any advice re sites

[celestine53]

hello,

there are so many sites, i am getting confused as I am new to family history. I have just wasted £30 on a site and had my card details stolen a few days after registering with it!! coincidentally, and the records were not as complete as I thought they should be, so I am wary about registering with any more. can any one recommend any sites??. I have been looking at the Genealogist.so.uk ?? does anyone have any experience of this one??. Some of the sites ask for alot of money, genealogy is turning into a rich mans hobby.
I am on a limited income so I am trying to find ways of doing this in the most cost effective way possible.

thanks. crh

[Hugh Thompson]

Hello Celestine, and welcome to Brit Gen, I'd suggest that before you outlay any more hard earned cash, you post your queries here on the relevant forum, as there's more help to be had from the Brit Gen forum members than you could imagine.
We're all friends here.
Good luck.
Hugh.

[Mutley]

Maybe invest in a few well know Family History Magazines, they normally carry adverts for the well known sites and can be a mine of information as to what and where before you part with your limited funds.
Certainly not a cheap hobby. You wait till you start buying certificates, that bumps up the investment.

However, the forum is free, so ask away.

[Lizzy9]

A well known popular ancestry search site offers a fourteen day free trial. Have a Google for 'family history database 14 day free trial'. It's useful to free trial reputable sites to get a feel for them and to see which has the most relevant records for your family history searches. Most sites offer different membership options, as: monthly, 6 monthly, yearly subscriptions, or on a pay as you go basis.

[MarkJ]

The question of which site is best has been debated on many occasions here on the forum - if you have a look back through the posts you will find many such discussions.
The end result of these debates is always - it depends what you are after. Each of the pay sites has its strengths and weaknesses and which is best for you depends on whether they have the records you are looking for! In reality, the best option would be to subscribe to all of them, plus buy cds etc for parishes of interest to you - however, that would be an astronomical cost!

Many of the members here on B-G do not subscribe to any of the pay sites, others to the one which they find most useful to them. As Lizzy says, if you want to head down the subscription route, they all offer a trial period - generally 14 days and usually limited to certain records - but it gives a feeling of the usefullness and suitability of the site to your research.

Remember that there are lots of free resources out there too - online, such as the Familysearch website (e.g the IGI or the new pilot sites) and in person, such as libraries (many have subs to a pay site and you can use their computers for a nominal charge or even free in some areas on your own computer if you are a library member). Don't forget local Family History Societies either - most allow searching of their records for a nominal fee if you attend in person!

Last - but not least - there are forums - such as this one - where other people can assist and guide you through the maze!

As with all hobbies, you are likely to end up having to part with some cash - but you can keep it to a minimum of vital things, such as certificates for direct ancestors if you are careful.

[Pam Downes]

And a welcome from me, too, Celestine.
Your question and 'which family history programme is best' must be the two most common questions asked on BG, but the reply to both is always the same.
Look at what each site/programme offers. Look what is available for free on other sites, such as FreeBMD, FreeREG, and FreeCEN. A lot of sites offer free trial periods, but if you sign up for one make sure you cancel your subscription before the end of the free trial.
Some sites are subscription, some have pay-to-view options, check which one will suit you best. Look what your money will buy, and for how long. You will be the luckiest, to say nothing of the very first, person in the world if you find a site which has all the records you want.
Your local/main library may have free access to Ancestry.
Not sure how far Sunderland is away from you, but there's a Latter-Day Saints Family History Centre (LDS FHC) there. (Select England, and scroll down to Sunderland.) They may still offer free access to Ancestry, but they should also have quite a lot of local records, plus you can order in films of all sorts of records for viewing. The LDS are also responsible for the FamilySearch sites. The original plus the new beta site (see the link to it on the old site home page).
Check out what Family History Societies local to your area of research have to offer. For many of them you can order items through Parish Chest, plus there's all sorts of other goodies for sale there too. (Shouldn't take you long to get a Christmas list big enough to last till at least Christmas 2015. )
For all instances, learn the difference between indexes, transcriptions, and images.

But as Hugh, Mutley and Mark have already said, the forum is free, so start here. We may not always have the answer, but we can often tell you what to do and where to go.
Pam

[Nicolina]

definitely post your queries here, we love to help and solve mysteries.
another useful free site is UKBMD although not all counties have their records on line. This site is most useful for marriages as it gives the actual couple (and, normally, where they married) whereas, with others, you have to try and work out who married who.

[Lizzy9]

I am on a limited income so I am trying to find ways of doing this in the most cost effective way possible.

As all other posters have mentioned; the most cost effective way would be to ask for help here. Members will certainly try their best to find records for you and will also point you toward free online records relevant to your searches. As a matter of interest Celestine, where are you at the moment with your research, ie do you know who your ancestors were pre 1911? And what is your area of interest, or is it widespread?

I would suggest you start a thread asking for help with a particular family line; you may be surprised with the results you get.

Good luck.

[v.wells]

I would suggest you start a thread asking for help with a particular family line; you may be surprised with the results you get.

Good luck.

B-G is free and the best investment you will ever make

[celestine53]

hello again,
apologies for the lateness of response, i have engaged a genealogist to help me, based on information and help I have recieved from all of you on this site, THANKYOU!!! I am now back to 1780, I have bought some useful books which I have to plough through and I am getting a broad idea of whats what, but i am not in good health and I will have to take my time, but I am pleased that this site and you ladies and gentlemen on it kick started my search and put me on the right track, I gave some of the info to the genealogist and she went with it and we have gone great guns!!, we have got blacksmiths in the family, so i am pleased. it is the occupations of our ancestors which always interests me I am becomming interested in social history and I have spent 30 years reading about the great war, I have recommended three good starter books .

Thank you once again all of you who responded, may God bless the souls of your ancestors and keep their descendants safe and well.

SLAINTE!!!