Signing Onto Family Search

The first step to doing family history is that you need to see what is already done and what still needs to be done. I would recommend as a first step that you sign onto the new family search site, which I have a link for on the right.

First you will need your membership number, which you can either get off of your temple recommend or from your ward clerk. Second you will need your confirmation date. Then start a new account at new.familysearch.org and it will prompt you to create a user name and password. After you have done that you will be able to view your line. People who are currently living often times don't show up because their information is still private, so don't be alarmed if your or your parents aren't there.

It is for that reason that it's important to have a program to do your personal family history work in. The program that was most recommended to me was rootsmagic, so that is what I now use. It is available in a simple form for free, and once again the link is on the right hand column. Sorry mac users, I don't think it's compatible, but there are other "lesser" programs available.

The great thing about rootsmagic is that it can sync directly with new familysearch allowing you to import your family information straight from the site. It's also got many cool features that make it easy to do family history. And that is a good place to end this post. If you follow these steps you'll be well on your way towards doing family history. Best of all, by signing onto family search you'll be able to see everything that is being done or has been done for our family.

So don't delay and get signed up this week. I'll post again later with some more information about the Whipple line.
Mike

Starting Out

Hey everybody, I started doing family history about four months ago (March) and I feel like I've already had quite a bit of success. When I first started I was completely new to it and I didn't really know how to do anything, but with practice and lots of help I've managed to get my feet wet. Most of my concentration up until now has been on the Whipple line, focusing on Andrew Jackson Whipple (born 1832). He's kind of the Whipple Family Enigma because we've never really known anything about him. When I started I only had a name and a wife, and nothing more. Since then I've managed to find out tons of information about his life. Still nothing on his parents though.

My Mom, Lisa Bishop, got really excited when I told her about my idea to start this blog. She agreed with me that it would make it easier for the family to share information and keep up to date on any work we might be doing. Plus, I hope that by reading these posts other members of the family will get excited enough to lend a hand. There's still so much that needs to be done that you can't use the excuse that all of the work has been done already. It's not true.

Last week I finally finished the Endowments for AJ Whipple, something that I've been working on for some time. It was such and amazing experience for me, and since then I have found more names that I plan on taking to the temple. All the same, even if you're not interested in helping with the temple work, please be willing to help do the research and collecting of information.

That's all for now, but in my next posts I'm planning on explaining how to log onto some of the church sites, share some of the interviews I've done, and share my work. Until later then,
Mike