AncestorSpy

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Family Tree Maker 2008
Enjoy to do lists & interactive maps and much, much, more!!!

Now that you have box full of documents, it is time to organize them. Over the years I have tried several organizing methods. I will not take the time her to describe all the methods, but will tell you the simplest one that works.

File folders are the best way to organize all those documents. The first task is to label the folders. There are at least 3 systems to choose from.

          1- Chronologically by year,
          2- Label them by stage of life such as Pre-School years, elementary school, high school and so on, or
          3- Label them by subject such as ports, achievements, relatives, church events, and so on.

Label the first folder in your file - "Logs." Logs are a list of documents that will be used for a particular purpose. You may want a log to list your Heirlooms" or "Documents with genealogy information."

Once your folders are labeled, begin filing. For the time being just file. If the documents is one that has a particular purpose, list it on the appropriate log. Other documents will be can be further identified, if desired, later. Place fragile documents in sheet protectors and handle them as little as possible.

Most of the documents you gather will pertain to your life story. As you file, whenever you notice a document that has genealogy details such as relationships, births, marriages, deaths on it make a note on a "Documents with genealogy information," log. Record what the document is, which relatives are mentioned on it and the folder where you filed it. Then as you start your family tree, it will then be easy for you to use the document and record the source in your family tree.

Take a picture of documents that will not fit in file folders, then write about the document. For example, when I gathered anything I could find that pertained to family history at my grandmother's house when she died, I found a very old baby shoe. I do not have any history, but I believe it is quite possible that my father wore it when he was a baby. It fits that time period. While I cannot give the true details, I plan to take a picture of it, tell when and where I got it and then place the picture in the story I plan to write about my grandmother. If the document has genealogy information such as a family bible, again take a picture and write about it giving as many details as you know. Then file the paper in the appropriate folder. Note - you may want to label one of the file folders "Genealogy Information" if it is hard to decide where to file it. Taking pictures of heirlooms is a good way to keep track of them.

It always feels good to get organized and it saves time too.

Until next time, I am Donna K. Clark, your AncestorSpy guide.

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