Why Use a Genealogy Research Log?
If you’re a beginning genealogist you want to research “the right way” and if you’re an intermediate one, you probably have learned from your early mistakes. While some would argue as to what is “correct” we would probably all agree on these points as to what a research log could and should do:
- Create an action plan. Many genealogists have some sort of research plan whether it is written down or in their heads. A research log can help you fine tune that research plan and convert it into an action plan. For many of us, that is the challenge . . . getting from “What I want to look for” to “Oh, look what I’ve found!”
- Keep yourself organized. Do you spend hours just bouncing around on Ancestry.com or another website? What about in-person at a repository . . . do you use your time wisely or just go from resource to resource? A research log can help you not only organize your research finds, but also identify areas where you need to do more research.
- Allow instant recall. Even if you are successful at finding the records and information you need in genealogy, what good is it if you can’t locate that information easily and quickly? Especially if you store your finds on a computer, it helps to have a “map” to where all that stuff is! Use links and entries in a research log to find items fast.
- Reduce “do-overs.” There’s nothing worse than spending time researching only to find out that you already had that particular record. A research log let’s you know where you’ve been and where you should be spending your time.
- Help anaylze data. If you’ve located several different records related to an ancestor’s marriage, how can you really analyze all the information and come to a conclusion if you can’t see the details all at once? A research log lets you sort by fields or column headings and also search for specific keywords so you can easily analyze results.