A Guide To Tracing Ancestors Online

We show you how to use the internet to trace your family history and where to start your online search.

A staggering 1.5 million people visited the popular family tree website Genes Reunited in January. Pretty impressive considering that not long ago, tracking down your roots involved visits to Somerset House in London or treks round local records offices.

The internet gives more people the chance to trace their roots and genealogy, to use its proper title, is booming. Many historical records, such as the 1901 census, are available in searchable formats and dozens of websites have popped up to help people find their ancestors.

So, you've splashed out on your family tree software, now you'll need to find some relatives to start filling the branches. We answer your questions on how to dig up your family's roots at the click of a mouse.

Where Do I Start?

Before you can start searching for your ancestors online, you'll need to gather as much information as you can about your closest relatives; your grandparents and great grandparents, say. While it's possible to start searching with relatively little information, you're likely to uncover dozens of people of the same name, making it hard to figure out who your relatives really are.

Search For Ancestors

To boost your chances of an effective search, rummage around for any birth, death and marriage certificates and quiz older relatives to ensure you have as much accurate information as possible. Arm yourself with a full name (preferably including a middle name), year and place of birth.

Census Records

The next port of call is typically the census. For England and Wales, the 1901 census and each previous one back to 1851 are now available online at the National Archives. This fascinating website has plenty of information from one of the largest archives in the world and also contains links to migration, hospital and military records.

To search for ancestors living in Scotland go to Scotland's People or for Ireland try Irish National Archives. Unfortunately, Ireland's census records are not on the internet and information is fragmented as the 1901 records were destroyed by fire.

From the National Archives home page click on Search the archives and select Census records. Next, choose the census you wish to search (in this case 1901) and click Person.

Genes Reunited

You'll be sent to a website - www.1901censusonline.com - which is operated by Genes Reunited. Enter as many details as you can about your ancestor and click 'search'. After a few seconds, you'll be presented with a list of possible relatives listed by name, date and place of birth, parish and county they lived in and occupation. Hopefully, one of those listed is your ancestor. Of course, the more unusual your surname, the more likely you are to find the right person.

Climbing Back Up Your Tree

If you're trying to track down an ancestor's parents, search the census for them as a child. Viewing the census image will not only give you the names of any siblings in the household but will provide you with the identities of both parents too, including their age and place of birth. This should furnish you with sufficient detail to continue climbing the tree. There's a 75p charge for viewing the original record online (see How much does it cost).

Finding Relatives Abroad

The Migration Histories section of the National Archives website provides fascinating information and assistance with tracing ancestors from Caribbean, Irish, Jewish and South Asian Communities.

Lots of people emigrated to the USA and Canada, entering North America through Ellis Island. If a family vanishes from your research in the UK try www.ellisisland.org for post-1892 records. The images hold swathes of details: some listings even give UK address, physical description, destination in the USA and place of birth. For arrivals between 1830 and 1892 try www.castlegarden.org.

What About Costs?

Unfortunately, if you want more than just the basic information (such as an ancestor's address), you'll have to pay to see the census detail. You'll find that several different websites host the same census and the amount of information provided for free varies, so it's worth rummaging around.

To view original documents via the National Archives 1901 census data you have to pay a minimum charge of £5. This gives you access to the online records for a week, during which you can download your chosen census images at a cost of 75p each. Clearly, it pays to be sure that you've got the right ancestor before opting to view the original document.

Ancestry.co.uk which hosts censuses from 1851 to 1901, also offers a subscription service (£200 to view records worldwide or £70 for a UK-only subscription). There's a free 14-day trial, but remember to cancel the trial within the fortnight if you don't want to take it up, otherwise you'll be charged.

An annual subscription might sound expensive, but you may be surprised at how many ancestors you uncover during that time. One of our researchers has more than 600 relatives on her tree.

If you don't want to pay, you can view the documents at the National Archives in Kew, London, for free.

Where Else Can I Look For?

Births, Deaths & Marriages Database

If you're having trouble tracing a relative - perhaps you're lacking a maiden name or a place of birth - Free BMD is a great place to look.

The site lists birth, marriage and death certificates in England and Wales from 1837 to around 1911. A search on this site will bring back names, locations and dates for each event, all of which you can view free of charge.

Find Fellow Genealogists

Genes Reunited is a terrific way to discover distant relatives who may also be researching the same family tree as you. It's free to register, after which you can search other members' family trees for mutual relatives.

If you find a match, simply send a message to the owner and they may let you see their entire tree. Messages are sent securely through the site, so your email address isn't revealed. You'll have to subscribe (£10 for one year) in order to contact other members.

Advertising 'Missing' Ancestors

Many genealogy websites boast a community section, where members post details of relatives about whom they're seeking information.

If you're having trouble tracing someone, it might be worth placing a notice on several sites. Use websites where contacts between members are made through the site and email addresses remain private.

Top Tracing Tips

Watch out for spelling mistakes: Names can be, and were, spelt in many different ways. Some genealogy websites allow you to check the 'alternative spelling' option when searching, which could prove fruitful. Names may have been shortened, too; if you can't find a Thomas, Richard or Henry, try Tom, Dick or Harry instead.

Allow for transcription errors: The people writing the original census records didn't always have the neatest handwriting and original documents are sometimes marked and hard to read. Therefore, it pays to think laterally when searching for your ancestors. If you can't find a relative, try searching for a sibling in the same household. If no record appears on the 1901 census, try searching the 1891 census when perhaps the record was clearer. Also, different websites use different transcriptions of the same census, so if you can't find an ancestor on one website, try another.

Scour war records: The Commonwealth War Graves Commission contains records of the British and Commonwealth personnel who died in the two World Wars, often with details of the battle or location they died in, regiment and the cemetery where they are buried.

Don't forget the old-fashioned way: You're bound to reach a stage where you can't find any more information online, so you may have to resort to Shanks's pony. Not all records are online (particularly those prior to 1837) so try visiting local records offices, churches, graveyards or libraries for more detail. Such trips can elevate your ancestors from being just names on a screen to real people.