FamilySearch, Ancestry, and some family tree software will generate timelines for your research but viewing a timeline generated by software isn't as beneficial as Doing It Yourself. Writing or typing the information into a spreadsheet, table, or even a narrative is a critical thinking exercise. As you enter the events into your timeline, you organize and reflect on the information, communicate ideas, and create stories. All of this will enable you to better identify inconsistencies, errors, and gaps in your research and set the stage for your future research plan.
Constructing timelines proves helpful for a variety of projects. Create timelines for individuals, families, land, communities, military service, and more. Utilize formats such as tables, spreadsheets, bullet points, and narratives. At the bare minimum, include the date, event, location, and source. I want to emphasize that last item, the source, as early in my research, I made many timelines without adding adequate sources. Who knew I would want those sources 20 years later!
Learn more about creating timelines at the following links:
How (and Why) to Make a Genealogy Timeline from Family Tree Magazine (October 2022) details how to create and analyze your timeline.
Download the Simple Ancestor Timeline Table with Source List made with Excel at Genealogy Decoded.
In this recent post, Nicole Elder Dyer of Family Locket uses Airtable to create her timeline - Bringing Hidden Clues to Light Through Creating A Timeline.
Lisa Lisson writes that she better internalizes the information when she uses paper and pencil to create her timelines. Read this in her post, Use A Genealogy Timeline To Find Gaps In Your Research.
Jill Morelli showed various ways to use timelines in Timelines for Analysis and Correlation.
Diana
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