When I started my research on my family I had already had a head start and I did not even know it at the time. I had in my possession a book called "The Banks Of Elbert" the book was given to me by my grandmother Rebecca Causey and was the almost intact lineage of the Banks family of which I am a direct decendant. I looked at my name in the book and started to trace back the lineage to see how I came into being , at least from my grandmothers side of the family . I was intrested to say the least. When I met a new friend that was intrested in Genealogy she invited me to go to the Georgia Archives , after that i was hooked . My grandmother had long passed away and as I fished in the pond on her property I wondered about her old house up on the hill, long abandoned . I obtained the key to the house from my mother and went inside to see what was left in there . Much to my surprise there was alot of stuff left, furniture, books , blankets , dishes etc.... From first glance inside the house you could tell that my mother and 2 Aunts had secured most of the valuables or so it seemed . As i searched through the drawers I started to find scrapbooks , photos and many more treasures. The books on the bookshelf were mainly overlooked and had been sitting there for years. I could not help but think that I would like to secure these things so that they would be safe for generations to come, as these things were the true treasure. With this being said , the number one tip is as follows.
1. Begin your Genealogy research at home.Make sure you have permission of the owner FIRST and begin searching through family scrapbooks and photo albums , scan the pictures and return them where you found them unless they are yours .If the photos are yours organize them by family surname and handle with care .If the photos are not yours please return them as they are the property of the owner , not yours.
Do not overlook old letters , notes and other paper work stashed in boxes. Think about what you have saved over the years. There is a very good possibility that the person or people that you are researching did the same thing
2. Talk to your relatives , call or write or e-mail all your relatives to find information that you need . Have a note pad ready or you will waste your time trying to remember what all was said .
3. Make a notebook. I use a regular 3 ring binder with separation between the family surname and added more as I found more allied familes. Keep notes as you obtain information.
4. Access to census records is critical , I do not subscribe to ancestry.com because I go to the Georgia Archives as they provide this service as a library courtesy . Looking at the census will usually tell you names , other people in the house hold ,location and a wealth of other information that is critical to family research.
5. Join a group , there are many groups out there that can help you with research , i found one on Face book . It alot of fun to post , share and help each other in their research.
6. Search the internet, start by typing the surname in google search engine . Search within the results by clicking the bottom of the page that says "Search within results" Use the state the family was in or another keyword to narrow the number of pages to search through. I have found a wealth of information this way including websites made by members of my family.