OneGreatFamily Blog

• How To Add A Spouse To An Individual

  2/15/2013 10:54:00 PM

  With plagues, accidents, illness, and other such problems found in every society throughout history, it is no wonder that people either chose or were forced to remarry. Sometimes people remarried after being widowed (especially if they had young children). Other times people married out of shear necessity when the mother or father died, to ensure the care and survival of their family. Regardless of which reason they remarried, it is important to know how to document an additional spouse.

  To add an additional spouse in Genealogy Browser, select the individual to whom you want to add the spouse. For example, if George and Leah are married, and Leah dies, then you will want to make sure that George is in the "Selected Individual" box. You will see the first spouse (Leah) in the spouse box. Click the down arrow next to the spouse (Leah) and click on "Select here to add a spouse" You will then be able to add the spouse (Lillie) and the marriage information. When the correct set of parents are in the selected individual and spouse boxes, you may then add their children.
  
  
  
  
  

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• How To Change Your Email Address And Your Email Preferences

  2/13/2013 8:30:00 PM

  By Brenda Eyring, Customer Service Representative

  If you would like to change what types of emails you receive from OneGreatFamily, you will need to edit your email preferences. To make those edits, follow these steps.

  1. Go to OneGreatFamily.com
  2. Enter your username and password
  3. When you have logged in, go to "My Account"
  
  
  
  4. A new screen will come up with 4 boxes:
  
  
  5. The bottom left box is labeled "Email Preferences"
  6. In that box is a button that says "Edit"
  7. Click on that button
  8. You will see:
  
  9. Select the ones you want
  10. Unselect the ones you don't want
  11. Re-enter your password
  12. Hit "Submit"

  If you just want to change what address we send our emails to, follow these steps.

  1. Go to OneGreatFamily.com
  2. Enter your username and password
  3. When you have logged in, go to "My Account"
  4. A new screen will come up with 4 boxes
  5. Find the box labeled "Account Information"
  6. Click on "edit" in that box
  7. Type in your new email address
  8. Click "submit"

  
  

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• Learning About Last Names Can Help You Find More Ancestors

  2/11/2013 9:00:00 PM

  Last names are the key to genealogical research. Over time, they can be spelled in different ways, surrendered at marriage, and sometimes changed for other reasons. So if you want to find your family's history, you need to learn to search effectively for your family last names. The first thing to remember is that in times gone by, people worried less about consistent spelling; William Shakespeare, for example, spelled his name half a dozen different ways. So don't be surprised if you discover that a simple name like "Hardy" was spelled "Hardie," "Hardee," "Hardey," and "Haredy" by different relatives, sometimes in the same immediate family.

  Names translated from other languages into English can be even more confusing. "Longacre" and "Longenecker" are variant names for the same family.
  
  When researching family names, the best tactic is to look for similar consonants; the vowels often tend to shift and change. That is the principle of the Soundex searching system, which can help you discover ancestors you might otherwise have missed.

  One useful strategy is to keep a list of last names you are looking for. You can list whole lines or specific individuals you're searching for. When you're talking with other genealogy researchers, ask them about your family names. Look them up in various indexes to historical documents. When you keep your eyes open for a family last name, you may be surprised at the treasures you find.

  You're not alone in searching for your last names. At OneGreatFamily, you may find other researchers who have discovered important branches of your family tree. A single new link can help you discover thousands of ancestors and entire new lines.

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• Attending Genealogical Conferences and Events

  2/8/2013 12:14:00 PM

  If you've never attended a genealogical conference or event before, it may be because you've been intimidated by the prospect. After all, aren't genealogical conferences for professionals, or people who make genealogy their life's work? Actually, that's not accurate. There are genealogy conferences, expos, retreats, seminars, and workshops for every skill level and every interest level. Whether you're a beginner or an expert (or somewhere in between), you can find an event to suit your needs.

  So what can you gain from attending a genealogical event? You can hone your research skills; you can try out new genealogy software programs; you can network with other family historians; you can learn about the latest and greatest innovations in the field of family history. Another bonus of attending conferences and events is that you often get free stuff.  Most events also provide a conference syllabus at no extra charge. These are packed with useful charts, outlines, and articles from the conference speakers. This way, instead of furiously scribbling down notes you can just absorb what the speakers are saying, because the information you need is already in the syllabus.

  Many conferences are hosted by genealogical societies; others are hosted by archives or libraries. Some events have become very well-known in the genealogical world, and are attended by hundreds.  The annual conference of the Federation of Genealogical Societies is a prominent genealogical event; it is held in a different American city every fall. The National Genealogical Society Conference, one of the most prestigious because of its backing organization, also moves around every year. NGSC workshops cover everything from Italian ancestry to Scandinavian, and there are also "consult-an-expert" sessions where you can collaborate with others and get research guidance on difficult projects.

  If you prefer something more low-key, however, you don't have to travel across the country to attend a high-profile conference. You can learn new things by attending your local genealogical society's conference, or by attending the conference of your nearest genealogical library or archive. Get online and find a genealogical event that will serve you.

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• Is Your OneGreatFamily Tree Growing?

  2/6/2013 10:40:00 AM

  OneGreatFamily is a remarkable service that continues to help people identify tens of thousands of previously unknown ancestors each week. OneGreatFamily is growing and the information included at OneGreatFamily is becoming more accurate. People whose genealogies are included as part of OneGreatFamily are seeing their family trees continue to grow.

  How can you make sure you are one of the people who benefits from this amazing growth and collaboration? We'd like to suggest two ways:

  1. Submit your entire known family tree!
  
  The more information you provide to OneGreatFamily, the greater the chance of tying into other ancestral lines. OneGreatFamily allows people to enter information directly into Genealogy Browser, enter information through Family Dashboard, or to submit a GEDCOM file to start or expand their family tree. With each additional generation you enter of your own family tree, you are increasing your ability to know if another member of OneGreatFamily is already working on your family tree. Identifying ONE common ancestor can result in finding a whole new ancestral line.
  
  Many people have been able find new matching data and meet distant relatives after entering only a few generations of their family trees . . . or even just a few ancestors; however, others with "less common" ancestors may need to supply OneGreatFamily with more information to get started. You are guaranteed further success over time as OneGreatFamily continues to enjoy phenomenal growth.

  2. See your family tree to the end of each line
  
  Genealogy Browser only shows the first seven generations of your family tree as its default setting; however, you may actually have more than seven generations of data available at OneGreatFamily.
  
  You can identify whether or not you are seeing your entire family tree by recognizing "end of line" individuals. An "end of line" individual is someone in the OneGreatFamily family tree with no known ancestors. You can find them quickly because they are in red boxes as shown in the example below.
  

  If you see a line in your family tree that doesn't end with an individual in a red box, you are not seeing your entire family tree. The following instructions will help you change the preference for how many generations can be viewed in Genealogy Browser. You can then expand the Starfield View (pedigree) to see your entire family tree at OneGreatFamily.

  Number of Generations Display on the Toolbar
  
  You will notice this drop down menu in the toolbar section at the top of Genealogy Browser. This convenient menu lets you quickly and easily set the number of generations to be displayed in the Starfield area.
  
  Many users have never changed this setting and so have never actually seen their entire family tree on OneGreatFamily. If you have never changed this setting, we strongly encourage you to play around with it. You can select a value off the drop down menu or just enter a value into the box. If you are on a high-speed internet connection, we would suggest you try starting with at least 50 generations. Dial-up users might want to start with 20 generations.

  Remember, the higher the number, the longer it may take to load your pedigree. Still, you could be surprised to see how far back your family tree goes, and it will be worth the wait!

  Family Dashboard End of Line Widget

  Another way to view your "End of Line" ancestors is on Family Dashboard with the "End of Line" widget:

  This widget shows you a list of 3 random people from your family tree that have neither parent listed in OneGreatFamily. These people can be excellent choices for focusing further research into your family tree.

  If you click on the "more" button on the widget, a window will pop up with the Details Page that lists all ancestors in your family tree that are the end of their line in OneGreatFamily. This Details Page allows you to sort by Surname, First Name, Birth Date, Birth Place, Death Date, or Death Place. You can click a button to view an ancestor in Genealogy Browser, see how they are related to you with use of the relationship calculator, or view the migration calculator.

  By looking at your end of line ancestors, you can see where to begin to work on extending the reach of your genealogy.

  You can view any and all information you have contributed to OneGreatFamily without subscribing; however, the ability to view details on individuals who have been added to your tree through the OneGreatFamily service is reserved for subscribers only.

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