Genealogy Books - The Family Tree Problem Solver: Proven Methods for Scaling the Inevitable Brick Wall

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Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating:

Summary: Excellent
Comment: Excellent book on solving the problem of tracing family history. As with any research the first step
it to simply get started. Other helpful resources are "Trees That Grow Families" by Brison West and
"Iowa Harvest" a book about families that settled in Iowa. A neat site is www.lesanville.com which
includes books by Harold Barts, Greg Lesan, Brianna Lesan-Barts, and Francis Lesan-Brooks. Many of
these writers are published in other counties and may be hard to locate, but if you can find their
books they are worth the read. Good luck.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Valuable strategies for novice and experienced researchers alike
Comment: I disagree with both the author's and the other reviewer's comments that this book is only for the
more advanced genealogical researcher. The valuable strategies here should be reviewed by every
beginner genealogist, to prevent us from wasting time barking up the wrong trees, and proceeding to
previous generations before we've fully exhausted the resources of documents regarding later ones.
An invaluable book by an experienced researcher.

Customer Rating:

Summary: A first-rate textbook . . .
Comment: We all have "brick walls" -- those situations in which the courthouse records have disappeared, or
no census record can be found, or there are four people with the same common name in the same
neighborhood at the same time, not to mention people whom we come to suspect must have landed by
flying saucer. After failing to find an obvious solution, the inclination often is to throw up one's
hands and shift attention to an easier branch of the family. Marsha Rising, however, a
well-respected author and long-time speaker in the field of genealogical methodology and
case-making, wants us to embrace the brick wall as a challenge to our skills in research and
evidence analysis. Her sessions at national conferences are always very popular, and with good
reason, so you might think there's good reason to pay attention to anything she thinks is worth
saying on the subject -- and you would be right.

She presents here a research model
that will focus your work, from reminding us of the distinction between "search" and "research," and
identifying the problem blocking the way (which actually may not be what you assume it is), to
reevaluating the data you already have (you may simply not have recognized the answer), to
identifying the specific evidence you need to solve your problem. And she illustrates each step with
cogent case studies. Then she delves into the most common types of brick wall and the best ways to
deal with them: The lack of vital records in the period before mandatory civil registration, the
best use of the census (especially before 1850), the need to analyze collateral family members and
community networks (what's called "cluster genealogy"), finding a replacement for the infamous
"burned courthouse," and separating individuals of the same name. She wraps up with a discussion of
ten mistakes to avoid and a restatement of the components of careful analysis of the evidence.
Rising's style throughout is professional yet accessible (though, personally, I could do without
this publisher's cutesy marginal icons . . .), and I would not hesitate to recommend this excellent
book as a classroom text in the advanced course at Samford.

Customer Rating:

Summary: Inspired me to keep trying
Comment: A friend ordered this from Amazon and was so impressed that she gave her copy to me and ordered
another one. I haven't even finished reading it, but it inspired me to broaden my search for the
origins of my g-g-grandfather who has been a mystery to me for decades. The author gives pertinent
examples of work she has done on origins which at first seemed impenetrable. I am making good
progress now, although the direction I'm heading in has become a bit disturbing and I may just have
to join the Black Sheep Genealogical Society...

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