How to Record a Family History

What Is Family History?

Family history goes beyond the basics of genealogy into a broader scope of who our ancestors were. It is more than the dates and places, it speaks to who our ancestors were and what they did in their day to day lives.

Studying our family history allows us as researchers to place the people we descend from in a social context. It also brings in family members who may not be direct-line ancestors and the influences they had on the family as a whole. As an example a famous great uncle or aunt may be discovered adding flavor to the family history.

It is a study that goes beyond the dates and may include things like exact addresses, movement patterns of the family, occupations and notable events in the lives of our ancestors. You may even learn something from the people who surrounded your family members, even those not related such as neighbors and co-workers.

Why Is It Important to Record Family History?

With basic genealogy the dates and places are great to know but are somewhat limiting. These details are generally accurate and connect us to the names and biographical data of our ancestors. Family history however is far more, it gives us a perspective of who we come from and the actual history of our families.

We may find pictures of individuals we have never met or discover stories of an ancestor who may have been a war hero or held an important occupation. The broader context of family history can also uncover mistakes in official documents which may even change the family story.

The hard work that goes into these discoveries would amount to very little if the stories and facts were not recorded in some method for posterity. We do not just research for ourselves, we do so for our own descendants as well as others who are not of our line but also come from our ancestors.

Create a Family History Book

A great method for preserving our research into our ancestors is to create a family history book. This can be a basic or extremely detailed narrative that relates to the things we have discovered about our ancestors.

Gather the Stories and Pictures

The most obvious place to start when forming your family history book is to gather together your family stories, research findings and any pictures you have. You should look to get a collection of pictures of not only your ancestors but also research graphics and images of official documents.

When it comes to the stories that you gather from family try and make sure they are accurate to how they were first relayed to you. This is why you should always record family interviews on audio files whenever possible.

The focus of your research, whoever that is, should also be the main character of the family history book. This is why it is vital to make sure you have ready at hand all the important images and stories relating to those you intend to include.

Choose Your Book Type

There are various types of family history books and it will depend on the scale and scope of the information you have collected as to the most suitable. Additionally if there is a special reason such as a relative's birthday for which you are creating the book you may have particular needs.

As a special gift the best method might be a lay flat photo album or hardcover photobook. The lay flat offers a book that has no seams and a handcrafted appearance. A hardcover photo book is not as decorative so is suitable for a more casual gift. It also offers a higher potential page count.

Softcover options are acceptable however they do not tend to be hard wearing and may over time start to show their age. This is fine for a mass produced family history book that may be for the whole family but as an individual gift for a parent or grandparent it is not as suitable.

Organize Your Information and Images

It is key that you organize both your text and images into a chronological order. This is vital to create flow in the book and avoid confusion. Often individuals with the same name in a family pop up in different generations so it is important to maintain order in the book.

If you can, try to add dates to any family images you use or at least a date range. This will help the reader follow the chronology of the lives of individuals included in the book.

Consider Using Heritage as a Theme

When using colors and other decorative flares in a family book it may be interesting to give a nod towards the family's heritage. A family that identifies as being of Irish, German, African etc. descent may want to show this in the layout of the family history book.

This can be achieved by including motifs and colors that might be associated with the heritage of the family. In doing this you add more of an homage to the ancestors listed, some of whom may have been born in the country that the family's heritage originates from.

Include Quotes

Many family stories may include something that a great grandparent may have said that could have been funny or poignant. It may even be a saying they were known for repeating often. The point is if an ancestor was known for saying something of interest to the family this could be included as a graphic under a photo of them.

There may also be songs or song lyrics that may be pertinent to an ancestor which you might consider using to further give insight into who they are. Poems can also be poignant especially if they were personal favorites or perhaps even were featured in memorials for deceased ancestors.

Gather Audio Interviews

When it comes to our most recent ancestors our greatest resource for information is the older generations of our family. In the general course of research we will have interviewed these senior family members seeking family history facts and stories.

One of the best ways to conduct these interviews, if the relative is willing, is to record your talk with them to an audio file. This not only ensures that you get every detail they tell you because you can go back through the recording but also that the voice of that individual is also preserved for future generations.

Spend as much time as you can discussing the family and listen to every story your relatives can impart as the slightest clue can make a difference.

Record Your Own Findings on Audio Files

Sometimes written text may not be of interest to those who will be interested in discovering your work so recording your findings as audio files can be more engaging. You can read out the stories and facts that pertain to the family and maybe even include a slideshow video to accompany it for those who are more audibly and visually engaged.

It is always wise to have backups for your research and this can include the recordings of your relatives as well as self recorded accounts of your research and important findings. This ensures that everyone has a chance to find your research accessible and interesting.

Record Online at a Website

There are several websites online that allow you to not only build your family tree but also to record and save the documents and pictures you discover along the way as well. Ancestry.com for example has a very comprehensive family tree creation tool which actually autofills certain levels of your family history for you.

You can also often write notes and explanations regarding events in your family history that can be connected to all of your ancestors who were involved. Although Ancestry is among the best there are several other sites on which you can create a family tree and history such as Myheritage and Familysearch.org.

Final Thoughts

Recording your family history research is important to avoid losing the fruits of hours of hard work. Having multiple methods of preserving your family history findings not only gives you various ways to present the work but also offers backups in case something happens to one of the records.

Neil Edwards

Genealogist and family-tree research specialist

Neil was born in Shropshire, England surrounded by centuries of living history. His interest in the past has been a lifelong passion leading to undergraduate degrees in both Economic History & Geography and History & Politics.

This interest in history quickly translated to family history when he moved to the U.S. in 2010. It was here that he began working on his own family tree as well as that of his American wife. That research allowed him to gain a wealth of experience working with both U.S. and European genealogical documents and studying their best uses in researching family history.

Following 9 years of honing his genealogical research skills, Neil was proud to have earned a certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University in late 2019. Neil also took part in the research process for a Duke University study into the families of 19th Century UK Members of Parliament.

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