Here is a short list that you could look through and consider in starting your own family tree : Perhaps the group of people that is most interested in searching for their kindred dead is the Latter-day Saints. They believe that genealogical work is a part of man s salvation. Their belief is three-fold- missionary work, perfecting the saints (improving themselves while following the gospel) and redeeming the dead (here is where the genealogical works come in). It wasn t unusual to have 10 Johns, seven Williams and four Richards all living in the same town. At first, names were used to identify an individual through a unique characteristic: his family (usually his father), his place of residence, geographical location and even a personal trait like hair color or height. You also don t need to go far when examining documents for your genealogy research. Family books, Bibles, letters, last will and testaments are proof of family. These also hold an advantage over other documents since these will provide you an intimate look at the relationships of your ancestors. Interviews with people who've had contact with little-known family members can also bring some positive results. Use family genealogy sources in your search If you want to know more of where you came from, the best source of finding out is through members of your own family. Believe it or not, the best sources of your own search of whence it is you came from is from the very people you consider fortunately or unfortunately your family. Now that all the necessary information needed to start a family history were discussed, one needs to know the other sources aside from living relatives and public documents. There are several websites that could help anyone who would want to start with his own genealogical search. The leader of which are the LDS-compiled genealogy that resulted into the International Genealogical Index, which happens to be the largest compilation of genealogical data through microfilm. The next step is to identify your ancestor s last owner or master. Not all black were slave before the civil war because some of them were already called free man. You can check the 1860 census to see whether your ancestor is a freeman or not. If you are already sure that your ancestor was a slave, identifying his or her last owner is the next priority.