Planning a Family Tree? Search County Records Online

[Pete Leonard]

The first few generations going back from you and your parents are
often the easiest entries that you can make when filling out your
family tree. This is because those that have come directly before you
are still alive, or if not, someone else close to you can tell you all
that you need to know about them. There are plenty of places to look
when you go back a bit further, but you are coming up blank. Think
about various county sources that can get you just what you need to
keep going.
There are many places where you are going to find things that can
either be clues or the answers that you need. Even when you find what
you need, you are going to be starting all over again with the next
person on down the line. Though some of the more common sources are
going to help, you may find that nothing comes up. What you may not
know is that you can find county resources within states to get
information that does not come up in general queries.
County records are often a great place to search because the databases
are smaller, and the information is going to be easier to find by
name. This also helps you know you have the right person, though that
is not always the case. These records can not be found if you do not
know through which county to search, but if you can find out, this is
definitely the way to go. You may find cemetery records, along with
other vital records that tell you what you need. Don't forget about
census records as well.
One of the best places to look for individual county records would be
RootsWeb. There you can search by state and then by individual
counties. When you get to the county in question, you will see a list
of links that give out information and search through the records for
that particular county. You can find many other great tools there as
well.
If you don't have much luck through your own searching, you can try
something that can help you further search county records. You may
find more links and more information about using records on a county
level to move ahead with your family tree when you find that you are
stuck.