Family History and Genealogy: Welcome

Photo: "Dientje Krant, Nathan Krant, and Gabriel DeLeeuw, 1939" from the Dientje Krant Kalisky Adkins Photographs, 1938-1996 (College of Charleston Libraries)

GENEALOGY RESEARCH:

This guide is by no means an exhaustive list of resources for genealogical research. The goal here is to highlight the genealogy-related resources available in the Special Collections and the South Carolina Historical Society Archives and to make researchers aware of many free online websites.

Step One: Document the information you already have

• When and where were they born? 
  • Even a range of years and a state could be enough to dig up more information 
• Did they marry? When and where? 
  • Individuals married in a church could be part of a larger religious community 
• When and where did they die? 
  • Death certificates and burial information can reveal information about the person's religious affiliation, family connections, etc. 

Start with one person of interest and try to identify needed information (document pertinent information on other relatives/historical figures as you find it).