i’m a newbie to this genealogical research stuff and am finding good stuff all the time. the international genealogical index

is my database of the day. this index is compiled by the church of jesus

christ of the latter day saints (aka the mormons) (i must find out why they

are so keen on tracking family history - a quick search turns up nothing

more than “family is important in our religion”). in england and wales it

mainly comprises an index of parish records, it’s not complete by any means

but when it works it’s stunning. i’m pretty certain i’ve tracked my great,

great, great grandmother down to a village in northamptonshire in 1834 and

i have possible matches for her parents and grandparents too.�