Your Guide To Cemetary Research will intrigue anyone involved in serious genealogical research, posing a whole new way to uncover family roots and facts trough research into cemeteries and their contents. From learning how cemeteries operate and how funerary art and tombstone iconography can lend to an understanding of history to making headstone rubbings and conducting cemetery surveys, Your Guide To Cemetary Research is packed with practical applications.

Betterway Books started out publishing mostly craft and hobby guides, which led them into genealogy, and, under the editorship of Carmack herself, they have become one of the most reliable publishers of high quality methodological volumes in our field. Carmack, who is also a Certified Genealogist, has written two volumes in the "Discovering Your . . . Ancestors" series (on women and immigrants) and the very practical _Organizing Your Family Research,_ as well as a number of compiled genealogies, all of which have been well received. This new book maintains her high standard. Non-genealogists generally look askance at anyone who likes to hang around graveyards, but since that?s where the majority of our ancestors are to be found, we family researchers approach the subject differently. Carmack has had a particular interest in cemetery research for years (and has published other works on the subject), and she leads the reader expertly through the many research steps necessary for success. First, there are the records created when someone dies -- not just the death certificate and obituary, but coroner?s reports, prayer cards, funeral home records, and census mortality schedules. Then you have to figure out where the interment took place, which means understanding the records cemeteries themselves create, whether municipal, commercial, or church-connected. Once you know where to look, you have to know what to look *for* -- not just the grave marker itself but (as in all genealogical research) the context in which it exists. And that?s only the first quarter of the book! There?s a great deal more to learn regarding tombstone rubbings and photography, ethnic and regional burial customs, cemetery preservation (a growing problem in the U.S., unfortunately), and how to organize and carry out a cemetery recording project. Cemeteries used to be gathering places for the whole family, so the final chapter even makes suggestions on how to picnic respectfully in a cemetery. One appendix provide clues on the meaning of symbolic gravestone art and initials, while another gives a timeline of significant epidemics, disasters, and other causes of multiple deaths in America, and a third explains causes of death which you?re likely to find listed on death certificates. There are also forms for use in cemetery surveys and an eight-page bibliography. This is easily the most comprehensive guide I have seen on the subject.

I ADORE this book--it got me interested in cemeteries, and now I'll be creating my own index for a local cemetery that hasn't got a good index available. Filled with interesting facts, anecdotes, and do-it-yourself fun, this is a great book for the curious and historically inclined. In addition to the cemetery index, I've taken up headstone photography, and I'm making a beautiful (and fun!) cemetery scrapbook [one of the suggested projects in the book.] A must-have for all cemetery enthusiasts.

Bringing Your Family History to Life Through Social History is a great book. John Fiske said "Without genealogy, the study of history is lifeless." I believe that without history, the study of genealogy is meaningless. With this book, you can make your family history meaningful. From the forward: "Trust me. You are not alone. I felt exactly the same way you do. Names and dates on a genealogical chart were fun - for a while. Then I remember thinking, 'Is this all there is to genealogy? [...]' I was craving for something more than sterile facts." Sturdevant shows you how to make it all come to life.

The book has numerous examples, some published, some private collection materials, to help you see what you can do with your family's history. Even if you don't intend to get your stories published, there will probably be someone to follow you who will be overjoyed to read the detailed descriptions you can create with this book.

If you have a huge list of names and dates which have no real meaning, this is the book for you. It really will breathe new life into your genealogical research. I *highly* recommend Bringing Your Family History to Life Through Social History. I find it to be a very useful book, and an excellent reminder when my research stalls.

Kathy Sturdevant brings her expertise of social history to the world of family history and genealogy with humor, flair, and solid information. With clear examples and explanations of the many sources/resources available to family historians, this book bridges the often separated worlds of history and genealogy with a lively style and enjoyable wit. Tips on preserving and documenting family "artifacts," a meaty bibliography, photos (and how to "read" them), research pointers, thought-provoking ideas for research, helpful and accessible academic orientation. I took Kathy's course on the same topic (co-taught with Certified Genealogist Sharon DeBartolo Carmack)--the book demonstrates why Kathy is such a popular instructor at her institution. Reading the book is almost as good as taking the course; maybe better if you prefer to skip the required term paper. :-) On the other hand, you'll miss Sharon's infamous Halloween lecture at the local cemetery and the intriguing antique artifacts Kathy brings to class.

Just like Sharon's other books, this one is very easy to read and gives anyone interested in ethnic genealogy more ideas on how to research.

... and frankly, this book does a lackluster job of helping get organized. I had a basic problem with the author's idea that there is only one good filing system for genealogy. I don't subscribe to the numbering system that she advocates, nor do I think binders are the wave of genealogy filing.

I have been researching for 15 years now, and I still find that the best way to be organized is any way that works for you. I gave it three stars for the forms that she includes; they are passable.

This is an excellent text for organizing your search for identity.

My mother had always told us we were descended from Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca. Sadly after reading this book, organizing my search and digging up the real information the truth is not as notable. It appears our entire genealogy, after running the gamut of various asylums for alcoholism and insanity, dead ends in some bizarre incestual prison camp off the coast of Madagascar. A bit disappointing but it explains the cross-eyed ness and assorted tics that run unchecked in our family.

I have been caught up in this addictive hobby of genealogy for fifteen years now and have over the years tried many different ways of dealing with my ever-increasing pile of info and documents. I had tried folders and various types of filing systems; I had even tried my own numbering and coding systems with disasterous consequences; they just didn't work.

In desperation I ordered this book and upon reading it I was truly enlightened. Wow, why hadn't I thought of doing it this way before. The ideas in this book are simple now that I've read it, but they are truly effective. I can now put my finger on any piece of info I require within seconds, which in the past may have taken me anywhere up to two days to find.

This book is a 'must have' for any genealogist, but especially any new genealogist. Become enlightened and organised at the beginning of your venture into family history, don't have to stop in full-flight like I did to tidy up the mess you've left behind you.

Highly recommended. :-)

This is a great beginner's book on genealogy. It discusses various documentation methods; where and how to find records; and organization methods for your research. Two case studies reinforce how to use the records available to you.

The book goes on to suggest other publications (books, magazines, journals) that are good for genealogists to be familiar with. It also discusses significant genealogical societies and their requirements for membership. It even includes a chapter on how to become a professional genealogist.

Finally, the appendix in this book is a valuable source of information, detailing how to contact the various libraries, repositories, societies, etc. discussed in this book.

I love this book. Although it is appropriate for beginners, it covers more topics, and in more detail, than you'd expect to find in a beginner's book, making it perfect for advanced-beginner or intermediate genealogists. For instance, most books will mention cemetery research, but this one details all the different *kinds* of cemeteries there are (I had no idea) and discusses what to bring when you're going to a cemetery, how to photograph a tombstone, the ins and outs of tombstone rubbings, etc.

The author covers everything imaginable: interview skills, records abstraction, what to bring (and how to behave) when visiting a courthouse, how to organize in preparation for research trips, what kinds of genealogy classes are available and where to find them, how to go about becoming a professional, how to make sure your research isn't lost to the world after you're gone, etc. She doesn't just list which genealogical journals exist, she explains the differences between them and illustrates clearly why it's important to read them. (That may seem obvious, but there are issues I hadn't thought of.) There are tips galore.

Another thing I liked: Once she's introduced you to a topic, she provides recommendations for further reading, so you know where to go to learn more about that particular issue.

In short, this author is very thorough, and at the same time very readable. I'd recommend this book to anyone.

While the first few chapters of this book are moderately helpful, much of the book seemed to be devoted to "imagining" what life would be like for female ancestors. While this might prove to be an entertaining exercise, it is not consistent with good genealogical research.

Despite the fact that half of everyone's ancestors are women, they traditionally have received short shrift from genealogists. Married women frequently appear on family group sheets as "Elizabeth Blank," teenage daughters are lost track of between censuses if their new husbands' names are unknown, and even the most dedicated family man was apt to leave everything in his will simply to "my wife." (Those of Acadian or Quaker descent are fortunate that religious records usually provide a wife?s maiden name.) Carmack is a well-known author and lecturer and one opens this book with high hopes that she will describe new techniques that will enable one to knock down some of those brick walls. Unfortunately, even the moderately experienced researcher is likely to be disappointed. While the first four chapters are filled with good advice on valuable resources, nearly all of them are equally applicable to researching both men and women: passenger lists, city directories, probate records, interviewing aging relatives, etc. Chapter Five is devoted to writing about women in a family history, and Chapter Six is a brief case study of one of the author's own female ancestors -- but again, the methods described would work just as well for a great-great-grandfather as for his wife. (What does one do to identify a wife who dies before the 1850 census, leaving a dirt-farmer husband unable to read or write, who remarries and leaves his worldly goods to his second wife? I have more than one like that!) Carmack is a specialist in social and ethnic history, which can be very useful in fleshing out one's family research -- but in that case, the title is a bit misleading. She provides full citations for all of her many examples, of course, as well as a 24-page *selected* bibliography -- which may be the most useful part of the book.

Well-written, well-organized and enjoyable to read, this outstanding genealogical research tool provides an excellent in-depth, insightful, integrated approach to genealogical research, particularly focused on researching our female family members. It contains a good explanation of means of tracing women when their surnames have changed, and very extensive bibliographies that are exhaustively research sources on women's property rights, childbearing and women's health care.
It sets out a well-explained technique of developing, writing and preserving one's family story as an organized historical narrative, with all the information one has obtained, so that the information paints a family's portrait(s), gives meaning to facts, organizes the source materials logically, and helps to tell the family who they are, why they are the way they are, and where they came from so that the family's history is preserved. This aspect of the book provides a much needed explanation to "weekend" genealogists on how to handle and develop their research results to make sense of them and to preserve the meaning of them.

This is a thoroughly analyzed and helpful book. I have given copies of this book to several people as it responds to research needs at several levels: genealogy, women's rights and issues (property, health, probate/will), family history interests, research skills, even personal journaling and self-discovery through family discovery.
Sharon DeBartolo Carmack has an outstanding ability to teach, and I hope she will continue to expand on her collection of genealogy research books.

I have to be suspicious of a book subtitled "Everything You Need to Know to Trace Your Genealogy Across North America," because that's patently untrue. The Introduction by Emily Anne Croom, "Getting Started Tracing Your Ancestors," is well-written and touches all the methodological bases - documenting your sources, "clustering," continuing education, etc. - but it's simply not possible to compress a useful discussion of genealogical techniques into seven pages. David A. Fryxell (with whom I'm not familiar) contributes another brief chapter on "Finding Your Family Tree Across the U.S. and Canada," which covers much of the same material and adds advice on planning a research trip, whether to a rural courthouse or to Salt Lake City. The great bulk of this volume, though, is a state-by-state outline of where to find the public and academic libraries, state archives, state and local societies, Family History Centers, and other information sources, with a more detailed discussion of resources in selected major cities in each state. Major genealogical periodicals and web sites for each state are included, as are a detailed list of available federal censuses (state censuses, important for filling in the gaps, when they exist, are only summarized, as "1846 to 1925" Iowa), a list of city directories available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake (though most local libraries have these, too), and other assorted information. The too-brief city chapters are more like "civilian" travel guides, highlighting sightseeing attractions, downtown hotels and ethnic restaurants. (Do vacationing genealogists hot on the trail of a missing probate file actually stay at the Adolphus in Dallas and eat at Commander's Palace in New Orleans?) Each regional section opens with a rather superficial history essay which suffers from lumping too many states within each region. Comments on the historical roots of "the South" mean quite different things in Delaware and Texas. Like many guides in our field, this one tries to be all things to all genealogists, in a single not-too-expensive volume, but it ends up being inadequate (or merely insufficient) in most areas for most people much of the time. This is especially true with the recent publication of the completely revised and hugely expanded _The Source,_ which generally succeeds in those grand goals. I suggest you buy that (on CD, if you carry a laptop on your research trips) and go to AAA for maps and travel guides.