When you think of resources for Genealogy, social media might not be the first thing that comes to mind. Social Media and in particular Facebook can be a powerful addition to your Genealogy Toolkit.
Facebook contains a mass of Genealogy groups and pages dedicated to localities, names, industries, military and many more topics. Most of these groups contain members who are not only passionate but knowledgeable about their subject which means you as a user have access to that knowledge.
If you don’t already have a Facebook Account then you may be missing a trick! It is easy to sign up and only you decide how much or little you wish to share with people.
More about Facebook
Founded in 2004, Facebook’s mission is to give people the power to build communities and to bring the world closer together.
People use Facebook for various reasons including staying up to date with whats going on in the world, connecting with friends and family and to share things that really matter to them.
Statistics published by ‘Zephoria’ at the end of 2019 suggest that :-
• Facebook has 2.45 billion monthly active users, 1.62 billion of those on average log onto Facebook daily and are considered daily active users
• In Europe, over 307 million people are on Facebook
• Every 60 seconds on Facebook: 510,000 comments are posted, 293,000 statuses are updated, and 136,000 photos are uploaded
• Seniors are the fastest-growing group of Facebook users 62% of online Seniors aged 65+ are on Facebook and 72% are between age 50-64.
• 1.4 billion people use Facebook Groups
• And there are more than 10 million groups on Facebook
So, as a Genealogist why would you use Facebook?
Facebook contains a mass of Genealogy groups and pages dedicated to the following:-
• Localities
• Surnames
• Industries
• Military
• Organisations such as Societies, Genealogy Websites etc.
• and many many more!
Most of these groups contain members who are not only passionate but also knowledgeable about their subject which means you as a user have access to that knowledge.
As a user Facebook allows you to do the following:-
• Keep in touch with Family & Friends or search for old ones
• Allows you to Network with people with similar interests
• Join or create special interest groups
• Organise or attend special events
• To become fans
• Share photographs
• Share your life? Or Not! Is entirely up to you!
Whats the difference between a Facebook Page & a Facebook Group?
Page:- One you can readily see and like. On liking this page you will see posts created by this page on your newsfeed
Group:- One that you are required to join before being able to view posts, interact or see posts on your timeline.
Both can be created by organisations, businesses, societies, local interest groups, celebrities and more!
Note:- Groups will often ask questions on joining to ensure you have a genuine interest in the subject and may also advise any restrictions regarding conduct etc.
If you haven’t already you can follow our ‘Treehouse Genealogy’ page via this link
We have listed some Topics and Pages/Groups to Inspire you, these concentrate on Scotland if your interest is elsewhere then try searching to see what is available.
Localities
These groups can vary between discussion the History of a Specific page to sharing images relating to the place
Checkout the following:-
New Monkland (Airdrie) - Back in Time
Lost Glasgow
Victorian & Edwardian Lanarkshire
Scottish History & Culture
Ye Olde Edinburgh
Aberdeen - The Good Old Days
Scottish Place-names / Ainmean-àite na h-Alba
Surnames
These groups can cover discussions on particular Surnames, Clans or Clan Associations
Checkout the following:-
Council of Scottish Clans & Associations
Clan MacIntosh
Clan Oliphant or Are you an Oliphant? pages
Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs
Clan Currie
Industries
These pages are a great way of finding out more about what your Ancestors occupation involved
Checkout the following:-
Mining Ancestors in Scotland
British Railway History
Summerlee Museum
National Mining Museum Scotland
Military
If you Ancestor served in one of the wars or wish a particular regiment then you could potentially obtain snippets of information from these groups to assist you with your research
Checkout the following:-
The Scottish Military Research Group
World War One
World War One 1914-1918 The Great War
World War II History
Aircrew Remembrance Society
The Gordon Highlanders Museum
Other Organisations
These could include Societies, Genealogy Companies, Archives etc
Checkout the following:-
Kilted Ancestors - Share Stories about your Scottish Ancestry
Lanarkshire Family History Society
Glasgow & West of Scotland Family History Society
Treehouse Genealogy
Tenement House
Culture NL Libraries
National Library of Scotland
Glasgow City Archives
The National Archives
Find My Past
Ancestry
The Mitchell Library
Scottish Genealogy
If you haven’t used Facebook its never too late to learn. There are many online guides on how to use it, have a quick search on Facebook or You Tube for guidance videos.
Treehouse Genealogy can offer a ‘Using Facebook for Genealogy’ Workshop, this will run through how to set up your account as a beginner and navigate all the relevant functions, finding friends and pages and groups relating to History and Genealogy.
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