How to Find Your LDS Pioneer Ancestors
Searching for pioneer ancestors can be a time-consuming process, but if you know of an ancestor that was a member of the Mormon Church, the process can be less challenging. The Church of Latter Day Saints has gathered detailed family records of its members and their families for over 100 years, and their genealogy website, Family Search, is the largest of its kind. According to the website, the church also has "family history centers in 70 countries, including the renowned Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah." Even if you do not come from a Mormon background, you may find genealogy records for family members who were connected to the church by marriage.
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Instructions
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Talk to family members in order to gather as much information as possible about relatives and ancestors. Knowing your ancestors' birth years, where they were born, the year of their baptisms, when and where they died, and any alternate names or spellings they may have used could help you in your search. The more information you have, the easier it will be to find your ancestors and the quicker it is to identify the records.
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Run a search online, beginning with the ancestor that you have the most information about, at familysearch.org. Sometimes several records will appear, so try being as specific as possible at first. More specific searches can sometimes limit the results too much, so begin with the most specific search then remove search criteria until you get results.
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Visit a Latter Day Saints family history center to search for records. There are over 4,500 family history centers internationally. The Mormon Church has historical documents and information in these centers that may help you find your pioneer ancestor. The largest family history center is the Family History Library located in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Family History Library
5 N. West Temple Street, Room 344
Salt Lake City, UT 84150-3440
800-346-6044
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Tips & Warnings
Because searches cannot be saved and the records are often not directly linked, you can lose information about how you are related to your LDS pioneer ancestor. After finding your ancestors' records, print out the information or bookmark the link in your web browser.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit family burial plot . image by Tom Oliveira from Fotolia.com
