Family History Library
35 North West Temple Street
Salt Lake City, UT 84150-3400

• Family History Centers. Copies of most of the records on microform at the Family History Library can be loaned to more than 3,000 Family History Centers throughout the world. There are small rental and postage fees for this service.
  

The library's books cannot be loaned to the centers, but copies of many books not protected by copyright are available on microfilm or microfiche.

You can get a list of the Family History Centers by writing to the Family History Library. Or, look on the Internet at www.familysearch.org under Custom Search.

• Archives and local churches. Most of the original documents you will need are at national and regional archives or in local parish offices. While the Family History Library has most of these records on microfilm, others are available only at these archives. You can request searches in their records through correspondence. See the “Archives and Libraries” section of this outline for further information.
  
• Libraries and interlibrary loan. Public, academic, and other research libraries may have some published sources for Norwegian research. Many libraries also provide interlibrary loan services that allow you to borrow records from other libraries.
  
• Professional researchers. You can employ a private researcher to search the records for you. Some researchers specialize in Norwegian records. Lists of qualified professional researchers are available from the Family History Library. Archives and local church offices in Norway may provide names of individuals who can search their records for you.
  
• Photocopies. The Family History Library and many other libraries offer limited photocopy services for a fee. You must specify the exact pages you need. Books protected by copyright cannot be copied in their entirety. However, a few pages can usually be copied for personal research. The Norwegian archives offer copies of some records, but the costs may be relatively high.
  

When requesting services from libraries or professional researchers through correspondence, you will have more success if your letter is brief and very specific. Enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope when writing within your own country. When writing to other countries, enclose international reply coupons (available from your post office). You will usually need to send a check or money order in advance to pay for photocopy or research services.

Suggestions for Searching the Records. You will be most successful with Norwegian research if you can examine the microfilm copies of original records. In some cases, transcripts of the original records are available. These may be easier to read, but they may be less accurate than the original records.

Follow these principles as you search the records for your ancestor:

• Search for one generation at a time. Do not attempt to connect your family to others with the same surname who lived more than a generation before your proven ancestor. It is much easier to prove parentage than descent.
  
• Search for the ancestor's entire family. The records of each person in a family may include clues for identifying other family members. In most families, children were born at regular intervals. If there appears to be a longer period between some children, re-examine the records for a child who may have been overlooked. Consider looking at other records to find a missing family member.
  
• Search each source thoroughly. The information you need to find a person or trace the family further may be a minor detail of the record you are searching. Note the occupation of your ancestor and the names of witnesses, godparents, neighbors, relatives, guardians, and others. Also note the places they are from.
  
• Search a broad time period. Dates obtained from some sources may not be accurate. Look several years before and after the date you think an event occurred, such as a birth.
  
• Look for indexes. Many records have indexes. However, many indexes are incomplete. They may only include the name of the specific person the record is about. They may not include parents, witnesses, and other incidental persons. Also be aware that the original records may have been misinterpreted or names may have been omitted during indexing.
  
• Search for prior residence. Information about an ancestor's previous residences is crucial to successful research.
  
• Watch for spelling variations. Look for the many ways a name could have been spelled. Spelling was not standardized when most early records were made. You may find a name spelled differently than it is today as well as several different spelling variations in the original records.
  
• Record your searches and findings. Copy the information you find and keep detailed notes about each record you search. These notes should include the author, title, page number, location, call numbers, description of each record, and an account of the results of your search. Most researchers use a research log for this purpose.
  

Step 5. Use the Information

Evaluate the Information You Find. Carefully evaluate whether the information you find is complete and accurate. Ask yourself these questions:

• Who provided the information? Did that person witness the event?
• Was the information recorded near the time of the event or later?
• Is the information consistent and logical?
• Does the new information verify the information found in other sources? Does it differ from information in other sources?
• Does it suggest other places, time periods, or records to search?