Caribbean genealogy research begins with understanding how colonial systems, naming traditions, and record-keeping practices shaped family history across the region. This section provides step-by-step guidance for beginners, explains Spanish and other colonial naming patterns, and introduces the key church, civil, and archival records used throughout the Caribbean.
It is truly a great resource to be able to access records, view them, search for them via indexes when we visit www.familysearch.org. I find it to be an amazing resources for all of us to be able to browse through records that would cost us thousands upon thousands of dollars as well as countless…
Using FamilySearch to your advantage can take you a long way in finding something as simple as an out of print book. Many of the books available are actually on microfilm which means that it is simply a request away. You don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars on a book that you can gain…
For those that can’t afford Ancestry monthly fees or don’t want to pay for something that you can get for free, there are other options available. Yes that is correct, FREE! If you have a free account on Ancestry, I know it must be annoying to get the little leaf for hints on an ancestor…
I had to think over who I wanted to write about and drew a blank because there are so many I’d like to write about. Since I’m still working on both my Puerto Rican and Dominican ancestry, I figured I’d talk about the benefits of having your DNA tested. First I recommend an Autosomal DNA…
This is a question many ask those who actually do the research. There isn’t a “one answer fits all approach”. In my path of researching genealogy, I have come across many who are doing it for many different reasons. I’m sure there are plenty more beyond what I’ve listed below. They want a sense of…
One of the most erred family lines on Ancestry in Puerto Rico is the Betancourt line; hence the title round robin genealogy. There are so many stories floating around about this line. People claiming stories as facts. I’m constantly smacking my head and wishing that people wouldn’t do that. I want facts people and not…
Kissing cousins – a reality in all family trees is a discussion that many of us do not want to have. We do not realize until we start digging into our past. We have to think about the population that existed prior to our existence. Kissing cousins happens more often than we realize. This post…