Many Are Confused: Searching In FamilySearch.org and Family Tree

FamilySearch.org Home Page

http://FamilySearch.org/

is probably the most important website in cyberspace 

when it comes to Genealogy and Family History

 The resources in FamilySearch and added daily are massive: billions of records, millions added daily, hundreds of training videos for numerous topic and levels of experience, a wiki that grows daily, the Family History Library catalog, books, and the awesome Family Tree.

My mission assignments have caused me to write this article: training new missionaries, and answering peoples questions about Family Tree.

As you look at the photo above you see a searching section. This is the most heavily used portion of FamilySearch. 

But ahah, if you go into Family Tree (as anyone will be able to around the 12th of this month - maybe sooner) you can search there also.

I am finding this confuses people. Many do not realize the differences, which is the point of this article. 

RE: Searching on FamilySearch.org: Think of searching on the home page of FamilySearch.org as a very comprehensive and focused Google. You can do genealogy records searches. There are billions of records here. They are the records that the Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints has placed in FamilySearch.org. These records come from the hundred years the church has stored information, transferred it to microfilm and kept in a Granite Mountain Vault. Another source example is all records indexed by the church are placed here. An example of that was the mighty effort of volunteers to index the 1940 census. You can search by persons name and those in the 1940 census will be found there. There are many other sources whereby records are placed in FamilySearch.org. Serious Genealogists return here weekly to discover what is new on FamilySearch.org.

Anyone can search here, and it's free. Due to contractual agreements with some of our data sources you find more records if you open an account and log in. 

Note: you are not finding pedigree type relationships other than finding records of family or couple relationships. Typically you will be looking for a marriage record, a death record, a military record, a birth record, or a census record. In a census you might identify the members of a family. But their is no pedigree chart relationships and no collecting in one place the facts you know or find about an ancestor. You are basically searching for records.

RE: Searching on Family Tree:  When you click the Family Tree Link (On FamilySearch  Home Page) you enter a different world.

There are fewer records here, yet many. Here resides the names and relationships of families. For decades Church members were asked to submit their pedigree chart information. These records were input into various computer programs, moved from one to another, aggregated, and now ending up in Family Tree. The most recent years new.familysearch.org was the program used mostly by members of the Church. 

Your goal in Family Tree is first to build your pedigree, jointly with all other relatives. It is one Tree. As added value you are encouraged to document all you enter, discuss in discussions what is correct, and collaborate with common relatives the actual facts to enter into the tree.

So your search here is different. If you were a Cragun for example, you might do a search for ancestor you might know you have. There is a large Cragun family in Minnesota. Very very few are members of the Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints. It is unlikely the Family Tree will have them connected to the tree. 

They are likely a descendant of Enoch Cragun. He might be their great great grandfather. So they would start by adding their name into Family Tree, then add parents and grandparents. Each name they added would offer a search to see if that ancestor is connected to the Family Tree. It might not be and they would add that name to the tree as their father, grandfather, spouse, child, etc.

Each new name would entail a search, not a search for an event such as a birth - rather a family relationship. A connection to the tree.Their search is to build onto the tree, either by finding the person in FamilySearch or adding to it.

As I have previously written, everyone will soon be able to join in on building FamilyTree.(Expect from the 8th to the 12th of this month.) Keep watching for it. 

You don't need to wait to start finding the records of your people. It's fun. I challenge you to go to http://familysearch.org/ and find out who of your relatives were in the 1940 census. Who was living with them? One lady I helped found a child in a grandparents census record she had never known about. Ah, the allure of genealogy. 

And it starts by searching on http://familysearch.org/ and gravitating to family tree. 

PS: If you join on in on this endeavor you may be adding yourself to those who make genealogy the worlds number one hobby.

There Is A Lot To Know About Elisha Cragun And Much Is Found Now In Family Tree

This article is more than about Elisha Cragun, this is for all of you.

FamilySearch Family Tree is not fully functional yet, but it is in a great mode. A few of Elisha's ancestors have been researching him. Much of that research is now attached to Family Tree. That means no one has to duplicate that research. A recent addition by Gaylynn Heiner Hone provided about 100 pages of research I was about to undertake. Thank you again Gaylynn.

A most important reference was to an online book by a dcragun. Thank you dcragun. This was an awesome addition to the Elisha's Tree, for all of us and our posterity.

Here is a copy and summary of the 14 sources attached to Elisha Cragun. You are invited to go to http://familysearch.org/ and sign in for an account. Once you have done that, family tree is an option in the menu bar on top.

HIstory Of The Elisha Cragun Family Researched by Gaylynn Heiner Hone

Elisha Cragun Land Records Researched by Gaylynn Heiner Hone

Elisha Cragun's Patriarchal Blessing Clarifies Where He Was Born

Story Of Nathan Porter Baptizing Elisha Cragun, And How Henry Mowers Daughter met Simeon Cragun

Copy of Find A Grave of Hiram Cragun, son, stating Family move to Boone Cty

Portion of Osborne Family story regarding Elisha and Mary - Joining Mormon Church and their deaths

Possible Elisha Cragun Mary Osborn Marriage Date

Elisha Cragun in household of Elisha Cragun, "United States Census, 1820"

Elisha Cragun Story

E Cragun in household of E Cragun, "United States Census, 1840"

Elisha Cragan in household of Elisha Cragan, "United States Census, 1830"

Find A Grave Memorial Elisha Cragun

Elisha Cragun birth info

Book: Early Osbornes and Alleys with notes on allied families

Patrick Cragun and His Son Elisha Cragun

Where Oh Where Was Our Patrick Born, Oh Where Oh Where Was He Born?

Patrick Cragun (Cragon, Creaghan, Creegin, ???) is a tough genealogy research project. Was he really born in Ireland? If so, what County? Knowing the County of an Irishman persons birth, marriage, or death is a big big help. We don't know what County do we? We don't know how his name was spelled, not C R A G U N we are sure. His parents names are uncertain to us, Caleb and Mrs. won't do. He was supposedly in the Boston Tea Party, but the names we are sure of aren't his, boo hoo.

I have spent numerous days at the FamilySearch Salt Lake City Family History Library searching forf Patrick. Finally felt I should move my efforts down to his son, my 2nd great grandfather Elisha Cragun.

We know more about Elisha. I and others are attaching sources, stories and documents to Elisha in the FamilySearch Family Tree. At the current time there are 9 attached including a link out to an online book with much about Elisha and his wife Mary Polly Osborne. I encourage you to go to Family Tree and see what is already attached to your ancestor, be it Elisha or another.

The FamilySearch Family Tree is not officially launched to the world, but I think you can get it by registering with FamilySearch: follow these instructions.

1. Go to http://www.familysearch.org/invite/familytree_tab.

2. Enter the required information in the fields provided.
Important: When you enter your user name and password, enter the same user name and password that you use on familysearch.org and new.familysearch.org. This lets you see your FamilySearch Family Tree and all of your changes as they appear in new.familysearch.org in the FamilySearch Family Tree.

3. Click Register.
The FamilySearch FamilySearch Family Tree appears. You are in the main position on the screen.
To get to the FamilySearch Family Tree from now on, go to www.familysearch.org, and sign in. The link to the Family Tree appears in the upper-left corner of the screen, next to the FamilySearch logo.

Blessed To Have 3 Pioneer Families: Cragun, Bingham, Porter

My serving here in Salt Lake City Family and Church History Headquarters mission has been a chance to feel a greater love and respect for my pioneer ancestors. The community here emphasizes it more. There is the Pioneer day parade and celebration. Our local youth did a Pioneer Trek this summer. It's talked about more and I appreciate it.

In doing my genealogy I have learned how Elisha Cragun found the church not long after his wife and 23 year old daughter died. He gave up his plantation and slaves and moved to Nauvoo where the church members were gathering. He and 4 of his childrens families went with him. One son, ended up in Minnesota while Simeon Cragun and two sisters headed west. Elisha didn't make it, he died in Winter Quarters. Great Grandfather Simeon and family were the first to settle in Pleasant View, Utah.

Sanford Porter was my first ancestor to join the church, not long after it was founded. He had an amazing, actually several amazing experiences leading up to his joining the church. Sanford Porter had two sons that are great grandfathers of mine: John President Porter and Lyman Wight Porter. Lyman Wight was named after one of the missionaries that taught Sanford. The Porters traveled in the Charles C Rich pioneer company, and it's not surprising one of the Rich girls married John President.

My Bingham ancestory has a touching situation. Erastus had 10 children and lived in England. He and one daughter joined the church and came to America and were pioneers. They seemed to have had to give up their family to come as my grandmother records they never saw or heard from her mother and siblings again.

The Porters settled in Morgan County Utah. You may be related to some of them: Joseph Rich Porter, Marlow Rich Porter, Bertha Maria Porter, Joseph Irvin Porter, Mary Viola Porter, Nathaniel Victor Porter, Nellie Electa Porter, or Eleca Elizabeth Porter. Electa is my great grandmother, the others her siblings.

My great grandfather Simeon Cragun had a son, Simeon who is my grandfather. His first wife died. His second wife Blanche Bingham is my dads mother. So my Cragun and Bingham lines come together through this marriage.

I'm proud of my pioneer heritage. I'm grateful my ancestors found the church so I could be a part of it and its blessings from my youth.