The Family Tree Problem Solver ? Book Review | The Tree Blog

The Family Tree Problem SolverMarsha Hoffman RisingFamily Tree Books, 2011256 pagesISBN-10: 9781440311932

This revised edition of The Family Tree Problem Solver, released one year after the author?s death, is a classic guidebook for scaling genealogy brick walls. this edition has two new appendices, one on using the Internet as a research tool, the second on genetic genealogy (DNA research).

The research techniques are based on the author?s many years of real-life family tree searching. ?You won?t find ?just theory?, but tried-and-true techniques for tracing elusive ancestors.

There?s something for everyone who has ever tried to climb the family tree ? with chapters on the areas that tend to trip us up.

1. ?The first Step ? Analyzing the Problem and planning a Strategy for Success

2. ?Finding Births, Marriages, and Deaths Before Civil Registration

3. ?Why Does the Census Taker always miss my Ancestor?

4. ?Consider the Collateral Kin

5. ?Your Day in Court

6. ?What to do When the Courthouse Burned

8. ?Sorting Individuals of the same Name

9. ?Finding Ancestors Who Lived Before 1850

10. Ten Mistakes not to Make

11. Analysis of Evidence

Take a Logical approach and be Systematic

Like many people, I have a family who had a few favorite names; they fell ?from the family tree like ripe apples ?- ? Aarons, James, Johns, Nancys, Jacobs and Sarahs. So of course, I headed directly to Chapter 8 ? Sorting Individuals of the same Name.

First, the reader is advised to study enough records and not jump to conclusions before evidence warrants it. ?Second, work to place people within a community; learn more about the community history, the churches, the culture. this, in itself, might help untangle names. ?For example, when searching for one of her Hoffman ancestors, the author found that the only thing the two individuals in question had in common was the name.

She then gives the five most common errors when attempting to sort out individuals of the same name:

1. ?Connecting an event or relationship to a person, even though we have no reason other than a name.2. ?Neglecting to search records thoroughly and systematically ? don?t just extract names and dates.3. ?Moving too eagerly to a preceding generation. (this is SO true!)4. ?Relying on secondary sources.5. ?Drawing hasty conclusions based on insufficient evidence.

After reading about what we shouldn?t do, the author then gives eight detailed steps on how to distinguish individuals. Steps include pinpointing location, determining approximate ages, placing records in chronological order rather than in families, and getting to know the children, the siblings, the in-laws.

The Family Tree Problem Solver is packed with real-life examples the author used to illustrate her own brick walls. if you read through each, you?ll get a wonderful sense of how to really attack a problem from a logical and systematic position ? even if you?re presented with a hodge-podge of data.

One thing that really hit home with me is the importance of clearly and accurately presenting the problem at hand. Whether you?re going into a library or out searching the Internet, go with your research problem clearly defined. ?Then, get clear on what you ?know (not what you assume), decide which records are most likely to take you to a next step, and then analyze what you?ve found.

If you feel that you bounce from site to site or surname to surname when researching the family tree, I can highly recommend The Family Tree Problem Solver. ?Again, it has tried-and-true tactics and guides readers through the author?s own brick wall processes. ?It?s like looking over a pro?s shoulder.

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The Family Tree Problem Solver ? Book Review

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