Process of Elimination

I’d really like this blog to be more interactive. So, for next week’s post, I will be answering any questions you have. Here’s your opportunity to get help. This week make a comment on the blog (not facebook). I’d like to see any questions you have or what piece of your puzzle that you are working on. What surname, location, and time period are you working on? It’s not hard to make a comment. Just click on the bottom of any post where it says “comment”, if no one has commented yet it will say “no comment”. Click there, and then scroll down to the bottom of the screen. There will be a white box and right above it says “Post a comment”.  Below the white box, after you type in your comment, it will say “select a profile” click on the down arrow and highlight “Anonymous”. You can sign your name in your comment. Please share with your friends and family. I’d like to help as many people as possible.

Now for this week’s post. This past weekend, the National Swedish Archives were available to browse online for free. Here’s a key word, “Browse”. I think we’re so spoiled with all the indexes that have been made available and search functions, that we have become lazy and seldom “browse” records. I’ll admit, “browsing” is always my last resort. I search all the indexes available and then if I can’t find my information, I start browsing. “Browsing” is the old school of genealogy. It’s the tedious, time consuming work of genealogy.  Is it necessary? Absolutely! There are millions of records that have not been indexed and unless you are willing to roll up your sleeves and work for those hard to find records, you will never find all your puzzle pieces.

Yesterday, I spent about 5 hours, “browsing” the National Swedish Archives, only to find “nothing”! I probably scanned through 400 pages of records looking for one family. One may say, “what a waste of time” and that I didn’t make progress.

Have you ever done a Sudoku puzzle? Sometimes, you have to solve the puzzle, by process of elimination.  It can’t be this number or that number, so that only leaves two other numbers. So it is with genealogy. Sometimes, the only way to find information is to eliminate possibilities. This is especially true in your hard to find “brick wall” lines. There are three “John Taylor’s” living in one county/area. One is my relative (chances are they all are relatives, but only one is my direct descendant). I start looking at one of the “John Taylor’s” until I determine he is mine or not. If he isn’t, I haven’t failed, because now I know that one of the two remaining “John Taylor’s” is probably mine. (But, remember always double check your source)

Yesterday, I eliminated 400 possibilities. This makes me closer to finding my ancestors. Now for another very important part of eliminating possibilities: Keep a record of all your search efforts. Next time the National Swedish Archives are free online again, will I remember what I searched or will I spend another 5 hours searching the same 400 records? Now that would be a waste of time!!! It’s simple to track your searches. I simply use a word document. I have a search log for each of my surnames. Yesterday, I was searching “Lundell”, so I will save in my Lundell word document, what records I searched yesterday. How do you track your searches?