Organizing Your Genealogy Project

Thank you to the Clearfield Company for the following reviews:

If you are beginning to accumulate a fair amount of paper in the early stages of your research, it's probably time to take stock of what you have and how you plan to organize it--even before you enter the information into a computer database--lest you start drowning in an ocean of paper. Our popular author Bill Dollarhide has formulated four simple rules for organizing notes and documents:

1. Use one size of paper for all note-taking---preferably standard 8 ½ x 11 sheets.

2. Separate sheets by the surname of interest. If more than one surname is discussed, make additional copies for those families.

3. Create a surname notebook to store the sheets, and divide the book into sections for the place of origin of the records.

4. Give every sheet a number, so that you can make an index to the records.

Mr. Dollarhide develops each of these tips in detail in his popular book Managing a Genealogical Project. Making excellent use of charts and tables, he goes on to explain the three main types of descendancy numbering systems for genealogy: the Register System, the Record System, and the Henry System. Mr. Dollarhide explains the pros and cons of each system and proposes his own technique for combining Ahnentafel numbering with the Henry System. Managing a Genealogical Project also offers a number of other suggestions for organizing your family history data--with or without a computer. .. One of the most important features of the book is the collection of "Master Forms" (relationship chart, research log, ancestor table, etc.), which you can photocopy over and over again, and use to enter and organize the information you gather by hand.

The Library owns a copy of Managing a Genealogical Project : a Complete Manual for the Management and Organization of Genealogical Materials by William Dollarhide.

It can be checked out. The call number is 929.1 DOL

The following books also offer suggestions for organizing your genealogy project:

The Complete Beginner's Guide to Genealogy, the Internet, and Your Genealogy Computer Program by Karen Clifford shows you how to get started in your family history research; how to organize your family papers; how to enter information into a genealogy computer program so that you can easily manage, store, and retrieve your data; how to analyze the data and place it in various tables, charts, and forms; and how to put together a family history notebook--all the while using conventional record sources with a modern search and retrieval system.

Check it out at 929.1 CLI

The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy by Val Greenwood incorporates the latest thinking on genealogy and computers, specifically the relationship between computer technology (the Internet and CD-ROM) and the timeless principles of good genealogical research.

Check it out at 929.1 GRE