Free Family Tree Data Form
Print out our
blank family questionnaire
to get you started on your safari!
Recently I discussed with my future daughter-in-law my interest in family history. She expressed her own desire to trace her roots, and she asked me how she might start. I am no expert, but I could share with her my own experiences, and how I first began collecting information.
Mail Out Questionnaires
One of the first things I did was mail out
questionnaires to family members, asking for their information, and
information they might know of grandparents and other relatives. I made
my own questionnaire, and while it served its purpose, there were a few
things I would have changed.
So I decided to redesign my questionnaire,
and share it with not only my future daughter-in-law, but with the
visitors to this site. Of course, you can design your own, yet
this form is ready for you to print out and use, eliminating some of the
work.
Standard Size Paper VS Legal Size
About the form….my original form was legal
size. At the time I thought that was a good idea, because then I
could cram all the questions on one side, and leave the back blank, for
notes to be added. But I later discovered a drawback to legal vs
standard paper. As I got further along in my research, I began
collecting lots of “paper”, everything from newspaper clippings to
photographs. I needed someway to organize my material, other than
dumping everything into boxes. The logical conclusion was 3-ring
binders, with acid free sheet protectors.
Unfortunately, the legal size forms needed
to be folded before inserting into the sheet protectors. It was
awkward. I have formatted these new forms to fit on two standard
sheets of paper. I recommend printing the second page of the
questionnaire on the backside of the first page. If you fail to do
this, and you have dozens of completed forms to review, it will be
tedious to match up the correct page 1 with the correct page 2. (I
have included a place for the family name on both pages, just in case
you are unable to print them on a single sheet.)
Personalize Each Letter
To personalize the forms, before mailing
them to family members, you can write their name after the “Dear” on
page 1. Then write the name of the family you are collecting
information on. For example, if your grandparents were Steve and
Jane Smith, and you wanted to send a questionnaire to your Uncle
John, the son of Steve and Jane Smith...where it says “Vital Statistics
for the family”, you would write Steve and Jane Smith (on both pages).
If you also wanted information on your
Uncle John’s family, you would send him a second set, with his and his
wife’s name instead of your grandparents. And if your grandfather
(or uncle) had a second (or third) marriage, you would send them a
separate set for each marriage/relationship that produced offspring.
Don’t forget to put your name on page one,
after the “Thanks for your help”, and your return address at the bottom
of page two. \
Self-Addressed Envelopes
You may want to include self addressed
stamped, return envelopes with the forms. When they are returned
to you, you can slip each set into a clear sheet protector, and store it
in a three ring binder, until you are ready to enter that information
into your genealogy software. - 2007