What is Family Search

1. Module 1 - Getting Started

2. Module 1 index: Introduction to
FamilySearch
●FamilySearch.org Account 4
●Family Tree Toolbar 10
●Family Tree Views 13
●Icon Key 25
●Adding a Person 26
●Summary Card 31
●Person Page 34
●Research Help 48
●Other Features 49
●Memory Page 51
●Living Persons 52

3. Tell Me About FamilySearch...
FamilySearch is available to everyone— free of charge.
FamilySearch provides a place to build your own family tree
and to connect into the world’s family tree.
FamilySearch provides access to billions of records and an
opportunity to help build the database of digital records.
FamilySearch provides assistance through volunteer staff
at 1-866-406-1830 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week) and
at your local Family History Center.

4. Accessing FamilySearch...
… and Sign up for your
Free Account
Go to
Familysearch.org…

5. Signing Up for a
FamilySearch Account...
Type your First
and Last Names
Choose a
Username
Choose a
Password

6. Signing Up for a
FamilySearch Account
You will need an
email address or
mobile phone
number to activate
the account.

7. Signing Into FamilySearch...
Go to familysearch.org
to Sign In

8. Signing Into FamilySearch...
fInput your
Username and
Password

9. Accessing Family Tree…
Family Tree can always
be accessed from the
FamilySearch toolbar at
the top of the home page

10. Toolbars...
You can
click this
icon at any
time to
return to
the home
page
You can go to any section of FamilySearch
by clicking any of these links

11. Toolbars...
These toolbars are for Family Tree functions

12. Toolbars...
Select a view
Print your
pedigree

13. Landscape View...
With you and
your spouse
in the center
Displays a bowtie pedigree
Children
on the
left
Ancestors
on the
right

14. Portrait View...
Select
Portrait
Then check
Portraits
Click “Show”

15. Fan Chart View...
Select Fan
Chart

16. Descendancy View...
Select
Descendancy
Select the
number of
generations to
display
Click Show
Displays a
person and
their
descendants
Uncheck
Portraits to see
more
descendants

17. Inverting Colors...
Then click Tree on
the Summary Card
Click a person’s
name
Click to invert colors

18. Viewing a Person in the
Center of the Pedigree...
Then click Tree on
the Summary Card
Click a person’s
name

19. Viewing a Person in the
Center of the Pedigree...
A different couple is
now in the center

20. Viewing a Person in the Center
Works the Same in Other Views...
Click the
person’s name
Then click the
Tree icon

21. Using Dropdown in Tree...
Click the arrow next
to the Tree icon to
display a list
You are always at
the top of the
list—click your
name to return

22. Using Dropdown in Tree...
The last 50 persons who
have been in the center
are also displayed--click
any name to put them
back in the center

23. Using Arrows in Landscape View...
Click an
arrow next
to a spouse
to see other
spouses
Click
any of
these
arrows to
expand the
pedigree
Click a Children arrow to
display a couple’s children

24. Moving the Pedigree...
Place the
mouse cursor
in the open
(gray) space
Then hold down
the left mouse
button and drag… …to view persons not
shown on the screen

25. You will find these icons displayed on each view of
Family Tree except for the fan chart
Reading the Icon Key...
Temple icons indicate possible incomplete
ordinances--they come in multiple colors
Bright blue Record Hint icons suggest there
are indexed records that pertain to that person
Purple Research Suggestion icons suggest
what additional research might be needed
Red Data Problem icons suggest major
errors--i.e. child born before parents, etc.

26. Adding a Person...
Select Add Husband, Add Wife,
or Add Child
Adding living
relatives is
optional
unless you
need to
connect to
the deceased

27. Adding a Person...
Enter a first
and last name
Gender is
automatically
selected for
spouses Select Living
or Deceased
Select a standardized date
from the drop down list
Add a birth or
death date

28. Adding a Person...
Start typing a birthplace name (go from small
to large, i.e. city, county, state, country)
Click
Next
Standardized dates and places help
the Family Tree program to work
more efficiently to find sources.
Then select a
standardized
place from the
drop down list

29. Adding a Person...
For deceased persons, FamilySearch tries to find a match
If there is no
Match, select
Create NewReview the
possible
matches--if a
match is
found, select
Add Person
Living persons are private, no match will be found

30. Displaying a Person’s Information...
Click a
person’s
name
And a summary
card appears

31. Understanding the Summary Card...
Photo and
Name

32. Understanding the Summary Card...
Birth and
Death
Information

33. Understanding the Summary Card...
The number
of Sources,
Memories,
and
Discussions

34. Displaying the Person Page...
Click
Person
Click the
name
OR
To see more details about a person

35. Understanding the Person Page...
There are tabs at the
top—Details &
Memories

36. The sections of the Details page
can be accessed by clicking a link
OR
by scrolling down the page
Details Display...

37. Life Sketch...
You may add a brief life sketch
(up to 10,000 characters)--
This can be edited by
anyone

38. Vital Information...
Displays Name, Gender,
Birth, Christening,
Death, and Burial
Click Open Details
to see additional
information

39. Editing and Sourcing
Vital Information...
May show sources
for the information
Shows who contributed
the information

40. Adding Other Information...
May contain Alternate
Names or additional
information

41. Adding Family Members...
Spouses and children
are on the left
Parents and siblings
are on the right

42. Displaying Family Members...
The person whose page you
are on is bolded in black

43. Viewing a Different
Family Member...
Click any family
member’s name To view their
summary card
Click Tree or Person to see their tree or person page

44. Adding a Family Member...
Add a Spouse or a Parent
Add a Child or a Sibling

45. Seeing Previously Viewed Persons...
Click the Arrow next to Person
on the Family Tree Tool Bar
Your name shows up at the
top; the last 50 viewed
persons are below
Click any name to view
their person page

46. Sources...
Attach evidence to verify
information about an
ancestor

47. Discussions and Notes...
Discuss discrepancies and
questions with others
Add notes to the person

48. Research Help...
Record Hints automatically
searches billions of indexed
records to find records about
your ancestor — >95% accurate
Research Suggestions
are also given

49. Other Features...
Search for additional
indexed records
about your ancestor
Print any of
these items for
the person
See a history of changes
made to the record

50. Tools...
Review and merge
possible duplicate records
Report offensive items or
inappropriate behavior
Delete Person—use if you add
someone by mistake; can’t be
used for those added by others

51. Memories...
May contain Photos, Documents,
Stories, or Audio files
Click Memories

52. Living Persons...
●Living persons are marked as Private Persons
●Only you can see the private details in your pedigree.
Others can not see the information you add or change in
these records.
●Your relatives will have a different record for each living
family member and perhaps for each deceased member.
●Anyone may potentially see memory attached to a private
record, especially if they are also attached to a deceased
person.

53. New York Times Article
The Stories That Bind Us
By Bruce Feiler
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/17/fashion/
the-family-stories-that-bind-us-this-
life.html?_r=0

54. Ancestors or Animals?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sfOggdClV8
https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2011-08-01-an-ancestor-is?lang=eng