Visit the area

Once you have established some basics about your ancestors one of the biggest thrills is to visit the area where they lived.

Try and trace their house , their place of work, the schools where they were taught or the Church/Chapel that played a role in birth, marriage and deaths in the family.

Take your old photos with you and try and duplicate the image with a modern version. It is amazing how many things can still be found like barns, signs, and even hedges.

Try and trace the local museum and ask if they have any records of your family or old photos of things which may be pertinent to their lives.

Check local bookshops for local history books about the area. who knows they may be mentioned.

If your relative may have been prominent check a local street map as they may have had a road named after them or more likely Smiths Way may have led to their blacksmiths shop..

You could even politely knock on the door of a house in which they used to live. The owners may know something of the history of their house or still have items which were in place in your ancestors time.

Make sure that you take lots of pictures and use some of them to add to the records you have made of the individuals concerned. It will add much more interest to your family tree and help bring it to life for you.

Just imagine you were probably standing where they once stood!