An Introduction to Genealogy Research in Texas, by Richard Beaver

I'll start off by stating that it is not my intent to teach you everything that there is to know about genealogy. To me, it is a hobby. Hobbyist genealogists typically pursue their own ancestry and that of their children and spouses, without spending a lot of money. I'll try to guide you through a fast, easy, and inexpensive way to start on your journey.

First of all, I want to thank The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They provide a huge amount of information free to all. The Church operates the largest genealogical library in the world—the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. The Church also operates branch libraries throughout the world that are open to anyone interested in family history. You may trace your ancestors and find information about family history resources at the Church’s family history Web site. As you will see, they will be a major source of our information.

In this example, I will be tracing my wife's maternal grandfather who spent his life in Texas. His name was Homer Porter Haggard and he died in 1964. I want to discourage you from Googling your ancestor as your first step. It is very possible that you can find information on a web site somewhere, but far too often the information may be incorrect. It is best to go to the sources when possible. Besides, you will learn more about your ancestors by examining the source data as people rarely transcribe all of the information that is on an original form, such as a death certificate.

Here is the path that we will follow.

1. Family History Software
2. Gathering genealogy information from your home, family and relatives
3. Choose a family line to research
4. Start searching the basic source records
   1. Searching for Death Records
   2. Searching for Census Records
   3. Searching for Family Histories
   4. Searching for Birth Records
   5. Searching for Marriage Records
   6. Searching for Military Records
5. More advanced searches
   1. Searching for Land Records