When in Doubt, Google!

When you throw up your hands in frustration as you search the regular genealogical websites for information on an elusive ancestor, I have some advice. Try searching in Google. It’s not just for researching living people or ideas. It is amazing what could be out there.

Here’s an example. I have an ancestor from the 1800s named Valentine Sevier Babb. I already have a lot of information on him, but just for fun, I thought I’d see what else Google could tell me. Here are some of the results:

•  Information on Greene county and Sevier county Tennessee where the Babbs lived
•  Tennessee Historical Society
•  Early Virginia immigrants
• DAR Tennessee chapter
• Tennessee cemeteries (including the Babb cemetery)
• The Tennessee Genealogical Magazine
• Nathaniel Greene Museum Home (Nathaniel Greene is also an ancestor but this is the first time I found a link between him and Valentine Babb.)
•  Tennessee State Library
• Tennessee Patriots

That’s just the first five pages! Now, granted, there is a lot of stuff out there on this particular guy. I need to try searching for one of the more elusive ancestors, maybe, George Roberts. Or Janez Znidaric. Or Nancy Reynolds. You get it.

We may not have this kind of success with every search, but it's worth giving Google a try. Gotta go - Janez needs Googling!