The tips on this page should help you find the information you are looking for in good time with less frustration and confusion.
Beginner Tips
• Take time to review all links under the heading of "How to Start Genealogy" on the Genealogy Links page. I will continue to add links that provide good instruction.
Query Tips
Queries are a specialized form of genealogical correspondence, a brief request for information placed in a genealogical periodical, newspaper or other means of communication. Most genealogical societies will publish queries for members, or non-members for a fee. Asking for information with a query implies your agreement to share your information.
A good way to learn how to write queries is to study those written and published in genealogical sources such as Branch newsletters. The best queries contain a reference to one family or individual and both the time period and place are mentioned. If the names are common ones you must give some additional identifying information.
Three Types of Queries:
Letters - By far the most common method for queries is to send a letter to the genealogy group you feel might have information for you.
Telephone Calls - sometimes a researcher may answer your query by telephone instead of by letter. Be sure to record the date, caller’s name, phone number, address and summary of what you learned. File this information just as if you had received a letter. You might add a note to yourself about the reliability of the caller and what the source was (personal knowledge, interview with relative, printed source, or something else). [Stop to think before you respond by telephone to a query, be sensitive to the time of day and who you are calling.] If you want a telephone response, state that in your query.
Electronic Queries - Queries by e-mail are helpful but, again, are not primary sources and should be verified by other means. It is very easy to get caught up in the speed and ease of electronic research and leave our standards behind. Remember submissions to specialized databases (eg.Roots Cellar, World Family Tree, RootsWeb, Ancestry.com) are queries, they advertise your interest in a specific family. When you are sending e-mail queries remember to state your location (where you are writing from); it is possible that someone next door has information for you, without an address it is impossible to know who is where.
General Rules for Queries:
1. Before sending a query, confirm the place and township you are looking for is actually in the Algoma District. This will save you a lot of time and it will quickly confirm if this is the appropriate OGS branch. To do a location search, review all links under the heading of "Places and Townships in the Algoma District" on the Genealogy Links page.
2. Keep copies of the queries you submit, just as you would any correspondence, so you will not have to re-compose the next time you submit them elsewhere. If you’re using a computer, set up a file just for queries where you can cut and paste to new queries.
3. Be sure to follow exactly the query policy described in the publication you are submitting to. Pay special attention to the method of submission
4. When you do receive information from another researcher, evaluate it. Do not take it at face value, if there could be errors in your information, there may be in any you receive from another researcher. Consider this information from other researchers as a secondary source, it may be helpful but it is necessary that you prove it from other sources. Beware of "instant families".
5. If you do receive information from others, cite the source. This way you can go back and verify or ask that source for further information.
6. Carefully type your query (or use a computer). If handwritten, your query should be carefully printed. Describe who, when and where and other information available.
7. Use UPPER case letters for all surnames e.g. IRWIN, John not Irwin, John.
8. Write your query as you would like it to read, making sure it clearly states what you want to know. Describe who, when and where you are looking.
9. Use standard short forms to save space. These are s/o - son of, d/o - daughter of, m/o - mother of, f/o - father of, b - born, d - died, m - married, bur - buried, bpt - baptized, chr - christened, c1872 - circa 1872 (indicates you're not sure of time/place).
10. Expect to pay for any information you are sent, genealogical groups earn money by answering queries. Most publications also have fees for queries - some are based on word count, some have flat fees.
11. Include your name and mailing address (and/or e-mail address) at the end of your query. Include a S.A.S.E. (Self Addressed Stamped Envelope) with your letter.
• Sample queries e.g. FOX, Thomas b.1875, Bruce Mines, ON s/o William FOX, e.g. Hannah KIRBY, looking for siblings of Thomas.