Online Courses In Family History

NEW for 2023!

Welcome to the start of your family history journey!

This is part one of a two-part introduction to genealogy research in England and Wales. It is designed for anyone who wants to get things right from the start. The course provides you with the tools and know-how to confidently find ancestors and record results in commonly used records.

There are many reasons why people begin investigating their family history. Some have had an interest since childhood, and perhaps even made a start when they were young. For others it is an important event in life, whether that be the happy event such as marriage or having a child, or the loss of a parent or grandparent, all of which can spark an interest in where you came from. Perhaps you have been inspired by TV shows such as Who Do You Think You Are?

Whatever your reason for getting started, this course will set you off on the right track. This course will guide you through the preliminary steps to make sure you are building your family tree with confidence and with an understanding of the records you are using.

Over the two-part Foundations of Family History course, we will introduce you to the key four sources to research in England and Wales:

- records of civil registration (birth marriage death certificates)
- the census records
- an introduction to parish registers (coming in Part 2)
- an introduction to wills and probate records (coming in Part 2)

and start you off with some good methods and techniques that you can continue to apply as you progress and increase your knowledge and expertise.

At the end of this course (Part 1) you will be able to:

- Collect together family papers and extract key genealogical information
- Interview relatives successfully
- Evaluate software options for recording your research
- Describe how to search the GRO BMD indexes and order certificates
- Discuss the differences in information collected in different census years
- Start to build your family tree with confidence

Click here to find out more about Foundations of Family History Part 2: Next Steps.

This Anytime course has been divided into five ‘lessons’. To give you an idea of timings, each lesson is roughly around the length of what we would cover in a week in one of our tutor-led courses. However, how quickly you progress through an Anytime course is up to you. If you have some free time, you will be able to work through the material more quickly, if you have a lot of other things going on, it may take you a little longer.

LAUNCH OFFER: We are offering students who buy Part 1 and Part 2 of this course as a single purchase a £10 voucher off their next Pharos Tutors course.

- Gathering information and interviewing relatives
- Storing your family history research (including software options)
- Civil Registration (birth, marriage and death certificates)
- The census records
- Building your tree with confidence

See How Anytime Courses Work.

Relevant Countries: England, Wales

030 Foundations of Family History Part 1 - Getting Started (030)

Starting Date
Join Any Time

Course Length:
Equivalent to 5 weeks

Cost: £45.00

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Foundations of Family History Part 2 - Next Steps (031)

NEW for 2023!

This course is the second part of the two-part Foundations of Family History course. The course builds on the basic skills that you developed in Part 1 (Getting Started) and which you need to ensure that your family tree research starts out on steady ground with your tree firmly planted in fact and not supposition. If you have not taken Part 1 you may like to take a look here: Foundations of Family History Part 1: Getting Started.

In Part 2 we will build on your methodology skills and add in two additional fundamental sources for family history research: parish registers and probate records. We will also give a special mention to death records, including certificates and registers and obituaries. We will end the course with some sound problem solving techniques that you can apply to your family history research.

At the end of this course (Part 2) you will be able to:

- Use parish registers as a source of genealogical information and understand why there are differences in the information contained at different times
- Understand the reasons why it is important to track down death records for your ancestors and carry out searches for death certificates, burials and obituaries
- Explain how the system for probate differed before and after 1858 and search for the will of someone who died after 1858
- Perform effective searches on key genealogy websites
- Implement some suggested problem-solving strategies to investigate research hurdles.

This Anytime course has been divided into four ‘lessons’. To give you an idea of timings, each lesson is roughly around the length of what we would cover in a week in one of our tutor-led courses. However, how quickly you progress through an Anytime course is up to you. If you have some free time, you will be able to work through the material more quickly, if you have a lot of other things going on, it may take you a little longer.

LAUNCH OFFER: We are offering students who buy Part 1 and Part 2 of this course as a single purchase a £10 voucher off their next Pharos Tutors course.

- Introduction to parish registers
- Deaths, burials and obituaries
- Getting started with wills and probate records
- Problem solving

See How Anytime Courses Work.

Relevant Countries:

031 Foundations of Family History Part 2 - Next Steps (031)

Starting Date
Join Any Time

Course Length:
Equivalent to 4 weeks

Cost: £40.00

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Climbing Trees - Inspiring Children with Family History (110)

FULLY UPDATED for 2023

This course provides lots of practical activities, ideas, and guidance for sharing your genealogy knowledge and enthusiasm with your children and grandchildren (aimed at those between the ages of 7 and 11).

Many children enjoy history at school and you can foster or awaken interest by adding a personal, family perspective. This course looks at ways to make your family stories interesting and relevant, not only with respect to the context of past times but with some help from favourite fictional stories. We use a wide range of material designed to excite children about their history and enable you, with them, to produce creative and colourful projects to treasure. The practical nature of the 'make and do' project suggestions will get children involved, designing, doing and problem solving. The course explores and evaluates the wealth of online material about people in the past aimed at children, as well as ways to digitally present and share your children's projects in a simple and easy way. We also show you how working with your children on a family history project can help them with their learning skills in school. You will consider how different children learn in different ways and each activity will show which particular skills are being used so you can cater your activities to the interests of your own children / grandchildren. All activities include a simple list of resources needed before you embark on a project.

The course assumes that you, the adult, have a basic grasp of genealogy websites and research, that you have gone some way to constructing your own tree, and ideally also have some family photographs to share.

* Taking root, understanding the basics
* Climbing Trees at Home - Storytelling and online research
* Climbing Trees Further Afield: Make family history visits interesting
* Creating Branches: Using technology to create present and share your child's learning

See How Anytime Courses Work.

STUDENTS SAID "I very much appreciated the guidance and inspiration for creating slideshows and the helpful direction throughout the course to so many useful websites for children."

Relevant Countries: England

110 Climbing Trees - Inspiring Children with Family History (110)

Starting Date
Join Any Time

Course Length:
4 lessons (around 4 weeks of study)

Cost: £40.00

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Parish Registers of England and Wales (115)

Church of England parish registers, the records of baptism, marriage and burial, are the most important source for genealogists wanting to extend their family history research to the period before civil registration. Parish registers can start as early as 1538 in England and Wales and continue in use today. They remain an important resource even after the start of civil registration, providing additional information and supplementing missing civil records in the early years of registration. However, the information contained in parish registers has not remained constant over the centuries. It is important to understand the changes in requirements over time to be able to understand what a record is likely to able to tell you (and what it may not).

This three-lesson course gives you the information and confidence you need to find parish register entries for your ancestors, understand the historical context and interpret your findings. In the first lesson you will learn about the history of parish registers and the many formats in which they appear. More details on the specifics for baptisms, marriages and burials follow in the other two lessons. Lesson Two includes an introduction to old handwriting and Latin, in the context of parish registers. In the final lesson you will bring everything together to construct a family tree. Throughout is discussion on how to access parish registers in various formats and use some of the key websites.

Note: This course was previously titled "All About Parish Registers".

STUDENTS SAID "It highlighted little nuggets of information that are going to be so useful!"

* The history of parish registers
* Marriage records and an introduction to old handwriting and Latin
* Baptism and burial records

See How Anytime Courses Work.

Relevant Countries: England & Wales

115 Parish Registers of England and Wales (115)

Starting Date
Join Any Time

Course Length:
3 lessons (around 3 weeks of study)

Cost: £30.00

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My British Isles Origins - Crossing the Pond (931)

FULLY UPDATED for 2023

This course will help you trace ancestors who arrived in America from the British Isles, concentrating on the period from 1600 to 1830. Some genealogists know from their research that they have origins in England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, or the neighbouring islands. Others may want to look for British or Irish origins because they believe they have exhausted all avenues of research in the United States.

Answers to the question — How do I cross the pond? — may vary according to the place of origin in the British Isles, the time-period and what is or is not known about ancestors. When comparing records across the British Isles you find they have similarities and differences. There are social, cultural, political and economic variables too. However, no matter what your region of interest, there is a common need for a good foundation of information and record knowledge. The information comes from your research, your knowledge of migration history as well as the context of the times on both sides of the Atlantic.

The course begins with advice on identifying your immigrant ancestor in America, supported with historical information on population movements before and after the Revolution. Sources most likely to offer clues about origins are explained and presented with research strategies.

The focus then changes to looking at your ancestors’ origins in the British Isles. The topics covered include: major migrations out; when, where from, where to; sources for searching within particular migrant groups; and, advice on searching for people who do not fit any patterns. There is also advice on how to make the best use of surname information and survey techniques. Lessons 3 and 4 look at some of the key records you will want to consider for this time period in England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales.

The emphasis is on using online resources and on helping you develop the skills to initiate searches after the course. You will try out online indexes, websites that lead you to sources and finding aids that help you locate sources that may or may not be online. The course shows you how to identify and select the best records to search based on your problem, minimum information required for a search, and ease of access.

At the end of the course you will understand the challenges to be faced in ‘crossing the pond’ and have had some practical experience with locating places, and searching online records and catalogues.

* Preparation is Essential
* Where and How do I Venture into British and Irish Records?
* Sources, Finding Aids and Tactics 1713 - 1830
* Seventeenth Century Challenges are Good for You

See How Anytime Courses Work.

STUDENTS SAID: I have been amazed at the depth and breadth of this course. I have learned a lot and will be working on subjects this course has covered, for several months ahead.

Relevant Countries: USA, England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland

931 My British Isles Origins - Crossing the Pond (931)

Starting Date
Join Any Time

Course Length:
4 lessons (around 4 weeks of study)

Cost: £40.00

Enquire about this course

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Anytime Courses

Foundations of Family History Part 1 - Getting Started (030)

Foundations of Family History Part 2 - Next Steps (031)

Climbing Trees - Inspiring Children with Family History (110)

Parish Registers of England and Wales (115)

My British Isles Origins - Crossing the Pond (931)