Our experts break through 5 of your toughest family history 'brick walls'
2-3 minute read
By The Findmypast Team | February 29, 2024
The Findmypast Community challenged our in-house experts to help them with some tricky family tree conundrums. Read the problems and solutions here.
Our team of family history fanatics and professional genealogists love tackling even the trickiest of problems, from surprising surname changes and lost family members to confusing census records.
We know how frustrating it can be to meet a 'brick wall' with your family history - but with Findmypast, you don't need to do the hard work alone.
We turned to our community and asked what your 'brick walls' are. From unknown grandparents to patchy parish records, our ancestry experts are tackling your toughest research puzzles.
With top tips and handy how-to guides covering everything from birth, marriage and death records (BMDs) to advanced tree features, the Findmypast blog has got you covered. Explore our Help Hub today.
Read on for some sage ancestry advice from the best in the business...
Your ‘brick walls’ broken down
We hope these pointers give you inspiration for getting ahead with your research. With billions of historical records and newspaper pages including electoral registers, parish records, census records and so much more at your fingertips, the discoveries are endless...
You don't need to be a professional genealogist to connect with fascinating family stories today. For further guidance on getting to grips with your family tree troubles, consider using our 13 essential tips.
Supercharge your discoveries with historical newspapers
From salacious scandals to local legends and family folklore, all of life’s moments were captured in newspapers generations ago. Nothing else adds vivid colour, context and richness to your family story. If your research has hit a block that traditional records like censuses and BMDs (births, marriages and deaths) can't solve, the newspaper archive may be able to help. Try searching for a family member's name amongst millions of digitised pages.
Learn more about searching our newspaper archive.
Family tree help: your questions answered
Can you do a family tree for free?
With Findmypast, it's free to start your tree. Once you've added basic details for yourself, your parents and your grandparents, you can use BMDs, censuses, parish registers, social directories and more to go further and further back through the generations. If you've already started your tree elsewhere, you can upload it to Findmypast as a GEDCOM.
Who can help me with my family tree?
Family history isn't a solo effort. When you start your research with Findmypast, you become part of a growing community of genealogists. Our tree search means that it's easier than ever to build on others' discoveries, by viewing information that's already in other family trees. When starting out, you may also want to ask for help from your family members. To gather those key details, try asking your loved ones these 30 questions.
Where can I search UK death records?
In the UK, death certificates and the historical death index are held by the General Register Office (GRO). Many of them have been digitised and made available online - you can explore Findmypast's expansive collection of civil and parish deaths here.
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