I do not think I have ever seen a book that listed only direct ancestors. A family history must include all members of the family.

The research will require more time because most families were larger in the early years and we must research every member and their subsequent generations if we are to have a completed history.

The collection process the beginner must accomplish in the first stages of his or her research will keep him or her very busy. Collecting birth certificates, marriage records and a death certificate for each person in an applicable generation is our first objective.?

Interviews with older family members, canvassing cemeteries, taking pictures of family tombstones and compiling stories pertaining to the family also must be included. At the same time the researcher should collect photographs because they are at times the most difficult to locate.

All applicable census records should be obtained for each member of the family and added to source documentation. As each new decade of census records are opened we must begin our census research until all individuals in our family are added. This is really a time-consuming process, but worth the effort.?

The beginning genealogist should start early with a good filing system. This may not seem important in the beginning when there are just a few names in your database. There will come a time when there are so many names in one phase of your family that you could not keep track of them without a good filing system.?

The software database for Andrew Baker Shown, my husband's great-grandfather, now includes 2,279 individuals. It is no longer possible for me to remember everything about each individual in that family without a good software program or filing system.?

By setting up your filing system in the beginning you will be able to keep all the data in the proper order and will enjoy the research more because you will not be spending your time looking for the documentation you already have in your files.

When sending in queries or sharing information, write to: Relatively Speaking, P.O. Drawer 1058, Norman, OK 73070 or e-mail Darlene Shawn at Djshawn636@aol.com.