Welcome to the VAGenWeb a proud part of USGenWeb ®   Pittsylvania County, Virginia Genealogy Project

Sharpen Your Research Skills

Genealogical research is more that just finding people who are researching your family line and downloading all the vital data they have collected. It is really great to make such contacts but the quality of the information we get from others depends ultimately on the records on which the information is based and the care with which the researcher copies and records his source of information. Original source material is the goal to strive for. Derived sources include things like transcripts, abstracts, extracts that have been processed and drawn from original sources. Derived sources may contain serious errors and you can spend a lot of time chasing someone else’s ancestors. While sharing information with others can provide many shortcuts to learning about your family, the careful researcher will search for original records to verify his information. It is with these thoughts in mind this section of skill building sites has been selected to help the beginning genealogist. However, even the more advanced genealogist will find helpful hints and short refresher courses developed by well qualified persons.

INTERNET GENEALOGY - WHAT'S GOOD! WHAT'S NOT! . . . AND WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO ABOUT IT? by Bettie Cummings Cook, CG. An excellent article on the dangers of Internet genealogy.

 Are You a Genealogist, or a Collector of Genealogy?. Scott Simpson makes good points about "doing it right."

 National Genealogical Society

 The Learning Center. Developed by Linda Haas Davenport, this site has a nice variety of "how to" articles including census, military, land and other records. Also has other types of information including a time line of history, a list of old diseases, "rules for teachers," and more.

 Genealogy Frauds. Information compiled by Robert Charles Anderson, CG, FASG, and published in Genealogical Journal of the Utah Genealogical Association under the title "We Wuz Robbed!"

 Ten Easy Steps Up the Family Tree. Designed for the beginner by Kathleen Mirabella. From the Macoupin County, ILGenWeb.

 Skill Building Series from the Board for Certification of Genealogists. Excellent series of articles for all levels of proficiency.

 Research Aids for the Family Historian. Includes information on calendars and dating practices, colonial occupations, family naming traditions, a really great western migration map, and much more.

 Land Record References. Contains clear explanations of land transaction records, metes and bounds, and terms you will find in property descriptions.

 Numbering Systems in Genealogy. Richard A. Pence gives a good explanation of the various numbering systems used in genealogy.

 Civil War Soldiers & Sailors System. A new database that plans to include a list of regiments in both the Union and Confederate Armies; identification and description of 384 significant battles; lists of servicemen. Now contains rosters of U.S. colored troops and general historical information.

 National Archives and Records Administration Genealogy Page. This area provides many of the finding aids, guides, and research tools that can prepare you for a visit to one of the facilities or for requesting records from NARA.

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Other Goodies

 Hening's Statutes at Large, being a collection of all the Laws of Virginia from the first session of the Legislature, in the Year 1619.

 Dating old photographs and postcards based on women's clothing, hair styles, even things like cars, bridges, telephone lines, etc.

 How Much is it Worth Today? compares the purchasing power of money in the United States (or colonies) from 1665 to 2002. http://www.bcgcertification.org/

 Need Professional Help? Here is the roster of professional researchers certified by the Board for Certification of Genealogists.

 Directory of Virginia Newspapers.

Virginia's Northern Neck Land Grants. If you have kin in the Northern Neck of Virginia check this page by Steve Knoblock.

Tombstone Inscription Project. A fantastic project, a national database of tombstone inscriptions. Check here to see how you can help.

 Census Images online Check here for Census images and to see how you can help make this collection grow.

 Gold Bug Site Finder will search place, cemetery, courthouse, school, church and military sites and place them on Google maps.

 TopoZone. Online topographic maps---free.

 Obituary Central strives to locate, categorize, and present obituaries and other forms of vital data for your convenience.

 Map Collection from the Universitiy of Texas Perry-Castañeda Library. Excellent collection of historical maps.

 U.S. Digital Maps Library. State and County map as well as Indian Land Cessions to the United States Treaty Maps.

 Virginia Genealogical Society. State organization lists events, publications, projects, queries, and more.

 Bureau of Land Management. This project offers researchers a single source of information on lands that were once in federal ownership; which federal agency has jurisdiction over the land surface; and what individuals or entities first received that land from the federal government.

 Where to Obtain Land Patents/Warrants. State-by-state information excerpts from The Source ...; abstracted by Linda Haas Davenport (May 1998) and updated periodically.

 Order of Descendants of Ancient Planters. The term "Ancient Planter" is applied to those persons who arrived in Virginia before 1616, remained for a period of three years, paid their passage, and survived the massacre of 1622.

 Passenger Lists. A project in progress to transcribe passenger lists, from the Immigrant Ships Transcribers Guild.

 Directory of Catholic Parishes. Search by parish name, zip code, area code, diocese, or city/state.

 Cyndi's List of Genealogy Sites on the Internet. for locating sites of interest to genealogists.

 Time Capsule. Enter a date between 1900 and 1997 and see the headline news and economic data for that time period. .

 What was the exchange rate then? gives exchanges rates for any year between 1791 and 1999.

 Tutorials for Reading Old German, French and English Handwriting, Naming Sytems. Some good basic stuff.

 English Calendar. The site, developed by Ian MacInnes, Albion College, calculates Old Style dates from New Style, and vice versa; the date of Easter and other major ecclesiastical feasts; the day of the week for a given date (both Old Style and New Style); and a particular (English) monarch's regnal year for a given ordinary date.

 10 Big Myths About Copyright Explained. An attempt to answer common myths about copyright seen on the net and cover issues related to copyright and USENET/Internet publication, by Brad Templeton.

 Popular Songs in American History Includes tunes, lyrics and historical background dating from the 17th century.

 See also the list of related sites on the VAGenWeb page.