SO WHAT!

Let’s Analyze

Dr. Shelley Murphy aka “familytreegirl”

Family History Center

Fredericksburg, VA

March 14, 2015

Genealogy 101

Begin with yourself or one of your parents

Know your records and resources

Write down your information-Document!

Who is your oldest living family member?-

Call them-Today

Oral History, Photos, and Sharing of Information

If you are not organized you’ll become frustrated and quit, or duplicate

research you’ve already done

Ref: Black Roots, Tony Burroughs pg.4

You will become successful in collecting pieces of paper.

If you do not have a system for filing, saving, or retrieving.

What goes Out Must come IN Whether you're writing to a cousin or to a county clerk

three states away, tracking all of your pending information requests is crucial.

Keep copies of all the letters you send — they act as records of what you requested when,

Tell the family of your successes or failures…it will become a recording and you might get some help or new information.

What you need to know about a

person

• Full name and nicknames (why nicknames)

• Where were they born, what county, city, state date, where they born in a hospital?

• What was going on in the area during the years you are researching?

• What were the parents, names, grandparents, etc, where they born, type of work they did, siblings…

• Type of work, who are the neighbors, church affiliations

Common Challenges Records not recorded into public record

Records destroyed

Denial-don’t want to know, it’s the past

Don’t want to share the information

Received information that is not the truth or reliable

You keep looking for people of color

Do you really have a wall/challenge?

GPS Genealogical Proof Standard-developed by BCG to

help build a case by extensive research and sounds

evaluation.

Apply the standard when you can’t solved questions

beyond a reasonable doubt

Ref: Christine Rose: Genealogical Proof Standard,

Building a Solid Case, 3rd Ed. Revised. (p. 2)

GPS Process-5 Steps1. Conduct a reasonably exhaustive search for all

information that is or maybe pertinent to the identity,

relationship, event, or situation in question

2. Collect and include in your compilation a complete,

accurate citation to the source or sources of each item

of information we use.

GPS Process-5 Steps3. Analyze and correlate the collected information to

assess its quality as evidence

4. Resolve any conflicts caused by items of evidence that

contradict each other or are contrary to a proposed

(hypothetical) solution to the question; and

5. Arrive at a soundly reasoned, coherently written

conclusion.

Timeline-Gotta Have One.

Why do you have to have one

Review the handout

Look for the gaps

Once you draft one-what do you have?

Why Develop a Research

Plan?

Keeps you organized

It’s a plan…

Saves some time

Guides you where you are going

Let’s sum this up You need to do a timeline in order to develop a good

solid research plan

You should analyze each document you received and

use the questions, etc to build your research plan

Murphy’s “So What” principle

Analyze-Let’s View a Death Record

Research Plan

Components-look at the

handout

Know the basics

Recognize the challenges you

might face

Complete a timeline on your

ancestor

Use the “So What” principles to

analyze

Develop your research plan

Information Contact: keli1@aol.com

Find me on Facebook: Shelley Murphy, living in Paris,

France or Afro-American Historical Genealogical

Society, Central Virginia Chapter

Twitter: @familytreegirl

Telephone: 434-806-7433