Ostlers tend to horses while a hostler is keeper of an inn. Another example is a shoemaker who can also be called a cordwainer . Occupational documents include directories, census records, and again, civil registration. Last Names or Surnames- extra care should be practiced when dealing with this piece of information.

Begin the process with your own name, after which, try to work backwards to the name of your parents and then the names of the parents of your parents, and so on. Check with legal documents It would be best to look for your own birth certificate as this basically contain the names of your parents as well as the dates of their births.

Here is a short list that you could look through and consider in starting your own family tree : Perhaps the group of people that is most interested in searching for their kindred dead is the Latter-day Saints. They believe that genealogical work is a part of man s salvation. Their belief is three-fold- missionary work, perfecting the saints (improving themselves while following the gospel) and redeeming the dead (here is where the genealogical works come in).

If you are already sure that your ancestor was a slave, identifying his or her last owner is the next priority. There are some slaves who used their last owner s name when they were declared free but then most of them didn t. Further research is still needed. Step four is about the slavery and owner s research.

These contain irrefutable evidence of family history. You can also go to your local library and courthouse, get records from the church and villages. You also don t need to go far when examining documents for your genealogy research. Family books, Bibles, letters, last will and testaments are proof of family.

Even when people moved elsewhere, their places of origin were still used to identify them. Some family names can be traced back to an ancestor's exact origin while others have lost their exact places of origin to obscurity. Names like Westwood and Churchill, for example can mean an ancestor used to live west of the woods and near a church on top of a hill, but which woods and which church?