Finding Living Relatives on 5 April Show

We all have them, it's just that sometimes we don't know where they are. What's that? Living relatives. Oh, sure, you may know where your brother and his kids live, but what about your second cousin, once removed? What about relatives you don't even know you have? Family history research includes coming forward and seeking descendants of our ancestors, as well as searching for earlier ancestors. There can be great value in finding living relatives. They may have pictures and records (think: family Bible) we don't have. With a guest like Megan Smolenyak, we'd be missing a great opportunity if we did not discuss some of the ways to locate these living, but often unknown, relatives.

So, in the "Interactive Website" segment, we're going to explore a couple of the more controversial websites, those that provide information on living persons. Names, addresses, phone numbers, ages may already be out there (gathered from public records). We'll look at a couple of "phone book" sites, such as Switchboard or Directory Assistance Plus. But, there's more, including what some call "private investigator" sites. While sites like PeopleFinders charge a fee for a complete report, you can get a lot of information for free. The same with Intelius. But, the champion of free data, and controversy, is ZabaSearch. We'll explore and explain why.

Of course, you'll want to hear the news of the week, as well as our research tip from the pros, our software tip and our popular free data site. Be ready to link to the Genealogy Sleuth for that one! We'll be there on your Internet connection. Tune in and enjoy!

Kathy Hinckley to Guest on 22 February Show

Family Roots Radio is very pleased to announce that this week's guest is noted professional genealogist, Kathleen Hinckley of Colorado. Kathy has been a major contributor to the field of genealogy for more than 15 years. In addition to being an excellent genealogist, she is also a private investigator who specializes in finding lost family members and estate heirs. In her "spare time" she also serves as the Executive Director of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG). As the owner of Family Detective, she has helped hundreds of families learn more about their ancestors, and their descendants. She is also the author of two important books in the field of genealogy: Locating Lost Family Members and Friends, and of special interest to our topic; Your Guide to the Federal Census. Her experiences are broad and varied, and we'll have a lively conversation. Be sure to tune in on Thursday, 1 PM Pacific, 4 PM Eastern (or listen to the archive shortly after the show).