Quote Originally Posted by Ladkyis View Post
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I could stop right now because I have reached a brickwall on most branches of the tree but I am still finding the odd snippet about siblings and their partners that send me off in another direction for a while. I think that learning about the siblings of each generation gives you more insight into why they lived the way they did ...
Like Ladkyis, most of my lines have petered out into lack of definitive records (and this after 30 plus years of on-and-off research).
But I post up research on various forums, and keep my email address updated on those forums. Then, out of the blue, will come a reply-- "I'm a descendant of XXX who married YYY in 1765...." and I'm off again!

Or perhaps I'll open my notes at random and say, "It's a long time since I looked at the AAAA family--I wonder if there is any new information out there?"

Like others who have replied, I encourage you to collect at least the names of siblings, and if you can do it without spending a lot of money, get approximate dates of birth (or marriage or death) and places. These bits really help to pull YOUR family out from the confusing morass of other families of the same name, and may also provide the one clue that will get you back on track.

Personally, I don't usually pursue in-laws very far, unless I suspect that there's a cousin marriage involved--which may lead back to my direct ancestors.

And then there are the mysteries that just niggle and niggle, and you try to solve by going "up, down and sideways" in your search.

It's worth doing a periodic analysis of your findings, and seeing where the gaps are. Sometimes a relatively recent gap in info that can fairly easily be filled (a post 1837 marriage or a census record) will give your whole research programme a big boost.

And yes, follow your heart! Do it for fun! (And don't believe anyone who says "I've DONE my family history.")

Jane