Questions to Ask Your Grandparents

Each person has a unique and interesting story, and you can find yours in Fort Wayne, Indiana at the Genealogy Center. 

Whether or not you are ready to get started on your research today, it is always a good idea to start interviewing your family members and collecting any information and knowledge that they may have. During your next holiday or family gathering, take a few minutes to sit down with a pen and paper, and take time to discover some of the hidden memories that are precious to your family story.

All you need to get started is simple information about your parents and grandparents including:

• Names, including maiden names
• Dates and places of birth
• Dates and places of death (if applicable)
• Dates and places of marriages and military enlistment (if applicable)

If you don’t have all of that information, that is okay - trained genealogists at the Genealogy Center can still help you get started. Of course, the more information you have the better, and there is no better way to collect that information than having a conversation with your parents, grandparents, or other relatives.

We’ve collected some suggestions from the Genealogy Center to help you get started!

Questions to Ask Your Parents & Grandparents

During your next visit to see your grandparents or parents, start with some of these questions to help you learn more about your family history. You may already know some of the answers to these questions, but it might help to start with the basics to discover more details about your parents and grandparents.

1. Where were you born?
2. Can you tell me more about your parents - where they were born and when? 
   1. Do you know anything about their parents?
   2. What jobs did they have?
   3. Where did they live?
3. Did you go into the military? Can you tell me more about your experiences?
   1. Where did you enlist?
   2. Where were you stationed?
4. What was your first job?
5. Do you remember the last names of other family members?
6. What were some of your favorite memories growing up?
7. Can you share any information on your grandparents and great-grandparents?
8. Do you know where your ancestors originally lived?
9. Is there anything else you remember about your family history?

BONUS: For extra information, be sure to explore your home or grandparents’ homes for photo albums, scrapbooks, files, holy books, and diaries. These resources may also help you identify family members!

Now that you have further information about your family history, you can start filling in your family tree and researching further background information at the Genealogy Center. Or schedule a one-on-one consultation with a genealogist who can walk you through how to get started, how you can dig deeper, or how you can make a research breakthrough!