Last summer, when I took a research trip I thought I had all of the information I needed.
However, throughout the course of the trip I realized I didn’t.
Part of this was because I’d never been to the area before, so I was unsure of how close or far certain cities were from one another.
Other things such as checking for everyone at certain cemeteries became an issue.
So what did I learn from this?
In essence, have your ducks in a row before you go on a research trip.
- Take the time to research the area. Learn as much as you can about the history and distance of places in the area where you are going.
Make a list and double check - Know exactly what information you need {land records, wills, family histories, census records, graves, etc}. It helps to know what you already have or what records you can obtain online {such as census records and military records}
- Who are you researching? {name, dates, types of records, etc}
- Where are you going for research? {library, cemetery, court house, etc}
- Do you know anyone in the area that can be of assistance?
- What other families married into this group to research?
- Realize that everything will take longer than you anticipate. So plan your time accordingly, as best as possible.
- Bonus—What equipment do you need to take with you? {camera, hand held scanner, laptop, money for copies, etc}.
How do you prepare for a research trip?