There are various ways to get information about your generation and ancestors. The easiest way is to get information from relatives. Ask your grandparents about their parents and ancestors. Be sure to bring a notebook, or better yet, a tape recorder, so that you don’t miss a single detail. If you have relatives in other cities and countries, you can contact them by e-mail and ask them to record a video, where they talk about previous generations.To facilitate the process of obtaining information, try to prepare questions. It is preferable to choose open-ended questions, that is, those that imply a detailed answer. Communicating with the elderly, do not rush, patiently wait for their response. For the convenience of organizing information, you can create cards with which you will go to the interview:
- NAME. When interviewing women, you should include their maiden name as well.
- Full date and place of birth.
- If the person is no longer alive, the date of death and place of burial should be given.
- Full name of both parents.
- Name of godmothers and fathers.
- Estate, if the person was born before 1917.
- Place of residence by year.
- Religion practiced.
- Education (school, college, university).
- Place of employment, positions, titles.
- Participation in wars, battles (years and places).
- The presence of military, scientific and other awards.
- Full name of spouse.
- The names and dates of birth of children.
Such pre-prepared tablets will help guide the conversation along the right path and not miss important information.
Another option for obtaining information can be an appeal to the Internet. Specialized databases allow you to quickly get information about the next generations of the family. Especially popular are resources where you can find out about relatives who participated in the war. It is necessary to know the surname, first name, patronymic, date and year of birth of a conscript. Specifying these data, you can trace the fighter’s path in the war.
The most reliable option for obtaining information for drawing up a genealogical tree and family tree is to cooperate with specialized companies that help you learn about the fate of your ancestors. Such research allows you to get the most information, as specialized companies have access to archives. It is possible to trace the history of the family up to fifteen generations.