Tips for researching your ancestors

We've received numerous requests for guidance in researching ancestors in DOUGLAS COUNTY. The following list is where I'd begin my research:

First, talk to everyone in your family about what they know about your ancestors, keeping in mind that memories can fade and some of their information may be inaccurate. (Great Grandma was a full-blooded Indian or we came over on the Mayflower are two examples of information that is said over and over and is often not true.) Write down everything you've found out.

Buy or download a free genealogy program to organize your information. Brother's Keeper is shareware and can be downloaded for free. This way all of your information is organized and can be easily emailed to someone. See FAQs for suggestions for more family tree softwares available.

Explore "Resources". In this section you will also find many links to great sites for beginners. 

Use ALL types of spellings when you look for records. Many times the spelling changed (Hawley to Holley) or the person writing down the information had trouble deciphering the script. Sometimes names are spelled so odd that your best bet is just to go through the pages. The "s" looks like "f" in some old script, so Smith could look like Fmith to a beginning transcriber.

Use the search engine on this site and others to locate surnames. 

Post a query on a query board. There are a number of different query boards including Surname Boards -Gen Forum. (They're listed at "Queries" under the Quick Links at the bottom of each page on this site). Gen Forum has a wealth of free resources including articles and forums, form letters, classes, step-by-step guides, etc.

Check census records in the county and surrounding counties. The 1850 census records begin listing all of the family members and where each person was born.

Check cemetery records. There are quite a few cemeteries in DOUGLAS COUNTY. 

Check funeral home listings. Many times people did not have money to buy a tombstone, but their remains were handled by an undertaker.

Check the Douglas County library system (NCW Libraries) to see if they have city directories and biographical information on the family you are researching.

Check birth, death and marriage records. These records often list the parents' names, etc. Get copies of these records by ordering them from the appropriate source. In many cases, they are available at no cost (see Resources, Court, Birth, Death, Marriage pages for links).

Check court records. If you find something of interest, try to order the record from the County Clerk. They charge a fee per page to photocopy and mail documents. You may have to make a trip to the Douglas County courthouse or hire a researcher to get the information for you.

Check old newspapers. You may need to write or call a library to see if your family member's name is listed in an index. We have listed some newspapers available online at no cost on the Resources page.

If your ancestor was in the Civil War, order the records at the National Archives. They have a great deal of information in them! You can also find military records at Fold3 by Ancestry with a subscription or free trial.

Think outside the box. Google is your friend but do not assume information found in other people's trees is correct.