Gifts for the Genealogist

Gifts for the Genealogist

What to give the person who has everything….hmmmm, how about the gift of heritage? Researching your family tree has become very popular, raising interest in many people as to where their ancestors came from, how they got here, and what they were doing. With that in mind, here are a few gift ideas that will help a person along the way in reflecting a family tree.

1) Family tree research software. In the old days hundreds of hours of research in the library, cross checking and cross referencing, would be required to do what simple, inexpensive software can help you do these days. Anyone involved in genealogy will appreciate a good family tree research program. Most programs are user friendly and intuitive.

2) A coat of arms. If your family is in any of the lines that offer a crest, or heraldry, then a reproduction to hang on your wall will make a great addition to family room décor. There are a great many reputable companies that specialize in reproducing coats of arms. If your family has one, then it will be appreciated for years to come.

3) A family history. Many times genealogy researchers compile family histories telling the story of a particular family from their first trip from the old country to the new world. If a history of your family has been compiled, it may be available for purchase and will be an heirloom the whole family will enjoy reading.

4) A history of surnames. Where did your name come from? How about your wife’s name? What is your mother’s maiden name? A history of surnames provides fascinating reading.

5) A collection of old photographs. If you are an active family tree researcher you are probably also a collector of old photos, and may have many that could duplicated, or even scanned and put into electronic form. Giving a person a collection of old photos of family members, with captions identifying the family members is sure to be appreciated and really won’t cost you very much to put together. You just need to scan the photos, add identification captions, print them out on nice glossy paper, and insert them in a low cost photo album. This will be a conversation starter for years and something that will probably be passed down among the generations.

All of these will make great gifts for anyone interested in genealogy. Other possible gifts would include a family bible, to be used to keep your own records for the future; a subscription to a good genealogy magazine that would provide hours of fun filled reading every month for a year; tuition for classes in history or research at the local university or community college to help a genealogist enhance knowledge and skills; or how about taking that old photo of your great grandmother and having it reproduced into a large enough to hang portrait?

Genealogy used to be thought of as a stuffy hobby for people who liked to hang out in dusty libraries and back rooms, but these days it is a hobby the whole family can enjoy. One great thing about genealogy study is that it can help your children get an appreciation of history. If you’ve traced your own family history for instance back to the Oklahoma land rush, then watching a movie about the Oklahoma Sooners will be fun for the whole family. If you know you had ancestors in the Civil War, then watching North and South, or any movie that covers the time period will be appreciated and bring history to life. If you have a relative who was living in New York during the 1890’s then a movie covering that time period would be interesting. If you know what your own ancestors were doing during a particular time period, you have a good understanding of what you might have been doing yourself during that period had you been alive. Passing this love of history, and imaginative way of looking at things on to your children will serve them well in years to come and allow them to get a head start on many of their classes. Giving the gift of genealogy will help them, and provide you will a sense of well being and enjoyment. Enjoy.

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