I’ve invested in a portable scanner and found it easy to use when scanning pictures. There are also free apps that you can download to your phone. I’ve been pleased with the free “Photo App.” The quality of the family pictures scanned was quite impressive. 

If you aren’t able to make a family connection with an existing family tree, begin small. Start with yourself! Write your full name, add nicknames, then provide your birthdate. Next, add parents and siblings. Maternal (mother’s side) and Paternal (father’s side) grandparents are then added.  

You will need to decide how to document information, by either completing paper forms or using an online avenue. If you decide to begin online research, consider exploring Family Search – a free website where “shared” family trees are housed and available across the world.   

Family Search also offers access to valuable resources such as historical census records, birth, marriage, and death records, and a slew of valuable information about ancestors.  

You may discover pictures never seen before or make relationship connections with others.  

I was fortunate to locate a group picture of my maternal grandfather from when he was a boy attending a one-room schoolhouse in Kansas. The description shared the name of the school, students and teacher. I located the historical land description of the school online, then shared it with my husband. He used Google Maps to locate the plot of land, which now gives us a location to one day visit. Yes, it made my travel list of ancestral places to…