Genealogy guide coming to Te Puke

Genealogy 101 is a class being led by archivist Sandra Haigh at Te Puke Library.

Like all tools, those that can help trace your family history are effective only if you know how to use them.

Western Bay of Plenty District Council heritage services co-ordinator Sandra Haigh is offering opportunities to learn to make the most of what’s available.

“The class will be a couple of hours long and is very much for beginners. It’s for people who are starting their family history journey but might be feeling a little bit overwhelmed, or might not know where to begin.”

The focus will be on collecting information to build a family story rather than constructing a family tree.

“We will look at Ancestry.com and Find My Past.”

The library service has subscribed to the newly available 1921 UK Census.

“That is a wonderful resource that gives a really good snapshot of life in 1921.”

The service also has a licence agreement to use Ancestry.com and Find My Past.

“People can have a free account with them both, but it doesn’t give you the kind of access you can get if you come to the library and access them using the library’s wireless connection.”

The class won’t be completely internet based.

“It’s not all about online databases, it’s about collecting photographs from your family, getting the information from those people. I’ll be talking about doing some oral histories as well, recording those interviews with people so you aren’t writing notes, trying to keep up with what they’re saying and missing bits of information.”

Things to bring are a fully charged laptop or tablet and, ideally, a name to use in any searches.

“If you have a specific question that you want to ask or you have a specific name you want to research, bring that along.”

There will be plenty of information to take away and the classes are free.

The same class is being offered three times, from 10am to noon, on August 7, 21 and September 4.

To register send an email to sandra.haigh@westernbay.govt.nz or call 0800 926 732