14 November 2019
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Remember that less is more when searching – be specific to avoid returning huge numbers of results
Find out how to search for your ancestors on the FindMyPast family history website - and expand your family tree.
Find out how to search for your ancestors on the FindMyPast family history website - and expand your family tree.
As fun as it can be searching for your ancestors on a genealogy, few of us will find our forebears with just a few quick clicks of the mouse. And actually, discovering how to make the most of your online searches is very satisfying because rather than simply scratching the surface of the information available on the website in question, with just a few tweaks you can make your searches more powerful, wide ranging, and ultimately helpful to your research.
1. Wildcards
Wildcards, which show when a search term is missing, can play a big part in the success of a search on FindMyPast. Insert an asterisk in a search field where you believe there may have been an alternative spelling (of a surname, perhaps).
2. Search fields
FindMyPast’s search fields include only information which would have appeared on the original document. So, you won’t be able to enter the name of a spouse in a search of burial records, because spouse information would not have been included on the original burial paperwork.
3 Split your search
A recent change to FindMypast’s life event search means that you can now split your search between civil and parish subcategories and select any number of subcategories to include in your search results. Another new initiative is the ability to narrow your search by UK counties from both the county search page and the A-Z of records.
MASTER BIRTH, MARRIAGE & DEATH RECORDS - DOWNLOAD THE FAMILY TREE BMD BEYOND THE BOOKS MASTERCLASS HERE