3 questions I would like peoples input on

[Erato]

“they will search the female lines back even though the line changes every generation”

The “line doesn’t change, just the surname changes.

[Galium]

If I had only researched the male line back I would be stuck at my Ggrandfather, who seems not to have existed before he married.  Which would have made genealogy an unrewarding pursuit so far as I am concerned  .

Researching female lines has led me to some interesting ancestors - who are my ancestors just as much as any male ones [ and in the case of tracing mother's mother's mother etc, are most definitely my ancestors in a way I can never really be sure about the male line    ]

[eadaoin]

since all my ancestors are Irish, all the lines disappear between 1780 and 1830ish.
It would have been a very short-lived hobby if I'd ignored children of grandparents siblings etc. And some of these DID help to push back the 1830s to the 1780s!

My tip is document (and in such a way that you can find where you put the *&^%$* page on great aunt Mary's husband who was Lord Mayor!)

eadaoin

[ibella]

1. No ultimate goal, I just love jigsaws.
2. My cutoff point is always extending.
3. Question everything several times and don't add it to your database until absolutely positive. When one door closes another opens, it may be hard to find it, but it is there somewhere. Enjoy yourself.

[cati]

1.  When I started, my goal was to find out if some of the family stories were true:   25 years later .... I guess my goal is  to extend every branch as far back as I can.   I look at local history as well as people.
2.  I'm a magpie: inlaws, cousins, lines of descent.  Sometimes these can be the most interesting people in the tree - a distant relation of mine by marriage helped King Charles escape after the battle of Worcester. Not a direct line, but an interesting character.By researching distant ancestors you may find clues as to your own descent, or  that one of your ancestors appears in someone else's tree and they can supply that missing link.
3. Never accept a transcript at face value: always check the original source.

[geno500]

Hi ibella  welcome to rootschat,glad you are enjoying the puzzle of your family tree,if you cannot get a answer on this site then you are in real trouble as the people here know everything or very nearly good luck with your search

[ibella]

geno500, this site is amazing with everything it has. I had to stop my research 4 years ago due to an illness and it is staggering how much more is available on the Internet in that time, and the people here !!!!! just brilliant.