Family Tree

Top FREE digital books for Medieval family & local history

What’s your family history Christmas wish?

Whoosh! That was the sound of 2025 whizzing past. Genealogy-wise it’s been a really enjoyable and interesting year – but/and it has sped by far too fast. Our weekly Family Tree Talk podcast is now one year old, and Family Tree designer Nathan Ward is a...

HELPING YOU DISCOVER YOUR FAMILY STORY

Something old, something new...

It can be all too tempting to put off writing up our family history. ‘Just one more clue,’ we tell ourselves, ‘one more document, one quick search’. But I really believe that if we wish to hand on our family history, in a way that will be cherished,...

The perfect time of year for family history...

I’m never going to fall out out of love with a new season and, of all the seasons, autumn says ‘family history’ to me – loud and clear. The excuse to hunker down inside and spend hours poring over documents, indulging in background reading, and working...

Twists, turns & tales in family history

This issue is packed as ever with genealogy gems... pieces of research, stories and letters carefully worked on by family history enthusiasts to try to make better sense of the past – to help us see a fuller picture and learn more about the lives of...

Commemorating VJ Day 80 & remembering family

‘Plink’ – another sugar lump is precariously dropped into a little glass bowl. I’m aged about 10 and my grandfather is patiently and precisely teaching me how to use chopsticks. How he came to use them so dextrously was something we all always knew –...

BLENDED FAMILIES

They’re nothing new... How to trace step-mums, re-marriages and more

MISTAKES ON MARRIAGE RECORDS

How to spot illegal entries & errors

Researching & remembering our family heroes

VE Day 80 marks eight decades since the Second World War was brought to a close in Europe. But, for us, as the family’s family historians, it perhaps doesn’t seem that distant. It’s a chapter populated with family members we knew, and perhaps still...

Get started with DNA TESTING

Family Tree Talk: tune in!

Ihope your family history year has got off to a fabulous start. We’ve been having much too much fun on the Family Tree team, as Designer Nathan Ward decided to take a DNA test ... and has accidentally become addicted to family history in the process...

MAPS FOR FAMILY HISTORY

• Where to find maps • How they can uncover new clues • Discover your ancestors’ world

Wishing you a happy, healthy Christmas, with no cases of ...

What an exciting family history year it’s been for Family Tree. On the magazine front we’ve notched up four decades since that first issue was published (whoop!). Online, our Family Tree Plus programme of talks, meetings and courses continues to grow,...

From doable DNA, to free digitised family history reads & resources, what will you choose to do this month?

Family history truly is a box of delights and this issue, as ever, we have all sorts of tips and ideas to help you expand your genealogy horizons and grow your super-sleuthing skills. DNA advisor Karen Evans has very practical tips to help you keep...

DNA CASE STUDIES

• Is Ancestry’s Sideview reliable? • Have I found great-grandpa? • How do I find that missing link?

FIND YOUR FAMILY!

☑ Methodical ☑ Doable ☑ Brickwall busting research

What were their lives actually like?

New discoveries, new stories and new insights to our ancestors and the lives they once led are a continual source of curiosity aren’t they? And the more discoveries we make, the better we are able to answer that eternal question of ‘What were their...

TRAILBLAZER

TRAILBLAZER My 1st cousin 3x removed who lived life on her terms