Tools

Pedigree Chart

You can use a pedigree chart to record your family history details, as illustrated in the sample chart. You can download a blank copy of the Pedigree Chart [PDF 192 KB] in Adobe Acrobat version. Download the free Acrobat Reader Software [www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/
readstep2.html].

Record your own information as person number one, your father as number two, your mother as three, your father's father as four, etc. Enter as many details as you know, such as full name, dates and places of birth, marriage and death, even if that information is only approximate.

The chart is helpful to show your basic ancestry. If you visit Library and Archives Canada or another genealogical research centre, the consultants can see at a glance the information you know and advise you about sources that may assist you in locating missing details.

Family Chart

You can use a family chart to record data about a specific family such as the names of the parents and the children, and for each of them birth, marriage and death dates and places as illustrated in the sample chart. You can download a blank copy of the Family Chart [PDF 278 KB] in Adobe Acrobat version. Download the free Acrobat Reader Software [www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/
readstep2.html].

Software

There are many software programs that allow you to:

• assemble and organize your family data;
• produce reports and charts; and
• exchange information and files with colleagues.

There are many different software programs on the market. The two listed below are available in many languages and can be downloaded at no cost. For other programs, search the Internet, using a search engine, under “genealogy software.”

• Brother's Keeper [www.bkwin.net/]
• Personal Ancestral File [www.ldscatalog.com/webapp/wcs/stores/]

Units of Measurement

In Canada, mostly for the Quebec province, French measurement units were used for lands.

• Conversion Table for Old French Measurement Units

Abbreviations

• Abbreviations used in French records
• Abbreviations used in English records