Genealogy Research When You Can't Travel

I hear it all the time from genealogists, "I am not able to travel to do research" and "I can't go any further with my research until I can travel to the archives in a different state".

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It has been said that only about 5% of the world's genealogical records are online, the rest are sitting in archives waiting for genealogists to find them. Most of our archives just don't have the budgets to digitize all of their records and put them online. This process takes money and staff to accomplish. Here is a great visual from the California Genealogical Society showing the ratio of what is online and what is not.

Not being able to jump in the car or on a plane and travel to the place where your ancestor's records are located is tough. I know this because my ancestors are from Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania and other states. I haven't been able to travel for research these past 35 years I have been doing genealogy research. In spite of that fact, I have done pretty well gathering records that are not online from all of these places.

How did I do it?

I used my computer, my telephone, my email account and the old fashioned way of writing letters. I found what specific archives, historical societies, genealogical societies, university archives and libraries and museums that were in the area where specific records could be located. I checked to see if they had a website with a list of records and contact information. I would then contact them by phone, email or writing a letter and make a records request. Usually, if the records were found, copies would be mailed to me. But here recently, I have started receiving more and more scanned records sent by email.

Dickson County, TN. Archives, Shelves of Records Not Online

If the repository does not have their records listed on a website, it will take a little more communication with the facility to find out what they have and make your request.

A couple of places online where you can find listings of repositories are:

Cyndi's List

http://www.cyndislist.com/us/

FamilySearch Wiki

https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/Main_Page



Both of these sites have the repositories organized by state and then by county. There should be links to websites or contact information like a phone number where you can get in touch with the facility.

I always encourage genealogists to not give up just because you can't travel to where your ancestors records are being kept. It might take a little more work to get records this way instead of just being able to click on a link and get a document but I assure you, it is well worth it.

As an archivist, I love to hear from genealogists when they email me, call me or send me requests through the postal mail. My job and my passion is to help others find the records about their ancestors.

REMEMBER: IT'S NOT ALL ONLINE, CONTACT OR VISIT AN ARCHIVE TODAY!

Preserving Old Black Paper Photo Albums

Photographs!

I love family photographs!

Looking into the faces of my ancestors in photographs and wondering what they were like, how they lived and what they did on a daily basis is a huge part of my genealogy research journey.

One obstacle that we might face with our photographs are those old black paper photo albums that look like this:

Wiseman Family Photo Album, Houston County, TN. Archives

These were extremely popular in the late 1800's and throughout the 1900's. The photographs were either pasted onto the pages or they were inserted with photo corners that are pasted into the album.

We have several of these types of black paper photo albums in the Houston County, TN. Archives & Museum. It is very important that these types of photo albums be handled with care and preserved properly. Any home archivist can preserve their own black paper photo albums. But I always like to say that if you don't feel comfortable doing this preservation project yourself, then I highly recommend you consult with an archivist or conservator in your area to help you.

First and foremost, the black paper in these albums is not archival. They are not acid free and are full of chemicals. The paste that was used to adhere the photographs is also not archival and can be damaging to photographs.

The first thought would be to remove the photographs from these albums. STOP!!

I would caution you about removing the photos from these types of black paper albums. I will say that if the paste has worn away or deteriorated enough that the photos come off the pages easy, then removing the photographs would be okay. Otherwise, DO NOT REMOVE THE PHOTOS! Dismantling a photograph album like this should be your last resort.

Many of us are dying to know if there is any writing on the back of the photographs, like names, places or dates. Again, if the photographs come off the pages easily, then remove them but if they don't come off the page easily, leave them alone!

We know that the pages are not archival but you could do much more damage to the photographs trying to remove them than the paper is doing.

Wiseman Family Photo Album, Houston County, TN. Archives

Before you even start, put on GLOVES! When working with photographs, archivist always use gloves to keep the oils and dirt from their hands from getting on the photographs and causing damage. You can use white cotton gloves or regular latex gloves. Do not handle any photographs without wearing gloves.

I would suggest that you first digitize the pages in the photo album. Use a flat bed scanner, digital camera or some other device that allows you to lay the pages flat. Do not use any device that requires you to feed the pages through the device, that could cause damage.

Digitizing and documenting each and every photograph from the album is a great archiving tool. If something were to happen to the album, you will still have the digital images.

Use archival tissue paper and interweave the tissue paper between each and every page. This will create a barrier between the photographs and the adjacent black paper pages.

Interweaving Tissue Paper, Houston County, TN. Archives

Place the entire photograph album in an archival box. You will want to purchase a box that fits the album as perfectly as possible. If the album is moving around in the box, crumple up tissue paper and put around the album so it doesn't move. Do not cram the photo album in to too small of a box. You want the album to fit snuggly so it doesn't move at all.

Store the box with the album in a cool, dark and dry place. Never store documents, photographs or artifacts in an attic, basement or someplace where it is humid. Always keep out of the sunlight.

If you are fortunate enough to have these wonderful old black paper photo albums with your ancestor's photographs in them, you have a treasure! So, let's preserve and archive that album so that future generations can enjoy those photographs!


REMEMBER: IT'S NOT ALL ONLINE, CONTACT OR VISIT AN ARCHIVE TODAY!!

Organizing Your Genealogy Research, Tips from an Archivist

  Happy New Year!

It's hard to believe it's 2026!

I am excited about a New Year for genealogy research and being the archivist at the Houston County, TN. Archives & Museum. I am looking forward to meeting all the genealogist that will walk through the archives door, call me on the phone or send me an email with their genealogy research questions. Helping genealogists is the best part of my job as an archivist.

I am also looking forward to the opportunities to speak, teach and write about researching in archives and records preservation. I love teaching others about archives research and the best practices in preserving your genealogy research.

Today, I would like to talk about organizing your genealogy research. Many of you will make New Year's Resolutions that will have something to do with organizing genealogy research and records. Many of you will decide to go totally digital, many of you will try to eliminate piles of papers and many of you have tons of photographs to scan and organize.

Houston County Highway Dept. Records Before Organization

In an archives, organization is very important and something I do on a daily basis as I process the records in my care. If I don't use the proper methods to process record collections, they won't be in a form that can be used by genealogy researchers. Also, using archival safe materials is essential to protecting and preserving original documents so they will be around for the next generations of genealogists to enjoy.

There are all kinds of ways to organize your genealogy research, I will leave the method you choose up to you. I would like to give you three tips to help the organization go more smoothly and hopefully help you to not become overwhelmed during the process:

Choose an Organization Method that Works for You and be Consistent

It's true, there are many methods and ways to organize your genealogy research. You can talk to 10 people and get 10 different methods of organization. I always tell genealogists to figure out the method that works for you and just be consistent in implementing it. An organizational method that works for me may not work for you and that's okay! If you don't like the organization method you are using, most likely you won't stay very organized. So, find what works for you and be consistent in using it everyday.

One of the best books out there to help you organize your genealogy records Organize Your Genealogy: Strategies and Solutions for Every Researcher.

Here are the links to this book on Amazon

Paperback: https://amzn.to/2R81HyL
Kindle Version: https://amzn.to/2Asv4Sh

Take Small Bites

There is a saying that goes something like this "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time." This is also true for tackling the job of organizing genealogy research. Don't try to do it all in one day. You will get overwhelmed and discouraged if you try to take on too much at one time. In the archives, when I have a large records collection to process, I take it slow and steady. It might take me a few days or even a few weeks to complete the processing of a large records collection. I have one particular collection right now that has taken me a couple of months and I am still not done. The reason I take my time is because I want to process the collection properly so when genealogists want to use the records collection, it is organized and easy to find what they are looking for. So, don't try to organize everything as fast as possible. Take your time, you will be glad that you did.

Use Archival Materials

As an archivist, I can not emphasis this tip enough. I encourage everyone to use archival file folders, archival sheet protectors and archival boxes for all genealogical documents. Even if you have decided to go totally digital, I am sure there will be some original records that you will want to keep and preserving them should be at the top of your organizational list. Many of the documents we own as genealogists are one-of-a-kind and should be protected for future generations to enjoy.

Archival Materials Used in an Archives, Houston County, TN. Archives

The online archival material business are now advertising their 2024 catalogs. You can access their materials online or you can request that a catalog be mailed to you, here are links to their websites:

Online Archival Supply Stores:

Gaylord Archival
http://www.gaylord.com/

Archival Methods

https://www.archivalmethods.com/

Hollinger Metal Edge
http://www.hollingermetaledge.com/

University Products
https://www.universityproducts.com/

Light Impressions
http://www.lightimpressionsdirect.com/

Following these three tips as you organize your genealogy research will hopefully make the process more enjoyable and you won't get overwhelmed.

For the start of this New Year, I would like to encourage those that follow me and read my blog, writings and watch my webinars to contact me with your questions about researching in archives and preserving records. My email address is: hchsirish@gmail.com 

I love talking to genealogists about the in's and out's of researching in archives and I love helping them get the right archival materials to preserve and protect their genealogy records, photographs, memorabilia and artifacts. So, please feel free to email me anytime!

Lastly, in 2026 I encourage everyone to seek out the thousands of archives, libraries, historical societies, genealogical societies, university libraries and archives and museums that hold genealogical records. More and more these repositories budgets are being cut because of non-use. We need to keep these facilities OPEN, so.....



REMEMBER: IT'S NOT ALL ONLINE, CONTACT OR VISIT AN ARCHIVES TODAY!!

Tell Your Ancestor's Story!

We have started a New Year! Many of us will commit to doing more genealogy research, to tear down that brick wall and we may have even decided to write that family history book. One thing is for sure, most genealogists see the beginning of a New Year as an opportunity to double down on their family history research.

I have been researching my family’s history for going on 36 years and it never gets old or dull! While the major discoveries are getting fewer and not as prevalent, the thrill of the hunt keeps me going. The excitement of what could be in the next book, microfilm reel or online database to tell me more about one of my ancestors is what I get excited about.

The one thing that I have been concentrating on for the past 10 years, is my ancestor’s story, their full story. Knowing who they were, what they did and where did they go and why! I have found myself asking the question “Why?” more often these days while research than I have ever done before.

I like to say “Every person who ever lived on this Earth has a story to tell and it’s up to us to tell it.” This is more than birth, marriage and death dates. An ancestor’s story starts when they were born and the story is weaved through the years of their lives and when they leave this earth, many of them leave legacies, memories and many times more questions.

Unknown Group Photograph, Houston County Archives & Museum

I would encourage every genealogists to Tell Your Ancestor's Story in 2026! Look beyond the dates and places and concentrate on the aspects of your ancestor's life that made them who they were, who they became and who the family remembers them being. Dates and places are fixed in our ancestor's history. It's the stories, personalities and little known facts that truly make our ancestor's come to life right before our eyes. 

Preserving the Past, Collecting the Present, For the Future

What is an archive? What is the purpose of an archive? What do you do all day in an archive?

I am asked these questions all the time and I love to share my passion for archives and tell others what archives are all about.

The #1 job of any archive is preserving the past. The past can come in many different forms such as documents, photographs, artifacts and even oral histories. The goal is to collect items about the past and preserve them for future generations. We are working everyday to preserve the past for genealogists, historians, family researchers and others who have an interest in the past. Without archives, where would our collections of the past be?

Photo of Unknowns located in the Houston County, Tennessee Archives

An archive also engages in collecting the present. You might ask, "What does that mean?" That means as an archive we collect items that are produced today that one day will be part of our past. As people live their lives and as counties, cities and states conduct their business and as numerous organizations hold events and celebrate milestones and as our country experiences disasters and celebrates accomplishments, archives try to collect documents, artifacts and memorabilia to record these events because one day they will be part of the past.

Houston County Leadership Visit February 18, 2016 located in the Houston County, Tennessee Archives

And finally, I am asked "Why do you do this?" and I answer "For the Future". Preserving the past, collecting the present, for the future! Our descendants and future citizens of our cities, counties, states and our country will never know about the past if it isn't preserved and made available to them.

When looking for an archive where your ancestors lived, remember that they may not be named "archive". The records of your ancestors could be housed in a county archive, at a historical society, at a genealogical society, at university special collections, at a library or at a courthouse. Historical and genealogical records can be stored in any of these places.

Houston County, Tennessee Archives Office Door Graphic

Remember: It's Not All Online! And this becomes very evident when you realize just how much of our documents and records are sitting in archives just waiting to be processed, indexed and digitized. That is why it is important for the genealogist to contact and visit local repositories in search of records.

So, while you are doing your family history research, please remember to check with local archives to see what they have been doing to "Preserving the Past, Collecting the Present, For the Future"!

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Need help organizing and preserving all those old family letters?

Get My Legacy Family Tree Webinar:

Preserving Old Family Letters

 http://legacy.familytreewebinars.com/?aid=1168

RootsTech 2025: Genealogy Education at It's Best!

RootsTech 2025 starts in 3 days! This is the largest genealogical conference in the United States and possibly the world. This conference is an in-person as well as a virtual genealogy educational experience. If you have not registered for the FREE virtual aspect of  RootsTech, you still can! Register at this link: https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/

RootsTech is one of the best opportunities for genealogists to educate themselves on a variety of genealogy subjects. When you visit the RootsTech website, you can follow the daily schedule of presentations at this link: https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/schedule?day=2025-03-05

I am giving a virtual presentations during RootsTech:

Preserving Documents and Ephemera

Thursday, March 6, 2025 at 5:30 p.m. Central Time

Attending RootsTech, whether in-person or virtually, is one of the best genealogical educational gifts you can give yourself! Register for FREE to attend virtually today!

REMEMBER: IT'S NOT ALL ONLINE, CONTACT OR VISIT AN ARCHIVE TODAY!

Have Tennessee ancestors?

Check Out My Legacy Family Tree Webinar

The Tennessee State Library and Archives: A Mega Archives for Your Tennessee Ancestors

http://legacy.familytreewebinars.com/?aid=7644

Black History Month: Julius Rosenwald and the Rosenwald Fund

February is Black History Month and I want to talk about my favorite African American subject, the Rosenwald Fund. 

1963 Graduating Class at the W.H. Hensley School

Houston County, TN. Archives & Museum

The Rosenwald Fund also known as the Julius Rosenwald Fund was established in 1917 by Julius Rosenwald and his family with a partnership with Booker T. Washington to build and support local African American schools in the south. Unlike other endowed foundations, which were designed to fund themselves in perpetuity, the Rosenwald Fund was designed to expend all of its funds for philanthropic purposes before a predetermined sunset date. The fund donated over $70 million to public schools, colleges and universities, museums, Jewish charities and African American institutions before funds were completely depleted in 1948.

Julius Rosenwald and Booker T. Washington

Photo Courtesy of Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library

One of the more well known projects was providing funds to local school boards to build African American schools. Over 5,000 schools were built in the states of Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma, North Carolina, South Carolina, Missouri, Virginia and West Virginia.

Rosenwald Fund Schoolhouse Construction Map, 1928

Courtesy of North Carolina Digital Collections

In Houston County, Tennessee, where I am the archivist at the Houston County Archives & Museum, we have uncovered documents, photos and information about an African American school we had locally that was funded by the Julius Rosenwald Fund. The W.H. Hensley School was built with funds from the Rosenwald Fund. This fund also provided funds for books and other supplies. While the school building itself no longer exists, the history of this school is being documented so that it is not forgotten.

W.H. Hensley School, Houston County, Tennessee

Houston County, Tennessee Archives & Museum

If you think your African American ancestors attended a Julius Rosenwald funded school, check with the local historical or genealogical society and see if they have any information, documents or photos. Many of these school buildings still exist and have historical markers placed to honor the work Julius Rosenwald and Booker T. Washington accomplished.

Courtesy North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources

We should be researching all aspects of our families ancestry, including the schools they attended!

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Want To Know More About Researching in School Records?

Watch my Legacy Family Tree Webinar

The ABC's and 123's of Researching Your Ancestor's School Records

http://legacy.familytreewebinars.com/?aid=3076