Every year tens of thousands of people around the globe embark upon a heritage quest, eager to find information about those long lost relatives.
This hobby has become such a popular phenomenon during the last few years and it largely comes down to the availability of information. So, what is the driver for gathering this information? Is it simply in order that individuals can add to their repertoire of after dinner speeches, to add spice and humour to them, or does this hobby have a more serious undertone?
The answer probably lies somewhere in the middle. It is human nature for us to cling to our pasts and wish to be a part of something bigger than perhaps we feel that we are, and maybe some of us hope that there is something more interesting in our family history than where we are today.
Recently a television programme was based upon the heritage quest of various celebrities and actors and it was quite an eye opener as those whom we associate with wealth and power became visibly humbled by their own backgrounds to the extent that some were disbelieving the authenticity of what was unearthed and others perhaps became more sympathetic to the issues of the less fortunate, perhaps not having previously experienced such hardships themselves.
My guess is that the heritage quest is best suited to us less fortunate classes whom are likely to find more encouraging if not exciting facts about our own family histories. It seems that if one is already at the top, the only thing they will find is that dark reminder of where they could end up!
Wherever the researcher is in the world, so long as they have internet access, they will be able to find sites that assist them to start on the heritage quest;
But before getting that far a good place to start is to ask the known relatives what information they have regarding the family tree and from then on begin creating a unique diagrammatical tree with oneself as the centre point.
There are many websites such as genesreunited.com that offer the use of free software to assist with creating that tree and which also offer to search their own databases for people who may be related or indeed be able to help researchers along the way.
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In order to really get anywhere far back in history researchers often may find the need to spend a little money. There are sites worldwide that offer full details of census information (which in essence is a record of everybody living in a state or country taken at a single point in time) and the reason these sites can be so beneficial is that the information they hold is often around 100 years old mark, which makes them a great place to visit having exhausted details from existing family members. Quite often these sites will carry out “pre searches” to let you know names and dates of those related to one’s surname prior to needing to spend any money.
Once beyond the census stage it can be common to find oneself requiring to carry out deep research, which may involve making direct contact with others and sending out letters of enquiry etc and this is the point that potentially divides the true genealogist from the occasional dabbler.
One should not be put off by the thought of carrying out such research and if this is considered time prohibitive, one can quite easily find professional researchers who will carry the research at a fee.
The heritage quest has been embarked upon by millions and when considering whether or not to embark upon the same journey it is just worth remembering to keep an open mind.
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