Research Logs: Taking Research to the Next Level

Family History research can be fun, but also extremely overwhelming. There's just too many people to keep track of and too many searches that you've done that you keep redoing because you forget that you've done it for that person. Not to mention forgetting exactly where you found a record and now you can't find it anymore. It can be extremely frustrating and disheartening.

However, there is a solution that many genealogists, both professionals and hobbyist alike, utilize. Research Logs. These are important for anyone doing family history research who doesn't want to spend 20 years going in circles on the same people. Research logs can look different for different people, and they should be customized to fit your needs. However, there are a few basic pieces of information that I recommend having in your research log.

1. Date- The date of when you conducted the search is important. You can see how long ago it was that you searched for that particular information. This is important because new information does come available over time, and you may want to redo the search after a few years just to check if anything has changed.

2. Repository of Search- Where did you look for this information? Ancestry? A local archive? This can help you know where not to look next time or maybe where to circle back to if you do find information. This is also important because you should look at different repositories for information. Not everyone has the same stuff, and even if they do, their index and search systems may be different and bring up different results.

3. Collection Being Searched- This is a subset of the repository. Rarely, if ever, should you just search on the main search page of sites like FamilySearch, Ancestry, FindMyPast, etc. This is because you will be searching everything they have, which includes other people's trees, and you will end up with way more results than you have time for. The best is to find a more specific record collections that you think your ancestor would be mentioned in (Ex. "Ontario Township Records, 1785-1891"). This allows you to look for a very specific type of record for you ancestor, and bring up more tailored results to you. You can also use search collections such as BMDs, Immigration, Court Records, etc, to help narrow down your search within what you are actually wanting to look at.

4. Search Terms- What information did you search on? Example: John Hennessy, Birth: 1804-1809 in Ireland, lived in Knoxville, Tennessee, and was married to Lily Hennessy. This is important to note because your search terms determine what information is shown in your search results. If you are searching for birth records for John, you wouldn't want to put his wife or that he lived in Tennessee. You can also try different search terms in the same sitting. Just make sure you include them in your research log.

5. Results- This is what you got out of the search. Sometimes (most times) I end up putting "No Results" in this column, but even those searches are important. However, when there are results, put as much information about them as you can. If you are unsure if the results are your ancestor, make sure to take note of that. For every individual record you check, include it in the results part. I often will do individual entries for each record just to keep them straight for myself. I will put any vital information included in the record (BMD), names for anyone mentioned in the record, any places mentioned, and any other identifying information. This can be helpful for if you have to go back and evaluate records from the same search later.

6. Citation- Citations are one of my least favorite things to do in genealogy, but they are oh so needed. There have been so many times that I'm working for clients and sources are not cited in a way I can find them, You want to make sure that people (yourself included) can go back and find the record you're referencing. Include original repository information if you find the record on a website, such as Ancestry, just in case they lose rights to house those records on their site. Important stuff to note in citations: Primary name on the record (Put both spouses if it's a marriage records), date of the record event, location of the record event, repository record was found (ancestry, local library, etc), date found, specific collection (Irish Birth Records, 1878-1903), repository for physical copy if found online, and record number (if available). If you're not doing this professionally, don't worry about the order of the information. It doesn't have to be perfect Chicago style or Elizabeth Shone Mills approved. It just needs to have the information you need in order to find it again if you lose it for some reason.

You can also add other things to your research log if you want. It is up to you, but these are the ones I recommend for a good research experience. Professional genealogists will also include time taken on each search or each day, but this is mainly for billing purposes.

There are also different ways to keep a research log. It could be on a word document, on paper, on excel, or somewhere else that works best for you. I, personally, use some sort of digital spreadsheet (usually Google Sheets) as this allows me to easily search through my research log if I need to look at some information I added in at an earlier time. It is also rather simple to add columns or rows if needed. I will include an editable spreadsheet research log for you to use.

Research logs can be tedious, but they are extremely helpful. Using a research log can help you bring your research to the next level and increase your productivity.

Research Log Template.xlsx

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