Blog Comments

When tracing your family history, a wealth of information could come from a close relative. You might have never considered talking to other family members about their lives and what they may know about earlier generations. Very few people have these discussions, at least not of any real depth.Many times there have been opportunities to ask, but at the time we weren’t interested in knowing and now it could be too late. The time has come to make talking with your relatives about their history a priority. Interviewing your relatives is an important step in your genealogical research process.

While your great-grandmother may have already passed, you probably have parents, aunts, uncles, sisters, brothers, and cousins that have information about your ancestors. All of these relatives could be a source for names, dates, locations, photos, diaries, and even a bit of gossip. These family members might have suggestions of other people you could interview about your departed relatives. You never know, they might even have documents that could add to your genealogical file. Think about how helpful this information could be.

I strongly recommend that you conduct interviews with your family in person. Some people could be put off by receiving an impersonal questionnaire in their mailbox or inbox. Some information they have to share might be closely guarded because its very personal or even evocative. You’re likely to discover much more by conducting the interview face-to-face by displaying your interest in whatever your relatives say and taking care to reassure them of your honorable intentions.

Never misuse the information you uncover, and always remain discreet. The material you gather from these interviews relates to living people or people within living memory. In an effort to encourage relatives to talk to you, let them know that you won’t broadcast any sensitive information to the entire family. Let them know that you consider the information to be important family history data. For your relatives the information is a lifetime of valued memories – to treat it with profound respect.

When your relatives are comfortable with your motives, they may provide all kinds of detail that you never dreamed they knew. Your interest may spark more memories or lead to further revelations.  Always leave lots of time for these interviews. You never know how long Uncle Hank will talk once you get him going.

In addition to these interviews, you can also gather information at Mundia.com  The site is free to use and lets you collaborate with other interested family members to build your family tree.  I strongly recommend this site for anyone interested in tracing family history.

Interviewing your relatives is a great way to trace your family history.Here are a few tips to prepare for a family interview:

1. Why it’s important to bring questions. Preparing a list of questions ahead of time will give you a better feel of what you’re going to get out of the interview. Make sure you write down all the questions you want to ask before you go. It’s important however to be flexible and let your relative lead the conversation where he or she wants it to go. Some of the best information comes from memories that your interviewee dredges up mid-conversation rather than in response to a question.

2. Bring a tape or video recorder to the interview. This saves your having to frantically scribble notes and lets you relax, develop or display your interest and really get a flavor of what the interviewee is saying. Always ask the interviewee’s permission before you start recording. If they agree that video recording would be better, I recommend taking this route. That way you create a fuller record of the interview because you can see the expressions on the interviewees’ face as he or she talks. Your children, their children, and generations to come can view these when they get older.

3. Use visual aids to help them recall events. Photos and other pieces of information can sometimes help a person jog their memory of a particular story or event. Sometimes the conversation will hit a wall, and it’s a perfect time to bring another visual aid out. Thanks to the fact that copying photos is a lot easier than it once was, you can take copies of your old photos using a scanner, print off as many copies as your need and keep the originals safe at home.

4. Recognize and respect the feelings of the interviewee If you notice your interviewee is trying to withhold information on a particular event, don’t push the issue. Maybe they just aren’t ready to discuss the past, or they cannot recall that particular moment. If you notice this happening, just ask for an interview on another date or ask a different family member.You don’t want to cause any ill feeling.

5. Be grateful.-5. Make sure you show gratitude. Thank your relatives for their time and patience after the interviews. Also, invite them to keep up with your family history research by sending them new information when you get it. Most will say yes, and the easiest way to keep everyone informed is by learning to create your family tree online. One of the best family history sites to utilize is Mundia.com. The reason this resource is so useful is that you can invite your family members to collaborate on your family tree and add additional family information that they might remember. They can also upload photos, add documents, or even give a little input to help further some of the stories.

So if you ever though history was as boring as can be, when you trace your family history you might change your mind.