Being that you are here, reading MobileGenealogy.com, chances are you have an interest in genealogy on the go or genealogy-related travel. Over the last 5-6 months, the primary focus of the site has been on genealogy apps and software for mobile devices, or apps and software that can assist you in your genealogy research. This summer I took several genealogy-related trips, visiting relatives, cemeteries, and libraries and I’m working on turning my experiences into several articles.
In the meantime, Dick Eastman over at Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter wrote a good article about showing up somewhere prepared to do some genealogy research, and finding some obstacles that you didn’t expect. It’s for “plus” subscribers of his newsletter, but this gives you an idea of what he’s talking about:
How many times has this happened to you? You enter a courthouse, library, or other repository of genealogy information with the intent of finding information about your ancestors. You don’t really know what is available in that library or archive. After all, that is the purpose of your trip, right? You want to find out. Next thing you know, your head is spinning amidst a profusion of information and a confusion of objectives.
You may be wondering how this happens. While at the library/archive/repository, you start to look at the available information, but you also notice a book, microfilm, or other set of documents about some related topic. You spend some time looking at that book, even though it was not a part of your original plan. You find some interesting material about things that are not directly related to your ancestors. The end of the day arrives all too soon, and you find yourself leaving the facility, feeling a bit frustrated that you didn’t accomplish what you had planned to do that day.