I'm pretty new to genealogy, and I've run into my first situation where I'm tempted to disagree with what seems to be the consensus.

I've been pushing further back in my tree and reached an ancestor named Edward Clark, born about 1842 at St. Leonard's in Shoreditch. Every single Ancestry member tree has the same pair of parents listed: Frederick John Clark and Mary Griffith. This is confirmed by an old Family History Book which lists the two as well.

The problem is that I haven't found any primary source/birth records that match, and the best primary source I've found lists an Edward Clark with parents William and Harriet.

I'm hesitant to "go against the grain" when so many trees agree, but it feels like the evidence is pointing elsewhere.

For those of you with more experience, how do you handle situations like this? At what point do you trust the primary records over a widely repeated published genealogy? Is there a best practice for documenting why you're choosing one conclusion over another?

I’m creating an article for distribution on a semi-notable historical figure.

In it, I argue that the birthplace and lineage of the individual is the result of sloppy research that was regurgitated and confirmation bias from Victorian Age authors who often janked notable achievers onto illustrious lines.

To prove my point, I discuss timeline details of his father, where he was at various points before, during, and after the person was born, and of course relevant details from the person’s life.

Last, I reveal conclusive evidence from Y-DNA testing, placing the figure in large cluster lineage of non-special people who mostly were farmers by trade.

The overall point being that you can do special things without needing to come from a special background.

As I sit here obsessing over the draft, the one thing that tortures me are narratives which aren’t stated on record, but could heavily be inferred based on probability of available facts.

I’m tortured because I want the final product to be taken seriously, but if I’m hypothesizing certain details based on high probability, I don’t want my information to be discarded because everything stated must be meticulously backed up by record.

“Where’s your record for this guy being with his wife in August 1782?”

“Uhhhh his son was born in May 1783?”

“But there’s no record.”

“Are you saying it’s someone else?”

“Without record, anything’s possible.”

“But his Y-DNA evidence matches surnames and lineage location completely.”

“Could have been another guy with the same surname.”

“🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️”

So my question: To make a credible argument, should I stay away from hypotheses based on high probability?

Essentially what the title says. Is there a running list anywhere that notes recently released records or resources?

I feel like there is so much out there, and I've found myself wondering what resources I haven't discovered, what records are now available, or if there's websites I've looked at that updated with additional information.

For example, I use NYC's Historical Vital Records website a lot, and have gone through pages and pages of different last names. I periodically check to see if anything new has been added, whether thats through the updates on their Digital Vital Records page or when simply searching, but sometimes I wonder if I'm missing something.

I'd love to hear about the resources people use in general, in addition to any platforms or websites that have new information.

For some additional context - I primarily research in NY, but branch out to FL, WI, Germany, and England. I don't feel like I have much of a grasp on the available records for those outside NY though.

I’m not sure what the right flair would be, sorry… but..

I always come across these FamilySearch usernames that are variations of “CensusProject” or “tree_helper”
These users either make 3-10 separate duplicates of the same person/couples/families, per record.. Or, they attach wrong records to individual with similar names. Then they abandon what they started, and continue onward doing the same thing.

Are these users with the church, or whats the deal? Why do they do this? Are they bots?

Thought you might be interested in this

Last Sunday 25th marked the 101st anniversary of the death of my grandmother’s brother, Martin Nagle of Nenagh, County Tipperary.

A sergeant in the newly established Civic Guard, Martin died aged just 23 in circumstances that remain unexplained. The post explores his life, his service and the mystery surrounding his death.

Read the story here: https://holmesfamilyireland.blogspot.com/2026/10/sergeant-martin-nagle-19021925-nenagh.html

During my research on Familysearch, I came across this weird situation researching my mother's family.

My mother knows little about her grandfather because he died young, at 52, soon after his last son was born. Her grandfather name was Ilario/Illario Z. (I prefer not to share the surnames, but you can DM me if you want to help!) and his wife was Maria C.

Ilario's surname is very, very rare, only people in my family have it and they all live in the same few towns in Padua province, Italy. For this reason, every person with his surname that I find is a lead and potentially interesting.

I found a birth record of Norina Antonietta Z, daughter of Illario Z. and Maria C. She was born in Ponso (Pd) on May 4th 1915. Her father was 33 and he was a farmer, her mother an housewife. This far, nothing out of the ordinary. My mother though has never known about the existence of this Norina: Maria C. had 11 kids in total with Ilario and only about 8/9 lived reached adulthood. So this Norina could have died young.

There is another record about a Norina Z, a death record. This Norina died on the August 28th 1915 at only 3 months old; she was born in Ponso (Pd) her father was Giuseppe Z. (Ilario's surname), her mother was Maria C. (same surname as the other Maria C.). This Norina seems to be the same as the other Norina, but Giuseppe Z. is 31, not 33 like Ilario. And the signature is different: Giuseppe signed as Giuseppe Z. and Ilario as Illario Z. The writing looks pretty similar though. The address of Norina Antonietta's birth is also different from Norina's death address, but strangely similar too: the street have different names, but the houses have a similar number (164 vs 165).

Another odd detail is that this death certificate is from Carceri, not Ponso, even if the second Norina died there and was born there.

To make things even more trippy, I have found the names of Ilario parents: Sante Z. and ...Maria C.

Same name of his wife, same name of Giuseppe Z 's wife.

Maria is a very common name and C. is a pretty common surname too, so it could be just be an odd coincidence. (Illario's wife was ten years younger than him, so at least I know it' s ceratinly not his mother lol).

I have found no records about Giuseppe Z., not even about the births of his children. But I know that Ilario inherited the land he owned from a ...Giuseppe Z.

I apologize if it is confusing, but I am very confused too XD

Have you ever found a situation similar to this one? Can it be resolved? Personally, I think that Ilario and Giuseppe are the same person because the coincindence is too much, but I don't know how to explain the discrepancies. The signatures are so puzzling XD

I submitted a MyHeritage DNA kit September 6th and it’s already been over a month (or their predicted 3-4 weeks) and it’s literally at the last phase before my results. Their website doesn’t help and they don’t have a phone number that actually works. Also their AI assistant didn’t help one bit. Anyone else have this issue where your results were stuck?

Hey everyone!

My wife's grandmother passed away and we found her engagement photo but it is behind a paywall. Does anyone have access to it?

Thank you!

https://www.newspapers.com/image/465963156/?article=0de36f8e-a1aa-4bae-935d-288b8ae4f99a&xid=3398

We have had these two portraits in the family for a long time, but the identities of the subjects have been lost to time. I’m hoping to be able to match a name to these faces if at all possible. They would likely have lived in Atlanta from the mid to late 1800s, and are connected in some way to the Crumley, Roberts, Berry, or Bell families. For the man’s portrait it does say William Ver Bryck as the artist, dated 1887, no signatures or dates seen on the lady’s which appears to be more of a watercolor or colored pencil medium. I’ve rules out a few people based on other photos or portraits on find a grave, but any recommendation on how to go about unraveling this mystery would be much appreciated.

Images of the portraits here: https://postimg.cc/gallery/wqyR7Y2
Likely someone on this family tree line or extended family beyond that: https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/pedigree/landscape/GM6M-9T2

My paternal grandmother was German and unfortunately I'm not able to do much research on that side of the family since I don't know German, and on top of that a lot of the records I have access to are handwritten so it's even more difficult to decipher.

I would really rather avoid putting my family's records into an AI tool. Any advice on how I can find someone who can help me with this really niche task? I'm still kind of new to genealogy research so idk if there are services out there that do this type of thing or if I just need to find someone who I can pay to translate the records for me?

Looking for assistance transcribing this polish death record from 1845 in Warsaw for Doba Wolkenheim? Record #444 top right page. Please no ai transcription/translation.

https://metryki.genealodzy.pl/index.php?op=pg&id=1016&se=&sy=1845b&kt=3&plik=440-447.jpg&x=2382&y=124&zoom=0.96

Thanks!

My great grandmother was born in Northern England in the late 1800s. But I can't for the life of me understand why her parents adopted her out. She was the eldest child, born after they married, so not out of wedlock. They went on to have several other kids that stayed with them. My great gran kept her birth name and surname which is the same as her father's so I don't think she's illegitimate.

So why would you adopt out your first born and keep the rest?!

Several years back, my uncle had my grandparents' DNA tested through a company call CriGenetics.

Below is my grandmother's results.

Both of her parents came from Calabria (Molochio and Cosensa. I've already been able to verify that much through records.

I'm curious about the Middle Eastern portion. I know that percentages can and do change, but if that holds true, how far back would I have to go in order attempt to verify with documents?

Thanks!

ETA: Here are her results Total came to 63% Italian 11% Spanish

Middle East 10.2 % Arab 6.8% Jewish 6.5% Armenian

2.5% Sri Lankan Tamil

I'm looking for some help finding some of my ancestors.

I will post a link with the 4 images that I can find.

I'm searching for a Frantisek, Frantiska, Rudolph or Jan Sostak in or around the Bradlne region of bohemia. Included in the images are 2 baptism records for Peter Sostak (1880) and Herman Sostak (1877), Frantisek's 2 children. The other 2 records are marriage records for Frantisek and Philomena (1876) and Rudolph and Johanna (1876). In those documents they reference a Frantiska daughter of Jan Sostak.

Unfortunately these are the only documents I'm able to find and this side of my family is a bit of a mystery. I've been searching through old church records but find it to be difficult and very time consuming. Any hits or help would be greatly appreciated.

Records:

https://postimg.cc/gallery/6CMpXmP

Currently researching “Charles Anthony Sellner” aka Charles A.J. Sellner” born Jan 19, 1902 (a few other dates are given on his other records spanning 1897-1902).

Military records seem to give his death date of Feb 12 1969

They also hint at another surname (since he was likely not born the son of his mothers 1st husband, Mr Sellner)

I don’t see any matching MD death certs for that date so I assume he must have died in another state.

I’m looking for his death cert so I can find out where he was buried.

Hope whoever reads this is well. Could you guys please help me read the entire entry for Ignat? I don't need it translated just it read, I will attach the original link to the FamilySearch document and a ss of it in the comments.

So it came to my attention that one of my ancestors had a pretty "unique" name in Switzerland, the family name Stecher.

On surname maps or even family dictionaries, old stock families named Stecher are pretty rare in the country. If they really are long standing swiss families, they are specifically from only one region in Switzerland "Graubunden". Otherwise they were originally from Austria, Italy or Germany and got naturalized later. These informations can be found on the public dictionary of famillies of switzerland(https://familiennamenbuch.ch) or other websites.

So my great grandmother had this surname and all i knew is that she was from Zürich Stadt in Switzerland, at least for sure that her son was born there. I am not well informed on my swiss side as i ,first things first live in the french speaking part of Switzerland and that i'm more linked to my north african side(i'm half).

I asked myself which Stecher lineage was she from, was she from the mountainous regions of Graubunden ? The Tyrol region?

I decided to contact Civil Registry Office of the City of Zurich, and asked them only two informations: Where is the family Stecher originally from and what was the surname of my great grandmother's mother.

I asked only these two things as i reaaaallly wanted to have no fees as i cannot permit myself to pay things rn. Anyways i received a call, and then the worker told me->The Stecher were originally from Germany, and got naturalized in 1933 in Zürich Stadt. I asked for more details on the region and she replied : "it's pretty vague, it says that they came from Baden". Funfact, so the mother of my great grandmother is swiss and when she married her "Stecher" husband she lost her nationality and became german pfffhaha.

I wanted to know more, but as i got these info without fees i didn't want to be a burden to the worker and decided to be grateful.

But now i'm dying to know the S P E C I F I C region in Baden, so i can explore furthermore my genealogy. Could yall explain to me why is the origin so vague ? Or did they mean the city Baden-Baden? I don't know from which kind of record she got her infos from but i really dont wanna ask her anything rn.

I was hoping that yall could explain to me, but above all help me with this research. I thought of this because it seems like the Stecher family(from Germany) is pretty unique so maybe can be easily pinpointed on some kinds of records? You can all type Stecher on (https://familiennamenbuch.ch), and yall will see that there is only one family that got naturalized in Zürich, and it was in 1933. So i'm basically searching for help. Thanks for reading me !

I’ve finally found out my great grandfathers birth parent names are and I’ve looked through family search and I could not find it. I was wondering if anyone know any services to help me. DNE express I’ve reached out to but they barley respond lol. Just asking for help

Hi Everyone-

I am following up on a post I made a few days ago where I discussed my ancestors, Davis Henderson (1787-1865) and Susanna (1784-1855???) and the likelihood of Susanna having some degree of African ancestry.

Following some wonderful suggestions from contributors, and doing some research on common relatives among my 23andMe matches, along with research into my grandparents ancestrydna test, I noticed a few things.

On the segment of DNA where my African ancestry is, matches tend to trace back into the following families or people-these same families’ descendants also appear in my grandparents Ancestry matches found through LEEDS sorting.

Davis and Harp/Earp, with many matches connecting to;

Oliver Elijah Davis (1823-1864)

Samuel Edward Davis (1834-1918)

Sampson Harp (1788-1836)

Elijah Bohannan Harp (1826-1864)

(Many of these Harps ended up in Overton, TN, and Newton, AR, where the family ultimately ended up.)

Various Goins Family Members (Melungeon Founding Family)

Lewis Perkins (1762-1838) (Another Melungeon “Founder”, parents are Joshua “Old Jock” and Mary UMN)

Valentine Collins (1768-1854; thought to be a Zmber of the Bunch family, both Collins and bunch are Melungeon Founding Families)

Dicey Gibson (1770-1844) (Melungeon Founding Family)

Firstly; i find it perplexing that there’s a lack of singular common ancestors, but i should note the matches often do not match perfectly on the SSA segment, and it has British ancestry beside it, so I figure some match on the SSA portion, some the Euro portion, some both-I take this to mean that Susanna did indeed have mixed heritage, I inherited multiple segments from her, and Susanna was related to the British descended Harp/Earp family, and also was related to some FPOC, many whose lineages would become Melungeon families.

Some background Knowledge; I know Susanna was born in North Carolina, and notably another relative descended from her has a Genetic Community for “North Carolina African Americans”. Davis was found in the 1811 Tax Records for Muhlenberg, KY, 1820 White, TN, and 1830 Overton, TN. Davises’ first child was born 1813, in Kentucky or TN, and the second most likely in KY-so my guess is they met there. Given where they were, I do not believe Susanna herself was “Melungeon” in the traditional sense, but could have shared ancestors with people who became Melungeons.

For another, I have seen many trees cite her name as Claiborne as it was her son’s first name; I do not believe that this is her maiden name. I concluded this since Davis had a brother, Claiborne Henderson (born around 1800) who I believe was the namesake for the son of Davis and Susanna.

At this point, I need some help with this DNA Research and deciphering what I have found so far and what it means for my research, and more importantly-i would appreciate assistance using these clues to help find records that could lead to, hint at, or better yet, spell out who her parents and siblings may have been, how Susanna connects to the European Harp/Earp family, and which of these African descended families Susanna has a connection to, as I am very eager to uncover this family mystery.

All help is very much appreciated!

https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/pedigree/landscape/9NS7-ZYJ

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/108745347/davis_l-henderson

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Unknown-403315

Hello everyone!

I’m writing from Russia, and I’m hoping someone here might be able to help me find information about a relative of mine.

Not long ago, I learned about my great-grandfather’s brother, Anton Antonovich Khlebovsky (Антон Антонович Хлебовский). As far as I know, he was born in the Russian Empire and later emigrated to the United States, eventually settling in Detroit, Michigan.

Unfortunately, our family knows very little about his life in America, and I’ve been trying to find out more about him.

Here’s what I know so far:

His full name was Anton Antonovich Khlebovsky. His name may have been recorded in American documents as Anton or Anthony Chlebowski, Khlebowski, Hlebowski, Khlebovsky, or something similar.
He was probably born sometime between 1892 and 1895, somewhere in the Russian Empire. I don’t know his exact birthplace.
He lived in Detroit, Michigan. I know he was still alive and living there in 1960 because he personally sent a photograph of himself to our family. I’ve attached that photograph to this post. The year 1960 was written on the back.
I believe he may have died around 1962, although I haven’t been able to confirm this.
He had a brother named Ivan Khlebovsky (Иван Хлебовский), who was my great-grandfather. There may also have been another older brother, but I’m not sure about that.
Another name that comes up in our family stories is Ludwiga (Людвига). She may have been Anton’s sister or possibly his niece. There are also two names, Bronislaw and Stanislaw (Бронислав и Станислав), who may have been Ludwiga’s children. Unfortunately, I don’t know much more about them.

The main reason I’m posting here is that I live in Russia, and it’s quite difficult for me to access certain American genealogical websites and historical archives.

I’ve already tried searching on FamilySearch and a few other websites. I may have found a record that matches Anton, but there isn’t enough information for me to confirm whether it’s actually him.

I was wondering if anyone here might be able to help me find something about him, or perhaps point me in the right direction.

I’m particularly interested in any immigration records, census records, Detroit city directories, death records, obituaries, burial information, or anything that could tell me more about his life in the United States.

Maybe someone here has access to American genealogy databases that I can’t use, or knows which local archives in Detroit might have information about someone who lived there during that period.

I’d also love to find out whether Anton had a wife or children, and whether any of his descendants might still be living in America.

I understand this is very little information to go on, but I thought it was worth asking. Even the smallest clue would be helpful.

Thank you to anyone who takes the time to read this or offer advice. I would really appreciate any help!

I’ve attached the photograph of Anton that he sent to our family in 1960.

There is a handwritten inscription in Russian on the back of the photograph. As far as I can decipher the handwriting, it says:

“To you, my brother Ivan and my niece, as a lasting keepsake.

From your brother and uncle,

A. A. Khlebovsky

Photo:

https://postimg.cc/gallery/j7rLvyV

I'm in search of someone who still lives in or near Korolevo (Transcarpathia, Ukraine). Any ideas on how to reach out to those people?

My great-grandparents (Hungarian) lived there around the 1920s, and I'm in search of more details.

Any help and hints would be appreciated.

(I already wrote to the registry office, but never got an answer.)

An ancestor named Sarah Hite (b.1810) seems to be erroneously included in the very well known Hite family of the Belle Grove Plantation in Frederick County, Virginia. I think she probably belongs to another of the numerous Hite families in the area. My reasons: there is another Sarah in the family, born just 2 years later, she did not appear on census or burial records in VA as her 13 siblings do (in general), and she was born within 7 months of another sibling. All this info I am seeing on the extensive Hite family Family Search page. I don't know how to find a birth record for this individual. I would like to prove that she is not related to this family. Link to Family Search page. I can't include a screen shot of the FS page? The individual in question is Family Search ID LH6T-LDR. Any ideas? Thanks so much!

Всем привет, делаю свое генеалогическое древо и очень хочу узнать о своих польских корнях, верю в силу интернета)

Добрый день!

Меня зовут Матвей Алексеевич Леванюк. Ищу любую информацию о моих родственниках. Мой дед, Николай Васильевич Левонюк, был поляком; он родился 25 июня 1933 года в деревне Пасечники (Pasieczniki) недалеко от Белостока. Буду признателен за любые сведения или помощь — заранее благодарю. Мой прадед, Василий Александрович Левонюк, также жил в тех краях; по словам родственников, его вторая жена (моя прабабушка) тоже была полячкой. Для меня очень важно узнать историю своих предков, и я рад, что они родом из Польши. Буду ждать вашего ответа! И рад любой помощи и информации!
///

Hello everyone! I am working on my family tree and am very keen to learn more about my Polish roots—I have faith in the power of the internet!

Good day! 
My name is Matvey Alekseyevich Levanyuk. I am looking for any information regarding my relatives. My grandfather, Nikolai Vasilyevich Levonyuk, was Polish; he was born on June 25, 1933, in the village of Pasieczniki, near Białystok. I would be very grateful for any details or assistance—thank you in advance. My great-grandfather, Vasily Alexandrovich Levonyuk, also lived in that area; according to my relatives, his second wife (my great-grandmother) was also Polish. It is very important to me to uncover the history of my ancestors, and I am delighted that they hailed from Poland. I look forward to hearing from you! Any help or information would be greatly appreciated!

I have faith in the power of the internet.

///

Dzień dobry wszystkim! Pracuję nad swoim drzewem genealogicznym i bardzo chciałbym dowiedzieć się więcej o moich polskich korzeniach – wierzę w potęgę internetu!

Dzień dobry!
Nazywam się Matwiej Aleksiejewicz Lewaniuk. Poszukuję wszelkich informacji na temat moich krewnych. Mój dziadek, Nikołaj Wasiljewicz Lewoniuk, był Polakiem; urodził się 25 czerwca 1933 roku we wsi Pasieczniki, niedaleko Białegostoku. Będę bardzo wdzięczny za wszelkie szczegóły lub pomoc – z góry dziękuję. Mój pradziadek, Wasilij Aleksandrowicz Lewoniuk, również mieszkał w tamtych okolicach; według moich krewnych jego druga żona (moja prababcia) także była Polką. Odkrycie historii moich przodków jest dla mnie bardzo ważne i cieszę się, że pochodzili oni z Polski. Czekam na Wasze odpowiedzi! Każda pomoc lub informacja będzie dla mnie niezwykle cenna!

Wierzę w potęgę internetu.

///

Is anyone able to decipher the professions on this census record?

https://ibb.co/HfrNLX79