New Ebook Helps Readers Find Their Family Tree Online and Offline

    /24-7PressRelease/ - Dallas, TX, June 6, 2005 - First Run Press announces the release of the new ebook, FIND YOUR ROOTS NOW!, a step-by-step guide for beginning genealogists. This publication combines the power of the Internet with sound research practices.

The author, Joe Long, has over 29 years of hands-on experience researching his family tree. With this new book, he brings this knowledge to beginning researchers and adds a twist by including hundreds of direct hot-links to relevant genealogical websites. As a result, the beginning researcher can quickly learn not only how, but where to start their search for ancestors.

Readers will learn the fundamental skills needed to properly build a family tree beginning with themselves and working backward in time. Many beginning researchers first become interested in their family history by learning of a Civil War veteran or an early pioneer to the American frontier. However, they may jump to incorrect conclusions about how they are related to that individual because they have not done the initial research to lay the groundwork for past generations.

"This book combines the best family tree research methodology with modern technology to help advance the field of genealogy," said Joe Long, author and publisher. "As an example there are over 25 links to databases, books and articles on church records alone, normally a difficult topic to research."

One of the first chapters discusses methods to interview living relatives. "So often, these older individuals can be a rich source of vital information concerning past generations," said Mr. Long. "I have uncovered critical clues from my grandparents and great aunts and uncles that I then verified with supporting documentation."

Mr. Long uses the "Pyramid" method to help new genealogists get started. Under this system, a solid base is built to lay the ground work for future research. If the more recent generations are not researched properly before moving backward in time, the entire family line could collapse under the weight of unsupportable conclusions. Mr. Long teaches readers to document everything to verify their work and to not accept the research of others without proper citations.

"The worst thing that can happen is spending years researching families that later prove to have no connection to yours," said Joe Long. "With the Internet, millions of family trees can be accessed instantaneously; however, most have not been properly documented."

Some of the topics readers will discover include:
• Building a field research manual
• How to set goals and budget your time
• Proper forms and formats
• What your local library may offer
• How to find records at a county court house
• Proper documentation methods and citing your sources
• Census records, what they contain and how to use them
• Locating your immigrant ancestors' ship passenger list
and naturalization records
• Finding out if your ancestor served in the military,
received a pension or received bounty land
• Discovering family clusters through land records
• Researching your book with the maximum results in the
minimum amount of time
• Church records and where you can locate church archives
• Using computer software to organize and document your research
• Locating your ancestor's burial place and
documenting your findings
• Finding local and national genealogical societies
and family associations
• Understanding what records are kept in foreign
countries and where to find them
• Using DNA to research your past
• Turning your work into published form
• Finding publishers who specialize in genealogical works

Readers can download a copy of FIND YOUR ROOTS NOW! ($39.99) by visiting the book's website at: http://www.findyourrootsnow.com.

First Run Press is a customer-focused publisher. For further information, please contact Joe Long at (214)704-5261 or [email protected]

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