14 July 2020

Questions for Discussion

Sharing is a valuable aspect of researching our family history. We can learn a lot from other's experiences. These days groups getting together online provides an opportunity to get to know people we might not otherwise speak to. After the introductions, the conversation can often benefit from a stimulus. Here are some topics that might help.

What remarkable thing did someone in your family tree do?

What well-known person is there in your FAN club?

What's the story of a person in your family tree who died in a disaster?

What's the story of someone in your family tree who died in a war?

Tell us about the most long-lived person in your family tree.

On what day of the week were you (a parent or grandparent) born?  What was the phase of the moon? What was the weather like that day? How prosperous was the economy? What was the community like? If you don't know how would you find out?

What was happening in the world on the day you (a parent or grandparent) were born? If you don't know how would you find out?

What role did weather play in your family history?

What are the major news events that happened during your life that you remember where you were when you heard about them? What were those events for your parents and grandparents?

Tell us about a pleasant surprise you had researching your family history?

How did you handle it when you found out about a less than honourable event in an ancestor's life?

Ancestry vs Findmypast vs MyHeritage, which and why?

How has genetic genealogy helped your family history investigations?

Is genealogy software passé?

Citations, who really cares?

Is genealogy a vain attempt at immortality?


If you have other suggestions please leave a comment.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

No, no comment. Just a great list of questions to start discussion, John. Cheers, BT

Anonymous said...

Great suggestions to help with rethinking old family stories.

Anonymous said...

Is the occupation or business of your ancestor(s) in North America directly related to their pre-emigration occupation?

Is there an occupation that is handed down over multiple generations in your ancestors?

K said...

My great grandfather x3 was surveyor John Allen Snow. Google him. He knew Louis Riel and Riel liked him, but not the others that John was affiliated with. And there has been a surveyor in the family right down to my father. I wished I had thought about being one when I was younger. I have an interest in maps, surveys, and documentary heritage.