Has anyone tried Ancestry.com?
 

I signed up for Ancestry.com after watching several episodes of "Who Do You Think You Are?" I wasn't sure how to proceed, but it is very intuitive and easy to use. Guess what? I have traced my Boston-area grandparents back to the very early 1600s in Plymouth and area. The ones before that, in the 1500s, are from England I learned, and so I am pursuing that info. I have also traced one grandmother's family back to Ireland, and the other side of the family back to the 1800s in IL, and both sides of my husband's family way back. I even found the name of the ships
various family members came to America on in the 1800s. It is amazing!!! I go to log on and check a few things and the next thing I know it's 4 hours later! I didn't know it would be so addictive.

I love it too. I gave it up because it took up so much quilting time. No one in my family really cares so a quilting I will go! Enjoy, it's like a treasure hunt!

I was working in mine last year but then got on to other things. Traced both sides of my family back to 1500's. I've got ancestors who were burned at the stake (he was a preacher who spoke against Catholic church), another ran off and left his wife and son to die of starvation in Windsor Castle as prisoners. Irish, English, Scottish, French, German...There were more interesting characters in the family history, but those are two that really stuck with me.

I have been on Anestery for over a year and have taken classes at Vo-tech. Rule #1..unless you have three documents (offical) then your great uncle Bo might not really be related. This is what so many run into. Just because grandma said Uncle was from Italy, that doesn't make it so. That's what makes it so addictive. Running down all the leads. Good luck in you searches.

I've had an Ancestry sub for years now, and love it. It's been worth it's weight in gold to me a couple of times for information! :)

Glenda is right. You can't consider it fact unless it's documented, however, usually one SOLID document is enough, and sometimes those are just gone. (The Union army, during the War Between the States, burned many of the courthouses and churches that held documents, and there is simply no way to document some things unless there's a family Bible out there somewhere.) Sometimes you just have to go with a preponderance of evidence, and hope that it's right.

You're right about preponderence of evidence. I had lots of secondary, but not primary documents, that I had to use to get into DAR.

Really - I find it extremely excruciating. It's definitely not as easy as it is shown on television or as you all are talking about for me.

Is it expensive?

I love it and we have debunked info my grandmother passed down...people we supposedly were related to....and found out some interesting ones we were related to! My family can be traced back pretty far.... 1600's England and a couple of other European spots. My husband's family was harder, but his brother has actually found relatives because of it. I had a cousin X3 or 4 contact me through the site and depsite where our particular tree started we now are living about 20 miles apart. Absolutely fascinating!

I found out my childhood best friend was really my cousin! Her greatgrandmother was the sister to my greatgrandmother and we never knew it. We had a common last name - Davis.

I think it is $89 a year.