This Week's Frugality

 

Image by Michael Schwarzenberger from Pixabay

Some money-saving suggestions to help you with your family tree:

The Society of Genealogists is offering a free online talk, presented by Else Churchill, on English poll books. 

What are poll books? Find out in an article by Dr James Harris, a Research Associate at Newcastle University. 

Legacy, part of the company MyHeritage, offers a new version of its free family history software to help you organise your tree, store it on your device, and keep it private if you wish. There are a number of other packages available; check out reviews in family tree magazines for up-to-date details about the latest programs.

The National Library of Scotland’s digital “Scotland’s News” Collection consists of 18th, 19th, and early 20th century Scottish publications. Some of the newspapers it contains are the Scots Courant, Caledonian Mercury, Clydebank Leader, and a selection of 1926 titles from around the country.

I’ve recently been in touch with a cousin who has agreed to take a DNA test to find out more about their forebears. It can be helpful if more than one member of an extended family tests – learn more about Connecting with Your Biological Family.

At the moment, you may be able to take advantage of discounted prices on some DNA test kits. The best value as far as I can see are

Ancestry 

and

MyHeritage 

These companies market DNA test kits as Father’s Day gifts. Warning: unexpected parent details may be the result, not necessarily bringing great news to an unsuspecting dad. I think it’s really important to be aware of the potential downsides to these tests’ results. Read about the Pros and Cons of DNA in Genealogy Research.