Live Research Assistance: Help for answering questionsEdit This Page

From FamilySearch Wiki

• What information should I gather at the beginning of a call?
  

1. Their objective for their research.
2. The locality where their ancestor lived.
3. The time period when their ancestor lived in that locality.
4. The record or type of information that you want to find. For example, you want the parents' names, or a birth date or place, or the spouse's full name.
   

If they are unsure about dates and places, they will need to come forward a generation and choose an ancestor about whom they have more information. Knowing about a more recent ancestor will give them a place to start to look for an earlier generation. Help them understand that they need a focused goal, not "I want to know about my grandmother" but "I want to know where was my grandmother born."
 
 

• What records does FamilySearch have online?

• 1940 Census
• List of collections
• Search all collections 
• The Family History Library Catalog (searchable online to discover what can be found through microfilm)
   
   

• Where does FamilySearch keep research guidance information?

The FamilySearch Research Wiki is a great starting place when helping a patron. Pages are created for the various jurisdictions where records could exist. Check for records in all areas.
For example, if searching for an ancestor from Adams County, Ohio, you would check these pages:

• Adams County, Ohio
• Ohio
   
   

• What do I do when I don't know how to help the patron?

1. Ask in one of our Skype groups.
    
   
2. Walk the patron to our Facebook page for that locality:

• Genealogy Research Communities on Facebook
  

Ohio Specific Resources Example:

• Ohio Genealogy Research Community in Facebook
   
   

• How much time should I spend with each researcher?

There could be a wide range, and lots of exceptions to this general rule, but if you are spending much more than 30 minutes with a patron, you may want to refer them to other places for additional help. Our goal is to teach the researcher something that will help them learn how to research in the future rather than do all the work for them.
 
 

• I do genealogy work professionally. Can I tell researchers about that?

Please do not mix these free services with discussions about professional work. In the future, we will discuss possible referral procedures if researchers are asking for professional assistance.

See Also: 

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