Oral Histories

Utilizing Oral Histories for Genealogical Research

If you’re trying to figure out your family history or trace back your family tree, you’ll want to implement the help of your relatives. A great way to get their help is to have an interview with them, discussing their adventures, family members and personal memories. You’ll want to interview your oldest, living relatives to find the most information about potential ancestors. Below are some tips to make sure your family interview is successful.

• Arrive prepared. You’ll want to come with specific questions prepared for the individual, but don’t overload them. Since you’ll most likely be interviewing an older person it’s important to keep the interview under two hours. You can also choose to break the interview into pieces and hold several different sessions, which may allow your interviewee to reflect on additional details during their downtime. If you’re confused on what questions to ask start with the basics and from there you’ll be able to build more specifics as the interview continues to progress. Here are some basic starter questions:

  - What is your whole name, date of birth and place of birth?
  - Names, birthdates and birthplaces of siblings
  - What type of education did you receive when you were growing up?
  - Were they alive during any wars; what was their role, what was it like, daily activities, etc.?
  - Who was the oldest family member they knew, again real name, and any other details.

• Use a recording device. You don’t want to hastily write down information during the entire interview and miss important details, facts and so on. To avoid this problem use a tape recorder or video camera. This allows you the freedom to give your undivided attention to the interviewee and also pick up on any subtle hints or pieces of information that may be expressed through body language, facial expressions, etc.
• Let your guard down. Be sure to come across as an open and interested interviewer. This will allow your interviewee to feel comfortable with you, and thus open themselves up. Treat this like you would any other honest conversation so that everyone feels at ease.
• Don’t push. There are probably going to be things that the interviewee isn’t comfortable talking about, i.e. family deaths and hardships. You can ask how family members passed, but it’s important to ask politely and continue on to the next question if you find the person is uncomfortable.
• Use your manners. Your interviewee may be taking time of their daily activities to sit down and talk with you, so you should let them how much you appreciate it by fully expressing your gratitude. Be sure to say thank you and let them know what additional leads and information you were able to find because of the interview.

Do yourself a favor and check out this great resource before beginning your family history. How To Create Life History Videos will give you all you priceless information that will save you time, allow you to be more creative and give you a better end product. The authors, Chris and Kate Hall, are pioneers in this process and have many years of experience to share with you.

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