New to Genealogy / Family History

So your brand new to family history/genealogy, where do you begin?

With yourself. What do you know about you?  Your date and place of birth.  Your own life history events.  Are you married yet do you have children yet.  Etc…  everything relative to you.

 Next your parents. The same questions you asked your self as well as try asking some of these:

What is your full name?

When and where were you born?

 Who is your mother?

When and where was your mother born?

What can you tell me about your mother’s relatives?

Who is your father?

 When and where was your father born?

What can you tell me about your father’s relatives?

What are the full names of each of your brothers and sisters?

When and where were each of your brothers and sisters born?

What memories do you have of each of your brothers and sisters?

What schools did you and your brothers and sisters go to?

Whom did your brothers and sisters marry?

Whom did you marry?

What are the full names of each

Thirdly your grandparents yes all four of them.  Ask them all the same questions as above.

Take good notes.  Type them up.  Review them see what other questions you have.  Ask lots of questions.  The more questions the better.  Only way to get the real answers for most people.

For me one day I called to ask my mom about the housing as a child she lived in.  Such as when they lived on the farm.  When they moved after the war to the city then as a teenager into a house 6 miles from town.  These were questions of my curiosity.   How many bedrooms who shared what was there a bathroom in the house etc… You might be surprised of how life changes so much between generations yet so much still is the same.

Good Luck!