Usuallu, diaries or journals are discovered in trunks and attics. They could also be found in bookshelves. Look through stuff Checking behind mirrors that are old and worn could also lead to unexpected family genealogy discoveries. Look for any messages that may have been taped. Tell family what you are up to Visiting or calling relatives is a good idea as they could be more than willing to help in your search. To distinguish the 10 Johns from each other, their father's names could be used. For example, John the son of Paul, John the son of Andrew, John the son of James. Later on, these identifying last names evolved into their shortened version: John Paulson, John Anderson and John Jameson. John the son of William (Williamson) later on became 'Williams'. Basically, family history centers number to more than three thousand all over the world. The fact of the matter is that these centers are branches of the family history library of the Latter day Saints which is considered as the main and central repository for a lot of genealogical info the Church missionaries were able to collect. You might also want to get in touch with neighbors or people who have worked with older family members. Check your locality. Go to your local or state schools, courthouses and churches for records about your family. Civil records like wills, deeds, land or property transfers are kept at courthouses. You can also ask for copies of certificates from the Bureau of Vital Statistics. They, on the other hand, place their last names first and their first names last (get that?). There are several ways of getting a surname. The last names of women could be altered when they undergo marriage. The so-called patronymics, on the other hand, allow people to be identified through their paternal parent s surname. Some software could also be downloaded for free. Examples are the Brother s Keeper Genealogy software, Family Tree Legends (claiming to be a powerful software in genealogical search), Gedmark (used in securing any information on an author on GEDCOM files), GeneWeb (genealogy program that has Web interface), and GenFinder Freeware, TimeLine Maker (maker of charts that show histories, also, colored printouts There are also free tools for translation.