Genealogy Blogs

Family Tree Magazine (The US version) has released a list of its best genealogy blogs for 2013. They have been divided into different categories. One of those categories is Genealogy Blogs for Good Advice, written by people who have leant through experience. In alphabetical order -

• The Armchair Genealogist: focuses on writing your family history, but includes Helpful Research Tips, Irish Genealogy for Beginners, Genealogy Conferences, Old Fashioned Recipe Collection, The Family History Blog to Book Project, Everyone Has A Story—Tell Me Yours, Family History Writing Contests, Mind Mapping for Genealogists and Self-Publishing Tools for the Family History Writer.

• Clue Wagon: Funny and opinionated, Kerry Scott holds forth on subjects as diverse as “The Worst Question in Genealogy” and why “You cannot merge other people’s family trees into your family tree. Ever. EVER. NOT EVER.”

• DearMyrtle: A pioneer in sharing advice and news about genealogy, Pat Richley-Erickson has been “your friend in genealogy” since 1995. She shows no signs of slacking off—she finished 2012 with a whopping 410 posts. This is one I read regularly.

• Genea-Musings: Chula Vista, California, blogger Randy Seaver has racked up nearly 1.5 million page views since 2008 for his lively posts delivering “genealogy research tips and techniques, genealogy news items and commentary, genealogy humour, San Diego genealogy society news, family history research and some family history stories.”

• Genealogy Tip of the Day: Delivering exactly what it promises, Michael John Neill’s blog serves up short tips on a daily basis. His advice is no-nonsense and often inspired by his own experiences, with headlines such as “If You Didn’t Write It, Cite It,” “Did It Really Happen There?” and “Never Really Changed the Name.”

• Hidden Genealogy: Jim Sanders started in genealogy to learn more about his grandparents, who all died before or not long after he was born. That led him to become an expert on “unusual and hidden records,” which he shares on this in-depth blog.

• Midwestern Microhistory: Though Harold Henderson focuses on “genealogy and family history in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin and Michigan, and neighbour and feeder states,” you can learn a lot from him even if your ancestors never came near the Midwest. His clear, common-sense writing imparts valuable lessons, often from his own research experiences, about techniques you can use to push backward into your family’s past wherever they lived.

• Mississippi Memories: Much like Midwestern Microhistory (above), Mississippi Memories takes a relatively narrow slice of genealogical geography and uses it to explore universal research techniques.

• Olive Tree Genealogy: A blogger since 2003, Lorine McGinnis Schulze shares “tutorials, genealogy book and app reviews, genealogy news, genealogy specials and more.”