Researching My Family History: How I Found My Family

I was "Born Amish Then Shunned," but then I grew up and found out that I'm really not shunned. I never would have learned this if I hadn't had the initial curiosity about my family. It took several years to find them, but I have learned lots, making it all worthwhile.

The best way to find out about family is to simply talk to other family members. Your older relatives are stores of knowledge. It's obvious, they've been around the longest!

Another option, if family is not available to share history, is to begin the search on your own time. Public records are a great place to start if you know very little. Simply look up the names of the individuals you seek at the local court house. In my case, this was very difficult. I have a young son, certainly not willing to sit quietly in the courthouse. To make things even more challenging, the Amish have so many people with the same names! You will likely encounter problems of your own, but don't give up. Family is forever!

I began my search on the world wide web. Would you believe I found sites dedicated to my family history! You could be surprised at what's already on the net. I began my search with "Google." I found lots of family genealogy sites online, for finding family history. Ancestry. com, Roots.web, usgenweb.org, and tribalpages.com, to name a few. Most of these sites charge for their information, but a few do not. Some allow you to access limited amounts of information at no charge.

By far, the most useful source of information on your family history will be the people you meet during your search. I went back to the areas where I grew up. I met neighbors of my family. I went to a local livestock auction and started asking names to find one of my aunts. She runs the ice cream stand at the auction. I went to a funeral and had a life changing experience. I found family that love me and want to see me, while saying good-bye to an uncle who left this world too soon.

Be creative about finding information, after all, everyone's story is different. While doing the work to find family, I also learned that they really do want to hear from me. If you've been separated from loved ones and yearn to reunite, then don't waste another minute! Finding my relatives has been a lifelong dream, as I was separated from then when I was five years old. It's never too late! Good luck!