[a guest post from one of our sponsors, Legacy Tree Genealogists]
With
so many technological advances and increased record availability these days,
one question we get fairly often is, “Why should I hire a professional
genealogist? What can you do for me that I can’t do myself on [insert the name
of any online genealogy site here]?”
There’s
really no quick answer to these questions, but there are a lot of reasons
people hire a professional. We asked the professionals at Legacy Tree
Genealogists to share their insight into some of the most common reasons
clients seek help from a pro:
Time. Learning more
about your family tree can be extremely
time-intensive. It’s not as easy as just clicking the little hint leaves on
Ancestry.com. While those can be very helpful as a foundation, it’s important
to have a primary source document that proves each piece
of information (birth, marriage and death dates and places, parents, children,
etc.) in your tree. These records are not all available online, nor are they
always easy to find. A professional genealogist knows the most efficient and
cost-effective ways of compiling all the sources you need to have an accurate
family tree. Plus, if you have a special event coming up, like a birthday or
anniversary of someone you love, a family reunion, or a trip overseas to the home of your ancestors…you might not have the
time to do all the research on top of your already busy regular life!
Brick
Walls. Most people who
have spent time working on their genealogy have at least one line that seems to
be at a complete dead end – known as a “brick wall” – that they need help
breaking down. Professional genealogists have experience solving difficult
genealogical problems, and have the knowledge and skills necessary to get past
them. Many brick walls require in-depth research in land, tax and/or probate
records, and most of those records are still not available online. The Family
History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah houses the largest collection of
genealogical records in the world, so a genealogist who has ready access to
that facility, in addition to a network of researchers for record access
worldwide, will be able to search many additional records that you may not have
access to.
Language
Barriers/Foreign Research. For those who live in the United States or Australia, and
many who live in other parts of the world as well, it’s a fact that at some
point your ancestors came from another location and spoke a language you may
not know. You’ll also find that within one country you might have records
written in a variety of languages. For example, one project we’ve worked on in
Lithuania has involved records written in Polish, Russian, Lithuanian and
Latin, all depending on who created the record and where the political
boundaries were drawn at the time. Professional genealogy companies have team
members who speak and read many different languages that can trace your ancestry beyond their immigration and into their
country of origin. Legacy Tree Genealogists also has onsite agents that they
work with worldwide who can visit archives and libraries in other locations
when needed, rather than you having to plan an expensive trip overseas to find
that one record about your great-great-grandmother.
Lineage
Societies. Many people are
interested in joining lineage societies such as the Sons or Daughters of the
American Revolution (SAR/DAR), Mayflower Society, etc. Each of these societies
has different requirements for membership, but they all have fairly strict
policies on documentation. A professional genealogist can help you collect the
documentation you need to submit a successful application to whichever lineage
society you might be interested in.
Team
Approach. Sometimes when
you’ve been working on your genealogy for a long time, all you need is a fresh
set of eyes. Maybe there’s a clue in that death record you found 20 years ago,
but you’ve looked at it so many times you just don’t see it. When you hire
a professional genealogy company like Legacy Tree, not only will they
review what you’ve done and assess what other options are out there, but they
also peer-review each other’s work, so your family tree is seen by at least 2-3
different professionals.
DNA
Analysis. With DNA playing a
bigger role in genealogy in recent years, many people approach us with
questions about DNA testing. Some have taken the test but aren’t sure what the
results mean. Others have heard that DNA testing might help them break down a brick
wall, but they’re not sure which test would be best for their particular
problem. Consider hiring a genealogy research firm with DNA specialists who can
give advice on which test(s) would be most beneficial to you, and can analyze the results of your test(s) to determine what
the next steps in your research should be.
Validation. Finally, you might
want to hire a professional genealogist just to see if the research you’ve done
on your own is right. Maybe you’ve inherited the work done by other family
members, or maybe you’ve found quite a bit of information online that appears
to be correct…but you’re just not sure. A professional genealogist can review
your information, determine the quality of your sources, and help you fill in
holes where things might be lacking. If we find an error in your tree, we can
help you correct it before you spend the next 5 years researching the wrong
line!
Your
reason for hiring a professional genealogist might be one (or more) of the
above, or it might be an entirely different reason not listed here. Whatever
the reason, learning more about your family history can be a very rewarding
experience.
When
you are choosing a professional to work with, it’s important that you feel
confident and comfortable with their knowledge and skills, and make sure
they’re the right fit for you. You’ll want to find out things like how long
they’ve been in business, what kinds of certifications or accreditations they
have, and what kind of reviews they have received from other clients.
We
recommend the team at Legacy Tree Genealogists. Here’s a few facts about them:
- Legacy
Tree Genealogists was founded in 2004 and is the highest rated genealogy
research company in the world.
- They’re
based in Salt Lake City, Utah and have ready access to the Family History
Library and its vast collections of microfilm, fiche, and books.
- With
contacts all over the globe, Legacy Tree regularly accesses records
worldwide through onsite agents.
- Each
member of their core team has a degree in Family History/Genealogy or
Genetics, 10+ years of genealogy experience, and/or is professionally
accredited in genealogy. They also hold their team to a high standard of
research, writing and analysis skills.
If you’d like to learn more about how hiring a professional
genealogist can help you in your family history efforts, contact Legacy Tree Genealogists today!
