field research

Learn why field research is important for genealogy and history research.

Whether you are planning a half-day, day, week, or month-long genealogy research trip, care and preparation in your planning will enrich and enhance your opportunities to successfully prioritize and accomplish your goals.

Organize Your Research

Before you travel ten or even hundreds of miles to find the library or archive in your ancestors’ hometown, make sure the records you seek aren’t as close to your computer or down the street at your local library.

I had planned one research trip to New England and had extensively researched the various libraries and record repositories to find what I was looking for. One of my stops was to the regional library, and I spent half a day looking through their microfilmed church records. When I arrived home, I learned that the records I sought could be viewed on microfilm from the local LDS family history center or acquired by interlibrary loan.

Searching for family records in your ancestor’s origins should only be undertaken after you are sure you cannot acquire the records through readily accessible means. You won’t want to spend hours and hours in an old church or archive and find out later that the records you needed were just minutes away. Try to identify which records, books, and histories have not been microfilmed or are not open for interlibrary loans.

Okay, you have done your homework and confirmed that you want or need to conduct field research. Now what?

Review your records before you go on your trip. It’s essential to go over your records very carefully. Review every printout, photocopy, note, and Internet record. Know what you have and what you don’t have, and make a to-do list of what to find. The essential genealogical advice is to work from what you know to what you don’t know. Please do not take your entire notebook; instead, take keynotes that will aid in your search during the trip. If you bring your laptop, you may already have all the details electronically.

Remember, there are records available in the United States (such as parish records at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah). Concentrate on what’s not available here.

What kind of records can’t be found at home? It’s been mentioned several times to focus on those records you can’t find in your homeland. The following is an excellent example of what to look for. A fellow genealogist had been hunting for a particular ancestor for twenty-eight years. All he knew about the person was that he might have worked aboard ships as a young man. Before his trip, he became aware of a Mariner Library in that ancestor’s country. While at the library, he found a letter written in the hand of the ancestor in what was known as the Marine Board correspondence. He also found meal lists from the 1850s and various other documents related to his family. This type of information you won’t find in microfilm or online. It takes visiting the ancestral lands to accomplish such research.

Questions to ask that can yield treasures. Remember you’re conducting this research because you cannot acquire these records from home. Make sure you ask your libraries, archivists, and clerks questions such as the following:

  • What indexes or collections are unique to your facility?
  • Do you have card files, newspapers, original records, computer databases, networks, or compact discs that can only be searched at your repository?
  • Have your records been microfilmed? If yes, where else are they located?
  • Are any of your collections accessible online?
  • Does your collection have records such as church records that have not been microfilmed?
  • Do you have records from (period)? If not, do you know where I can find them? Note that many countries are consolidating rare records to a common depository.

Determine what resources are available in that area before you start your trip; research to determine the places with information or materials you can use. Resources can include libraries, archives, genealogical societies, historical societies, courthouses, vital record offices, churches, funeral homes, chambers of commerce, cemeteries, schools, and fraternal organizations.

Don’t just concentrate on libraries, courthouses, and cemeteries. Frequently, genealogists ignore regional archives or regional libraries that may contain valuable records.

Determine what type of information you seek. Know what you are looking for and what you need. Do your homework before leaving to know where you want to go and what to look at when you get there.

I like to begin by writing down questions to the answers I am looking for. This gives me a start to my research plan. For example:

  • Who are the great-grandparents?
  • What was the name of my dad’s brother, who died as an infant?
  • Where is the house my mom grew up in?

On one of my business trips to the New York City area, I made arrangements to take a few days of vacation and conduct research concerning my stepfather’s line in the Jersey City, New Jersey, area. Before this trip, I prepared extensively so that my short time in New Jersey would be most beneficial. I researched and located the available resources in the city and county. I made notes about my family and printed off all the information I had about the family from my genealogy database program. I asked myself questions about what I wanted to find out about the family and made a list of the types of information I wanted to locate, the possible types of records that might satisfy the needs, and where I might find the records. Then I listed, by location, the people and record types I wanted to find. For example, if I were going to the courthouse, I would have a list of each individual and the types of records I would hope to find there for each person (birth, marriage, and death records; property tax records; wills; and so on).

I contacted each resource, discussed my needs, and confirmed the types of records that were available, the hours of operation, key persons to contact, any special requirements for viewing or acquiring records, the availability of copy machines, and if there were any associated costs, and whether there were fees to enter the facility if any. I also asked about what types of personal documents they had to prove lineage (if needed), the availability of people to help me, guidelines for using cameras, types of facilities to do research in, opportunity to do the research online versus in person, and if I needed to make a special appointment to meet with key people.

Be specific in your inquiries

For example, when I contacted the local Catholic Cemetery, I wanted to know if they had sexton records on-site, how they were organized, and whether I could access them. When I contacted the local library and genealogical society, I inquired about the records they had and who in the organization might know the most about the records I wanted to research, how to reach the person, and when he might be able to meet with them. Where appropriate, I sent key contacts a detailed summary of information and clearly outlined the information I was seeking. This gave the person a few days or weeks to prepare for my arrival.

Researching before my trip helps me become more focused on goals and better utilize my limited time. If you aren’t well prepared, you could run around unnecessarily, looking for things in the wrong place. I learned early on that if I didn’t prepare for a trip, I could spend precious hours chasing records that may or may not exist.

Make advance contact—establish a rapport. Once you have identified the available resources, make an effort to contact each source directly by mail, telephone, or email. You will save yourself many, many hours by making advance contacts.

When you make these personal contacts in advance, introduce yourself and explain that you are conducting genealogy research. Let them know what you are seeking, and try to establish a rapport. You are making new friends, and they can open doors for you while you are on-site and smooth your way.

Once, a person I’d contacted in advance helped me find the curator to a local museum that was only open a few hours a week from whom I made special arrangements to have a private opening. This was done on a moment’s notice, a task that would have taken me hours in an unfamiliar town.

Whenever possible, let people know you are coming and when

This may be the most important of all the hints I can provide about traveling and doing on-site research. Let people know you’re coming and when. Make sure the people you need to see will be there. Based on my needs, I have been willing to rearrange my schedule to be at a library when the prime resource would be there. Don’t leave this to chance. Remember, you have come a long way. Don’t arrive at the church only to find that Wednesday was the archivist’s day off or that there was a local holiday for which all public facilities were closed.

Don’t forget to confirm your appointment or simply give a courtesy call to let them know you are excited to come. I have had the local contact with whom I was going to meet have many of the records and books I needed pulled from the shelves, all ready for me to review. At the request of my key contact, unbeknownst to me, I have had persons travel many miles to visit with me because they were an expert on my family line.

If your schedule changes and you can’t make the agreed-upon time, be courteous—call and let them know so they can reschedule with you.

Make sure they have your contact information—email, cell phone number, and so on—to get hold of you should their circumstances change or they need to clarify your research needs.

Know the times of operation

Remember to contact county courthouses, libraries, and other record repositories you plan to visit to determine their office hours. There’s nothing more frustrating than getting to a destination and finding it closed for whatever reason.

Be patient when requesting records

If you plan to receive specific records before you leave for your trip, give yourself at least a four-month window. Why? Many libraries and archives have more requests than staff to manage them. Sometimes it will take several weeks for the staff to begin research, let alone send you the requested information.

Additional Resources to Expand Your Knowledge

Consider the expanding your knowledge beyond the historical and genealogy field trip research guide with the following resources: