PLANNING A GENEALOGY TRIP
Whether you are planning a trip to visit the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, or visiting another state or country to search for original records, invest the time to prepare for your trip to maximize your visit. Taking the time to understand the available resources, hours of operation for courthouses, libraries, and archives, and becoming familiar with the city plan will save you from wasting unnecessary time and frustration.
VISITING SALT LAKE CITY, THE FAMILY HISTORY LIBRARY
Every day, patrons visit the Family History Library and often use several hours of their visit doing things they could have done at home. Those hours could have been spent late at night or early in the morning, any time of the day, locating and writing down information that would have helped them use their time more wisely when visiting the library.
THE WISE VISITOR: NO SKILLS REQUIRED: The wise visitor will take the time to contact relatives, review resources at home, and create a research plan before visiting the library. The wise visitor will determine names, places and dates that he or she already has at home, then determine what pieces of information are missing and needed to move forward with research. The wise visitor does not need to know anything about research or family history. He or she only needs to know what he or she already has, and what is missing. This will allow the wise visitor to come prepared to receive help at the Family History Library.
THE EXTRA WISE VISITOR: SOME SKILLS REQUIRED: The extra wise visitor will take the time to search the Family History Library Catalog before visiting the Family History Library. The extra wise visitor understands that if he or she comes to the library with a list of microfilm or book numbers, he or she can get right to work and spend almost every minute searching for more information. The extra wise visitor may visit www.familysearch.org and locate a nearby Family History Center and learn how to use the Family History Library Catalog. The extra wise visitor knows that many records for United States research are located on the County level. The extra wise visitor may use the Family History Library Catalog, do a 'Place Search' and locate the records available at the Family History Library at the County level. The extra wise visitor arrives at the Family History Library prepared with a list of some or many microfilm numbers, ready to search for more information.
VISITING ANOTHER LOCATION:
1. Obtain a map of the city you plan to visit
2. Create a list of every location you wish to visit. Don't forget mortuaries, church rectories, hospitals, archives, churches, county and local libraries, university libraries, university special collections, courthouses, historical societies, social organizations (Odd Fellowes, Masonic Lodge, etc.), township offices (these may contain cemetery records not available in courthouses), and health departments.
3. Call each organization you wish to visit to determine hours of operation, lunch breaks, vacation days, accessibility, and usability. Will they allow digital images? Do they have a copy machine? Is it reliable and in working order? How much do copies cost? Will they allow you to scan books with a personal scanner? Are you able to view all records, or only some records? If only some records, who do they use to view or copy the other records? Will that person be available to locate records for you during your visit? Do they charge a fee to allow you to look at records? Will they allow you to bring a laptop, digital camera, or other equipment into the research room? Are there any events happening during your visit the will prevent you from looking at the records (election tallies and other events may take place in a courthouse, preventing your access to some records)? Do you need written information to review records? Who do you need to contact? Do you need a library card to have access to onsite databases? Do you need a library card to access Special Collections? Are the research rooms well-lit?
4. Prepare an agenda based on when each research point is open. For example, if the hospital archive opens at 7am, the mortuary opens at 8am, and the courthouse opens at 9am, time may be maximized by visiting the earliest opening location. Save locations that will be open late for later in the day, such as a public library that will be open until 9 or 10pm. If a location is open only for a few hours during the day, arrange your schedule to accommodate that location. Also prioritize your visit. By calling ahead you will know the available years and records at a location. Don't waste time looking in records that won't contain your ancestors, such as records 100 years before your ancestors arrived in that town, but keep an open mind to records such as court, land, and guardianship records during the time when ancestors lived in that area, or nearby. Some landowners kept land in nearby counties for years before selling it.
5. Take the time to search items that you cannot request by mail, such as newspapers or other difficult to search records. Check to see if an index or online database exists for a certain record before searching through it to save time. Check the Family History Library Catalog to determine if these records may be ordered to your local Family History Center before wasting time searching them. Do check difficult to read records. For example, early deaths in Cabell Count, West Virginia are difficult to read on microfilm, but easy to read in the courthouse records.
6. Along with a digital copy of information, such as a laptop, bring a paper copy with names and dates that you need in case electronic equipment fails. Don't rely on battery operated tape recorders or digital recorders to record your information. Plug recorders into the wall. If you are traveling to another country, bring necessary electrical outlet adapters. US plugs will not fit in European outlets. If using a digital camera, transfer, copy, or e-mail the images to yourself as soon as possible, and review the images to make sure they are clear. When taking digital images in a dim room without a flash, images may become blurred. Bring a portable scanner and a laptop for dim rooms when allowed. Create a brief handwritten copy of essential information, such as a page and volume number in case you need to write to obtain the information again.
7. Come prepared with specific objectives. Don't waste time on your trip trying to figure out what it is you need. You may forget something important.
8. Pack light. Do not bring unnecessary items. Do not bring original copies of records with you, in case they are lost. Do not bring expensive or irreplaceable items. Lighten your mental load by minimizing your need to worry. This will allow you to focus on your objective. If you have a cell phone, check ahead of time to see if you will have roaming charges. You may want to borrow a non-roaming phone, or change your plan if you travel frequently. If traveling to another country, check to see if your cell phone band width will work within that country. Some cell phone companies may upgrade your phone for free to allow international travel if you are willing to sign an extended contract.
10. If carry-ons are allowed, bring an emergency pack, a small overnight bag with extra underclothes, a toothbrush and other necessities. This will allow you to be comfortable and do research if luggage is lost. The airport will likely find your belongings, but will not be able to give you back any time you wasted worrying rather than searching.
11. If possible, arrive a day early to recover from travel time and drive through the city to plan out your trip. Arriving on a Saturday evening allows for a restful day to plan and gather your thoughts before beginning research on Monday. It also allows you to start your research well-rested and prepared on Monday. You may want to visit the church your ancestor attended on Sunday, (if the ancestor was not Jewish), visit cemeteries, and become familiar with the city or town. You may scan the phone book for possible relatives. You may review roads, rail roads or rivers to determine patterns of travel.You may decide where you can park at each location, how much change or cash you will need for parking, or become familiar with the Public Transportation System. You probably stayed up late the night before leaving, and this day will allow you to recover from your lack of sleep. This extra day may be one of the greatest investments of your trip. Your mental clarity is essential before racing off to search for records.
