Hi, my name is Elizabeth and like many of you, I became hooked on genealogy more than a decade ago and ended up joining forces with a team of likeminded ancestry buffs and amateur “people detectives” to create this website. We all share a similar passion – getting answers to questions – about people that have touched our or others’ lives – positively or negatively, past or present.
We understand that although there is lots of information – in fact, too much sometimes – out there, and this makes it difficult to know which ones to use, and who to trust for information about them. If you’re like most people, you want to obtain the information you’re seeking quickly, easily, and affordably.
If so, you’ve come to the right place because we’ve done the legwork for you and have and will continue to use and review online genealogy and ancestry resources and tools, and public records and reverse number websites. We’ll offer you candid answers to your questions and only recommend sites we’ve personally used. You'll also notice that we only rate paid-for research site for a few very good reasons (at least in our opinion). First, although there are hundreds of websites that allow visitors to search for free we have not found one - including the very best free resources out there such as the mormon genealogy website (owned by The Church of Latter Day Saints) - that has the number of general and specialized databases and breath and depth of information that the paid-for sites have. Period. And yes, you can find just about anything you want for free IF you're willing to slog through mounds of information and go from one online resource to the next (and spend time in government vital records offices). We simply believe that this is a waste of your valuable time - especially since the fees you'll pay are extremely reasonable and afforable to most everyone.
Keep this in mind - Your ability to "get to" accurate and complete information about people living or deceased is entirely dependent upon the information contained in huge databases... Uploading and maintaining the billions of records housed in these massive databases cost money, both in manpower and direct fees (contrary to popular belief, most government agencies charge for public information). Although many free sources have well-intentioned volunteers and/or hard-working employees and impressive databases, they simply cannot compete with companies like Ancestry.com or the other industry giants. However, you will find great specific information on topics such as, Irish genealogy, German genealogy, Jewish ancestry and genealogy, and the like at some of the smaller, free websites (we'll be adding those to our recommendations soon).
We know you’re biggest concern is uncovering your family’s history or mysteries, locating “lost” friends and family members, and checking public records to ensure that you and your loved ones remain safe.
My maternal and paternal families’ histories are as colorful, complex, and remarkable as finely woven tapestries. Like my immediate family members, and me my ancestors were a mixed bag. Some sparkled, other were humdrum. Some were brave, others timid. Some struggled with external forces, other struggled with their internal demons. Some enjoyed long lives, other died far too soon. Some ventured out of their comfort zones and moved mountains. Others stayed home out of duty, love or fear. Some broke the rules, others complied...
And some kept secrets ... secrets about past lives, broken marriages, illegitimate children, debilitating vices, wrongful deaths, wars fought, religious battles, and even crimes committed.
But it wasn’t until I took the time to unlock these truths that I realized how the story of their lives armed with invaluable insights into my own.
I think David Baldacci - world famous author - offers the best explanation of the importance of looking into our pasts in his book, "Wish You Well" (2000, Warner Books, New York, NY). Here's what he says:
"Once we reach adulthood, most of us assume we know all there is to know about our parents and other family members. However, if you take the time to ask questions and actually listen to the answers, you may find there is still much to learn about people so close to you... Unfortunately, we live in a time now where everyone seems to be solely looking ahead, as though we deem nothing in the past worth of our attention. The future is always fresh and exciting, and it has a pull on us that times past simply can never muster. Yet it may well be that our greatest wealth as human beings can be 'discovered' by simply looking behind us."
My father died in 1990 and my mother died in 2004 and one of my biggest regrets is that I didn’t ask them enough questions about our past. (If I had, it would have taken me far less time to put all of the pieces together). I became interested in learning more about my family’s past, right after my mom’s death. As I was going through her files and papers I was surprised – to say the least – to find pictures; letters; postcards; death, marriage, and birth certificates and cemetery plot records for people I didn’t even know existed! So I started digging – and my digging quickly turned into obsession. Here’s just a little bit of what I uncovered...
My father and his only sibling, Joe, were born and raised near New York City. My grandfather, Curt, was a German Jew who, with his parents and seven siblings, immigrated to the US when he was five-years-old and was working in my great-grandfather’s NYC bar by the time he was seven (so much for child labor laws). With the exception of his brother, Herbert, (who was an orthodox Jew who spent several years in Sing-Sing) all of his siblings died before they were ten years old – five succumbed in less than two weeks from diphtheria and the other, a boy died instantly after being run over by an out-of-control buggy.
He eventually married my grandmother, Catherine, an Irish Catholic who – according to the documents I uncovered – already had a 4-year-old son – my uncle Joe. Was Joe’s her son? Was Joe their son? ( I still don’t know, but more to come when I put those pieces together.) I do know, however, that there was a great deal of friction between Curt and Joe and it’s rumored that he married Catherine out of pity and adopted her bastard son, but I’ve never uncovered any adoption papers to prove it. Again, more to come...
Anyhow, after high school and some college, my dad, Paul, enlisted in the Army and was stationed in Washington, DC during World War II. That’s where he met his wife – and my mother – Jewell.
Jewell’s early life was vastly different than my father’s. She and her 13 siblings were born and raised on their parents’ farm in North Carolina. They were proud Southerners who “people” had never owned slaves but had sent many of their sons to fight – and die – in the Civil War. Although not overly religious, her family attended services at their Primitive Baptist church fairly regularly – in part because it was their only social outlet. (After all, who would have been crazy enough to invite this lovely couple - and their 14 kids - over for dinner??)
My maternal great grandfather was a veterinarian who died suddenly while ministering a sick horse and my great grandmother was a self-avowed tea-totter, who apparently died from complications associated with alcoholism. Geez, that’s not the story I heard...
After high school, Jewell – the only one out of the entire clan to eventually make her home outside of North Carolina - accepted a job at the Army War College in Washington D.C. where she met and married my dad.
And as they say, the rest is history (and this is just the tip of the iceberg – there’s much, much more).
But that’s really the point, isn’t it? It’s all history – the history of our lives. It’s the story of how seemingly disparate people joined hands, made families, and left their mark on our lives and perhaps even on the lives of countless others. One of my proudest discoveries was that several my German relatives are included on Oskar Schlinder’s (Nazi party member who saved over 1,100 Jews from concentration camps during the Holocaust).
I would never have known this – or many, many other things about my ancestors – if I hadn’t conducted the research.
It was, however, a time-consuming and frustrating process because nothing was in one place. At the time, there were only a few sites that allowed for more advanced searches, but their charges were exorbitant – at least in my mind – and their information was incomplete at best!
So, I went the slow – but free – route. I slogged through international databases; federal, state, and county public records; church logs; birth, death, and marriage certificates; US Census data; hospital and prison records, family bibles... you name it.
Do I still conduct my research this way? Absolutely not, because there’s no good reason to do so... Thank goodness. I did it the hard way, but you don’t have to do the same.
Why? Because there are many very reliable – and extremely affordable – resources for finding the answers you’re seeking about your family. I’ve either used or reviewed most of them and some are simply better than others.
Website Snapshots and Reviews
So, now it's time to let the rest of my team weigh in. They are an integral part of this website and some of the most dedicated genealogical hobbiests and information gatherers! We all recognize that you're faced with many choices on where to go to get the information you're seeking. And the truth is, some are just better than others! So, as promised we’ve done our due diligence and have documented our findings right here (Simply click on the links on the right hand side of this page and you'll be taken to that website's review page). Here are just some of the criteria our team uses to compare and rate resources:
1. One-stop services. We prefer to use sites that have databases with a wide variety of general information, such as birth, death and marriage records; international travel documents; and military records. This saves a lot of time and hopping around from one website to another. Yes, you can find a great deal of information for free, ask yourself if it’s worth spending three hours of your time to save $5 or $10 before going this route.
2. Affordable monthly or yearly access fees. Let’s face it, very few of us have enough time – or energy – to do all of our research in one big chunk. This is a little-here-little-there hobby and it’s frustrating and stressful to have limited access to data for short periods of time – OR be nickel-and-dimed to death for every scrap of information.
3. Current, thorough, and update information. We also sites that take keep their databases relevant and update them often – for instance, ones that take the time to convert old microfiche files to downloadable pdf files.
Also, you’ll find that some sites are better at one thing than another. For instance, some of the newer government record sites are best for more current information (e.g. cell phone number trace; reverse phone numbers; background checks; criminal records; missing people and the like), while other sites’ are geared more toward family genealogy and ancestral records. These sites usually have more specialized information so you can dig down deeper into topics such as Mormon genealogy, Irish or German ancestry, cemetery records and obituaries, Jewish genealogy, parish records, etc. They also have additional tools and resources like family tree makers, blogs and forums, and learning centers. You generally won’t find these types of extras on the quick-find US public records site... but each have their merits. You should choose one according to:
1. The type of information you’re seeking
2. Your budget
3. Your level of expertise and interest
4. How long and how much you’ll be using the site
Please note: There are many, many valuable resources and websites to obtain information – way too many to mention here. Additionally, as I mentioned above, there are lots of free resources for obtaining the same information such as the major search engines like Google, MSN, and Yahoo; Federal, state, and county public record sites (.gov); and various online and offline associations and organizations.
And while we have, and will continue to use some of these, we are doing so less and less, because we’ve found that they simply require too much time to navigate through and often lead to dead ends – and frustration. In our minds, they are best used as backups for obtaining very, very specific information such as photos of old buildings and towns or church membership logs.
Therefore we have choosen to share with your the best-of-the-best. Please rest assured that we have personally reviewed and used each and every one of these – and a whole lot more – and candidly and objectively endorse the following sites, without reservation. We hope you find this information helpful in choosing.
