Genealogy Hack: Learn the Family Search Wiki

When I’m beginning a research project, I like to start with the Family Search Wiki found on familysearch.org. It’s one of my first steps that I take when starting a project. You can use this hack as well. It’s super simple, but it gives loads of information!

United States Genealogy

I use the Wiki when I’m researching in the United States because it has resources for each state. Each state! So if you’re researching New York, for example, then you would see this.

Do you see how much information they give you even in the top third of the page? The page also includes a county map with links to each county. It gives you New York Migration resources, Family Search resources, and additional resources as well. Do you see how this could be useful for your genealogy journey?

Family Search Wiki and Foreign Genealogy

The way that I currently use the Family Search Wiki is with my Scandinavian projects. I figure out the parish using American records. The parish in Scandinavian countries is similar to the county in America. Then I go to the Wiki to learn more.

This is what I learn when I go to a specific Parish in Norway.

Again, there’s a lot to learn just from the top third of the page! I love the Wiki! If you’re beginning to learn about a country and how to research it, then start with the country. For example, here is the Wiki page for Norway.

In this way, you can read some how-to guides, starting research in Norway, and other research tips. This is true for any country that you want to research. When I first was learning how to research Norway, I browsed every research tip they put on this page. I didn’t want to miss anything! Now, I know that Family Search Wiki doesn’t have everything for your genealogy journey. However, I like it because it has many things all in one place. So I don’t have to look in twenty different places to get the information that I need.

Conclusion

The Family Search Wiki is great for both United States and foreign genealogy. It has many resources just waiting to be tapped. So go ahead and try it. Learn all you can about it and add this hack to your resource list.

And if you want to read about my other genealogy hacks then check out the list below

• Genealogy Hacks for Researching Your Ancestors
• Genealogy Hack: Read the Genealogy Directions
• Genealogy Hack: Stay Focused
• Genealogy Hack: What is a Timeline for Genealogy?
• Genealogy Hack: How to Use Genealogy Word Lists

And in the meantime…good luck and happy hunting!

Tiffany

P.S. Sign up for my email list and get a free download of all of my favorite American and Scandinavian websites!