Ancestry dot com
 

I recently signed up for an account and started creating my family tree. The amount of information is incredible! There are scanned original documents for verification such as census reports and ship manifests available.

I am very impressed. Anyone use it?

My mother was researching our family when she passed away back in November. She was amazed at the things she knew to be correct that she found there. Our problem is all that information is in her account and no one knows her password.

Can't you use her email to reset the account?

I'd like to get on there at some point when I have enough spare time to actually poke around. Isn't part of their advertising about how sometimes you run into existing users that are part of your family tree? Anyone have that happen?

What's it cost to join?

It is not cheap.

Bear in mind that the Mormon church is actually the data pool for any ancestry information through their familysearch.org. They have amassed a huge database of microfiche that is slowly being transcribed into a web searchable format. Birth, marriage & death records exist from censuses that have been done in much of the Western world every 10 years since 1841 - 1851. They also have church parish records that pre-date the censuses that are gradually being copied as well. All of the genealogy websites tap into this data pool.

That all said, things get pretty fuzzy any earlier than about 1800.

Ian

I'm not sure if get anything out of it. My dad already has the family tree going back to the mid 1700's.

I'm a member and the site is incredible! Also Find A Grave - Millions of Cemetery Records is very useful as well and free!

My wife uses Ancestry and says this happens all the time and is of great benefit fleshing out little data streams.

I went to the geneaology library in Salt Lake City when I was a kid and had no luck finding anything other than some names we thought were relatives, but nothing concrete.

That's good to know. So if I pay for the service, some of the money will go to the Mormons who don't pay any taxes and I will pay w taxed $$ to find out information that is completely useless to me, possibly not even accurate.

I think I'll pass.

No, it means you can go to familysearch.org and get the same info for free, but without the nifty tree making functions.

So you were OK with it until you found out the Mormons were involved? :rolleyes:

My "family tree" is a bush, I don't want to see it...

No, I wasn't going to do it anyway. I have nothing against the Mormons.

Fhc
 

Most "LDS"......Mormon Family History Centers have this source free on their PC's.

You can also go to our Church's web site and search for the links.

I know that a not-too-distant direct ancestor of mine was hung for murder in Northern California a couple generations back. That's enough info for me, thanks.

I already know more about my ancestry than is on any of those databases

Yup, Our Son used it to work on his Geneology merit badge for BSA. He went back 8 generations on my wifes side - come to find out she is 100% German. All farmers. Go figuer.

Sign up as Barack Obama and see what comes up.