Have you ever been given a box or multiple boxes and you just did not know what to do with it? In the boxes there are so many different documents, photos, and other treasures about your ancestors, but they are hidden by the pure amount of stuff in the box. You have to put forth work in order to find the treasures that are in the boxes.
One of the best pieces of advice that I got tonight about how to work with these boxes was organize first and glean family history information later. Too many times we want to read through each piece of paper first as we are going, but if we organize it and then went through small portions, it will help us feel like we are accomplishing a lot.
Here are a few guidelines we were given tonight...
1. Choose a specific time to work on your family history - you have to set aside a time or you will never get to the work you want to accomplish.
2. Gather supplies needed - put them into one place that no one can touch so you are not hunting for your supplies each time you sit down to do research.
3. Sort your box out by family first - Put documents together by the surname of the individuals.
4. Sort by individuals within the family - Start separating them out according to the different names you find.
5. Sort by date or time period of record - a few different ways you could do this would be by child, youth and adults. You can also do it by different periods (specific years, events in history, etc)
6. Make digital copies to share on FamilySearch - Do not just keep the information you find to yourself, make it available for other people to learn about their family too.
Here are some hints of things you might want to save...
1. handwritten notes
2. copies of correspondence
3. Books, articles, magazines that pertain to your research
4. If you feel something is important - keep it - You might not know why you feel it is important, but the answer will eventually be made known to you.
Remember that your inherited boxes should be a blessing a not a burden. Find the joy that will come when you find the treasures about your family members.
Thank you Diana Harmon and Alison Krutsch for the knowledge you shared with us.
