You may have noticed that I talk about and use FamilySearch a lot, but what is it? FamilySearch is a nonprofit family history organization that has the largest collection of genealogical and historical records in the world. They are dedicated to connecting families across generations for free because families bring joy and meaning to life. Here are 5 reasons I use their website so heavily and how it can benefit you!
FamilySearch is home to the worlds largest shared family tree, which is great news if you’re looking for information on your ancestors! I love this shared tree because any information, including photos, stories, and documents uploaded by others are available to everyone! It’s a great way to share and connect with others.
Sharing information gives you the opportunity to collaborate and connect with others as you are discovering your family story. I have found relatives who had additional photos that they hadn’t yet added to FamilySearch because they were focused on closer relatives than mine. They have also given me leads for discovering other family members. Can you imagine what photos and stories other people have of your family?!
FamilySearch has an amazing tool to keep you in the loop whenever information is added or changed about your ancestors! (Stay tuned for a post on how this works.) A shared tree means that when changes are made to vital information like birth location, marriage events, etc. they are changed universally which can be extremely helpful, but also frustrating to some people. However you may feel about it, these notifications help you catch all changes within a week! I have a post coming up with tips for minimizing inaccurate information so stay tuned for that! In the meantime, if the idea of others changing information on the tree bothers you, it’s a great idea to keep your own family tree in a private location and use FamilySearch just as a tool for gathering information and making fun discoveries.
FamilySearch has a lot of fun and easy ways to help people of all ages connect with their stories based off of the information entered in FamilySearch. If you haven’t already, subscribe to my newsletter so you can see when some of these fun activities hit the blog!
FamilySearch is a free service provided by the Church of Jesus Christ of LatterDay Saints, and you do NOT have to be a member of their church to use it! The Church believes families can be together forever, so they provide their services to everyone for free. How cool is that?! Head over to sign up for your free account and start discovering your family history!
*This post is not sponsored or endorsed in any way by FamilySearch. I just love using them and believe you will too!