question Wrong On An Application Or A Form?*
Is it possible your ancestor gave a wrong answer on a document or record?
Perhaps he lied about his age in order to get in the service. Perhaps she
lied about her age in order to get married. Perhaps he thought the value of
his farm in 1860 was no one’s business or wanted to deflate the value in
case the taxman was within earshot of the census taker. There are many
reasons why one might “fudge” an answer on some form (although I’m not
encouraging fraud and deceit). An ancestor might have done it as well.

Obtaining all records on your ancestor may allow you to establish an
approximate date of a specific event. Just keep in mind that not all these
documents will be consistent. Record the information exactly as you find
it. Analyzing the information is necessary to potentially reach a
consensus—correcting the information as you copy it is not. Your ancestor
might have intentionally lied or given quick answers to just placate the
questioner. He might also have been confused about his actual age. It is
also possible that he was just wanting to confuse his descendants and keep
his past buried.


*Have You Ever “Approximated” Your Place Of Birth Or Residence?*Some of us
who live in the “boonies” find it easier to not give our exact residence as
no on ever knows where it is anyway. Many times it takes more time to
explain the exact location than it is worth. Consequently I frequently tell
people I live 45 minutes from Davenport, Iowa, or several hours west of
Chicago. It is easier. While my ancestors did not live where I did, some of
them estimated their original residence of place of birth. Some of my
German-born forebears listed on some American records the county seat as
their place of birth, instead of the little village where they were
actually born. They were not concerned with the discrepancy or the
possibility of someone researching the records one hundred years later.
Inconsistencies in locations may be due to approximations and listing the
nearest “big city” instead of the actual location of the event.

This problem is not always easily solved. Researchers should locate as many
records as possible, focusing on any source that might list the place of
birth for the focus person. These searches should include the children of
the focus person, and concentrate on those records that might include the
place of birth for the parents. Those unfamiliar with the area being
researched should obtain detailed maps and learn something about the
political jurisdictions that have covered the area being researched.


*Have You Ever Made A Mistake And Did Not Want Anyone To Know About It? Did
You Intentionally Hide Your Past From Someone?*Is it possible your ancestor
had an embarrassing secret he wanted to leave buried in the past? Was he
vague about his origins in an attempt to keep the secret hidden? Did your
ancestor leave Europe to avoid compulsory military service? Did you
ancestor want to “turn over a new leaf in a new location?” Did your
ancestor leave a painful past or childhood and never want to talk about it
or think about it again? All of these are reasons to be vague about their
past on official records.

I know one researcher whose ancestor left the coal mines of Pennsylvania as
a child and had absolutely no intention of returning. He rarely talked of
his past, and consequently, his family knows little of his origins. This
ancestor did not live during a time when providing a copy of a birth
certificate was necessary for employment. Mentioning specifics about the
past is not conducive to establishing a new identity.


*Did You Contemplate Naming A Child Something That Had Absolutely No
Connection To You Or Your Family?*Many family names are passed down through
the generations and some families name all their children for other family
members. Some do not. Does your child’s name have a family connection? Or,
did your ancestor simply pick a name for their child out of the air?

Your ancestor might have picked a name out of their contemporary culture as
well. There were many individuals named for Lorenzo Dow, once a popular
American figure. Not everyone who had “Lorenzo Dow” as a part of their name
was related to him, and making such a conclusion is not wise. But learning
that there was a famous person for whom your ancestor was named can help
you from going down the wrong path.

Determining if your ancestor was named for a once famous person may be as
easy as typing the name into a search engine such as Google. If my ancestor
was named Abraham Lincoln Smithshire, for example, I would type “Abraham
Lincoln” into the search engine, not my ancestor’s surname of Smithshire.
If I find a match, there is a good chance it is not a coincidence that the
particular name combination was chosen. Of course, for this particular
example, if I have many American ancestors and I’m unaware of whom Abraham
Lincoln is then it is time to brush up on my American history.


*Another Approach*If your ancestor gave a child a first and a middle name
that appears to be someone else’s first and last name, search for that
first and last name combination in online databases and indexes,
particularly census indexes. This is a more effective approach when the
person who originally had the name is relatively obscure.


*Have You Moved Somewhere Because You Had Family Or Close Relatives In The
Area That Would Help Out Until You Established Yourself?*Is it possible
your ancestor had acquaintances in a new city to which he moved? While some
move to a completely new area to establish a new identity or a new life,
many move to areas where they have some type of connection. This connection
may be a family member, a former neighbor, a job, etc. The connections to
family or friends may be easier to make than the connection to employment.

Analyze your ancestor’s neighbors for the first few years he lives in a new
locality. If he became naturalized, determine if anyone vouched for him
during the naturalization process. If the ancestor moved to a rural area,
determine if any neighbors are from the same state or country. If research
on your ancestor does not reveal a specific place of origin, research
neighbors or associates from the same area to determine if their records
are more specific in regards to their place of origin.


*Did You Contemplate Eloping When You Got Married?*Is it possible your
ancestors did the same thing? Did they “run off” to get married where no
one would know their ages or no one would know that their parents objected
to the marriage? Did they run across the state line to get married where
there was no obligatory waiting period after the license was issued? These
are factors that should be considered when looking for marriage records.


*Some Things Do Not Change*Some things about how our ancestors and we acted
are the same; certain aspects of human nature have changed little. For
example, our culture, society, and the expectations we place on individuals
have changed. Remember that the obligations of family and social status may
have played more of a role in your ancestor’s decisions than you realize.

While you probably can’t wear your ancestor’s shoes, put yourself in his
position as much as possible. Given the likely distance of time, geography,
and culture, it is not always possible to imagine our ancestor’s
motivations completely. However, making the attempt is always worth the
effort.

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Revised Full-Text Searching Webinar for 2026

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We’re excited to offer this revised presentation on the full-text searching
at *FamilySearch*--reflecting changes made to the site since this was
recorded in August 2025. We’ve redesigned our presentation as this
functionality continues to change. And…we have an extensive handout
complete with forms to help you find more people. Available for download by
5 January 2026. Order now for $25
<https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/67D7Z5H4ZQHJA>.

If you have purchased an earlier version of this presentation--email me at
mjnrootdig at gmail.com for the code to order this revision for $10.
Fully Utilizing Full-Text Search: Revised for January 2026

Your purchase includes:

   - *A 90 minute (or more presentation)* you can view as often as you want.
   - *Detailed handout* with charts and forms to help organize your
   searches. Charts and forms sent as separate files you can edit and
   customize and not as a locked PDF you have to re-create yourself as a new
   document.

We’ll be including and discussing:

*Determining what is in Full-Text Search—*what you can access at home and
what you will have to be in a FamilySearch facility or affiliate to access.

*Seeing How AI Transcriptions are different*—they aren’t like the
transcriptions made by humans. That can change your approach.

*Remembering that Full-Text means every word*—approaches need to differ as
we aren’t looking up a name in an index any more.

*Asking Who* is in the record? We aren’t just searching for the main person
like we did with traditional indexes. We’ll discuss how to determine who
could be mentioned in a record.

*Determining How to search?* There are a variety of ways to search and
filter results. We’ll see how each one works to help determine the best
strategy.

*Creating search strategies*—how full-text search changes your approach and
why just dumping terms in search boxes is not always effective.

*Determining what you found* The interface does not always make this clear.
We will show you how to get beyond the confusion and help you get enough
detail for a citation.

*Creating effective problem-solving approaches*—what to do when you cannot
find something you want.

*Demonstrating practical examples*—completely new people and families from
our previous presentations.

Available 5 January 2026. Order now for $25
<https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/67D7Z5H4ZQHJA>.


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Do You Know, Do You Think You Know, or Were You Assuming?

----------------------------

All women used to die in childbirth.

It’s not a true statement, but it is similar to other statements about
“history” that one sees floating around various genealogy discussion
forums. It is similar to statements such as:

   - in the 1800s everyone got married by the time they were twenty
   - in the 1700s no one lived past the age of forty
   - the youngest son always stayed home to help the parents
   - etc.

Obviously some people got married before they were twenty, some individuals
died before the age of forty, and there were times when the youngest
son was the one who stayed home to help the parents. But because something
happened sometimes does not mean it happened *all the time*. If you hear
one of these generalizations being made, ask yourself–how is this known? Is
it based upon some evidence from a variety of situations or families.
Sometimes these statements are made because someone noticed it a few times
or saw that it tended to happen in their own families. Those occurrences
would be probably be considered anecdotal and may not apply to the
population at large.

If we are not careful we can think our family is typical in ways that they
are not and think they are unique in ways that they are not. That’s one
reason why it’s beneficial to occasionally research a family other than our
own. It can broaden our research experience, strengthen our research
skills, and give us some perspective.

My ethnic German great-grandparents (children of German-born immigrants)
did not drink beer for reasons of which I am only partially aware. Here’s
my conclusion:

Germans don’t drink beer.

After all, mine did not and it’s reasonable to take a conclusion about my
family and extrapolate to a larger population.

No it’s not. My experience is anecdotal. Saying it is anecdotal does not
invalidate it. Saying it is anecdotal just means that I can’t use their
experience or lifestyle to draw conclusions about the experiences or
lifestyle of the larger ethnic group.

Think about how you know what you know.

It may be that you are entirely correct.

Or it may be that you are aggravating your genealogy brick wall.

You won’t know if you don’t ask.

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Consultation Sale--A Gift to Yourself!
-----------------------------
Give yourself that perfect holiday genealogy gift--a research consultation.

We are still offering our genealogy consultation sale--save $40.

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Sale is running now but consultations will be scheduled after the first of
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Just putting your information together may give you ideas.

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Michael John Neill
Genealogy Tip of the Day
http://www.genealogytipoftheday.com
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