Today I want to share with you, the forms I use the most to help me.  You will also find them on the new forms page.

The First one I am providing today is my Mini Group Sheet it is tablet (5.5″x 8.5″) size and I use it as a work sheet. If I am finding lots of families in the records (such as the Parish records in a specific area) with the same last name. I might start keeping track of these families on these sheets. Later I will review this information with other source information(i.e. Census, marriage records, etc.) to develop family relationships.  I like to color code my family group sheets so I have these forms in Blue and Red.  Be sure that you have your printer set on color otherwise its just black and white.. You will find there are two to a page and you can simply cut apart.

The Second form is a Document Log  check sheet. I create a new one for each individual when I first start researching an individual. This is a log of all the records or documents that I have on file for each individual. Each record or document is filed behind or with this log. This will let me know at a glance where the holes in my research are and what areas I need to focus on next. I have also provided blue, red, green and orange logs if you too would like them.

There are tricks to remember what the relationship is between two individuals with a common ancestor. If the common ancestor for both individuals a:

• great grandparent ~then they are 2nd Cousins,
• 2x great grandparent ~then they are 3rd Cousins,
• 3x great grandparents~ then they are 4th cousins,
• 4x ~ 5th cousins, etc.
• but how about those generations once or twice removed.

That gets a little more difficult. so here is my cheat sheet for you. Click here

If you can print in color I encourage you to do so.

Steps to determine relationship between 2 individuals with a common ancestor.

1. Find relationship of 1^st individual to the common ancestor in the far right hand column above the common ancestor box
2. Find the relationship of the 2^nd individual to the common ancestor in the far right hand column below the  common ancestor box.
3. Follow the path across and down to where the 1^st relationship meets the second relationships row. That intersecting box is the relationship of the two individuals.

Feel free to use any or all of these forms and share. I will be adding others from time to time. If you are following me I will let you know as I add more.