When researching our ancestors, we use books, periodicals, microfilm, microfiche, databases, and newspapers. How about social media? There is so much more on the internet to help you find ancestors and more.
The major reason I first got into social media was through younger family members. At the time, the only way I would get pictures was through Facebook and the like. So I signed up, friended my family, and that was the extent of it for awhile.
Then I started exploring Facebook more. I found many groups on Facebook with people searching for their ancestors and sharing information. I also found more people to friend that I knew and organizations with their own Facebook page that I could become a member of. It was eye opening.
For example, I found a group that was researching their Italian ancestry so I posted surname I was looking for and what areas they were from. I got a reply to one of my posts from someone in Italy (Facebook is global) who had similar ancestors in one of my lines. He pointed me to other resources I could access to help with that line. Great! I was able to share some of my findings as well. For more on Italian ancestors, see our post.
What I learned is that social media is a great place to communicate, share and collaborate with others with similar interests. I discovered other sites that were helpful as well such as Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter. So what are the advantages? Well, I mentioned information, finding organizations and groups I am interested in, finding people, and sharing.
There is also the social contact with people around the country and the world. Social media crosses generational lines (the reason I started with social media in the first place). It is portable if you have a smartphone, tablet, or other device you can travel with you.
There are disadvantages as well. Traveling through social media takes time. I eventually had to pare down the number of groups I belonged to because (and this is an interesting side effect) I was getting too much information at the same time and couldn’t organize it quickly enough You have to make choices on what social media platform to use and how many groups or persons to follow.
Sure, I will come across new groups and people to follow, but I make sure I have the time to use any comments or information effectively. If I am working on a particular branch one day, I will check those groups that align with that branch. I can always check the other groups on another day.
It can be daunting but you can determine for yourself what sites to utilize. There is a wealth of information out there. Not only for your research but you could be helping someone else and be a part of a community.
Give social media a try. You never know what treasures you might find.
FamilyFinders