It is great if you can go along to an archive or genealogy centre to research your family history work in person.
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| Burns Monument Centre |
A visit to look at bmd, census records etc at the Scotland's People Centre in Edinburgh, the Mitchell Library in Glasgow or the Burns Monument Centre in Kilmarnock can save you a great deal of money as you pay a flat fee and can look at as many records as you wish over the course of the day.
Even if you are not able to go in person due to distance or time isssues, it can still save you money financially to pay a researcher to go on your behalf. Kin Tree provides this service and as experts in family research, we can make the most of your time and money.
Sometimes there is a need to trawl through records for a certain individual as there is no obvious record when looking online. For example, it's not uncommon to look through thirty or so records to find the correct one for one individual. Often the record can hold the key to your future research but it would cost a fortune online!
Also, even without any real problems in identifying people, the cost of looking at these records online is far, far more expensive than a day at the record's office.
We can also pool a day's work between a few people who only need a few records looked up. This can be especially cost effective even if you can visit a centre yourself. Why pay for a whole day when you only need an hour or two?
If you do intend visiting any archive/genealogy centre it is essential that you go prepared! We have some top tips to make your visit as successful as possible!
- Many centres are very busy and you will need to book a place in advance so check to see if this is the case.
- In some archives, specific archive staff will deal with your requests for information or to look at materials so contact them in advance as you may need to book an appointment with them.
- Check with staff that they have the materials in which you are interested. For example, in some areas poor relief records are extensive, others have none about specific people and others have patchy coverage. Staff will be able to advise you what is available.
- Archive material is often kept in storage and staff may need advanced notice that you would like to see it as it may be stored offsite.
- Don't assume that all archives or genealogy centres operate in the the same way. Even within Scotland's People records, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Kilmarnock have different rules about how materials can be copied, opening times etc
- If you want to use electronic equipment, it can be helpful to check if there is a power supply that you can use. This can vary even within the same building!
- A pencil and paper are essentials for family research! Old documents for example, can be very fragile so you may find that you are only allowed to use a paper and pencil to record the information.
- If you are not recording information electronically, remember to bring along blank copies of any potential documents may need eg family group sheets, family trees, bmd forms, census etc. Other than that, plenty of paper, pencils, rubbers and a pencil sharpener!
- Think about what you are trying to find out, make a plan of what you want to achieve and make notes of any thoughts you have before you go. These can be helpful for keeping you focussed when you are presented with new and exciting information!
For more information on how we can help you, please get in touch for a no obligation chat.
kintree@ymail.com
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