Facebook favourites

Get some juicy genealogy in your Facebook feed with Emma Jolly’s round-up of pages to ‘like’.

Around 60% of the UK population currently has a Facebook account. This means an increasing number of your close and distant relatives can be found on this popular social network. Not only is Facebook great for networking with family members - e.g. sharing old photos, posting snaps of recent graveyard visits, or keeping up with recent weddings - you can also use it for research and collaboration with other genealogists. Collaboration works particularly well when your Facebook 'friend' or cousin is based or travelling thousands of miles away, but is happy to interrupt their holiday to check the marriage register in the nearby church.

In October’s Family Tree I pick the 20 best Facebook pages for all your family history needs. Whether you are looking for news, tips or opportunities to discuss your research, these are the pages you should follow. I have mainly chosen pages that are based in the UK but searching Facebook will reveal that there are relevant pages and closed groups for genealogy interests all over the world. You may also discover there are genealogists out there who are even more obsessed with your one-name study or passion for railway history than you are. Above all, using Facebook for family history should be fun!

Get your copy of October Family Tree here! Or subscribe & save! Also check out our free online guide 'How to use Facebook for family history'.

Emma Jolly MA is a London-based genealogist and writer. Her books include My Ancestor was a Woman at War, Tracing Your Ancestors Using the Census and Tracing Your British Indian Ancestors. An AGRA member, her website is at www.emmajolly.co.uk.