A week chock full of genealogy classes got its start this morning with a class given by Joseph Shumway at the BYU Family History Tech Conference. Joseph works for ProGenealogists, an Ancestry.com company. The title of his talk was “Life of the 21st Century Genealogist – What do they do, and what do they need in the future?” His lecture was geared to the fact that he was speaking to a room full of folks who were involved in technology issues. In the audience were people who could develop products that would enhance research.
Following are notes I took during the presentation:
What Do Professionals Do?
The demographics of who is doing genealogy is shifting. Only a few years ago, most amateur genealogists were retired folks. Today, the majority seems to be middle-aged, and pre-retirement folks – with a growing number of very tech-savy younger people 25-40. These people are expecting genealogy results to be more cloud-based, and available on mobile devices.
How Beginners and Amateurs Approach Research
How does a pro approach research?
Most professionals gained their research experience by researching their own families, in most cases with no normal formal education in genealogy. Most are part time, and work independently and grow their businesses through word of mouth.
However, there are credentials available – AG (Accredited Genealogist, and CG (Certified Genealogist). BYU also offers a BA in Family History & Genealogy. Various universities offer certificate programs.
What Kinds of Clients Do Pros Serve?
- Newbies who don’t have time or the expertise.
- Avid genealogists with a brick-wall.
- Lawyers who need help with missing heirs.
- Media-historical TV programs and documentaries.
The Changing Face of Genealogy
Historically – genealogy was for old people. For the most part, that was true.
Now … Interest is by middle-aged pro-retirees. They are more tech-savy. There are also more folks 25-40 interested – with more tech-savviness.
A more tech-savy user base means:
- An expectation for more cloud-based, mobile options. Period.
- They want better ways to share and collaborate with others.
- They want more fun and interactive ways of sharing their ancestors’ stories. They aren’t so interested in how they found it, but what were their ancestor’s lives like? Do we have pictures? What did they do? What did the documents actually tell us?
The typical beginners’ or amateurs approach:
- Interested in very linear research – person’s parents, etc.
- They focus on on records like: Census Records, Vital Records, Cemetery Records on Find a Grave.
- They are easily stumped if records are not clear cut. – They may make incorrect assumptions
The professional approach:
- Can draw conclusions from circumstancial evidence.
- Will follow family associates and neighbors.
- Work on neighborhood reconstruction.
- Build upon historical context using boundary changes, courthouse fires, laws of the time, wars and such.
- Study and map out land records.
The professional need more tools, such as:
- More in-depth timelines.
- Better land-plotting technology.
- More intuitive research tracking tools.
Shumway gave a very interesting lecture – and presented a good argument for using professional services – although I don’t think that’s necessarily what he set out to do.
