Viewer Tools
The following research tools are available from the person viewer page (). Most operate on the person you are currently viewing.
Quick Research
Research Person — The heading option sends a generic Google search to your browser for the person you are viewing, helping you quickly find online records, obituaries, and other references.
Relationship Calculator — in the nav bar. Pick any two people and the calculator shows on-screen their blood relation. Note: it calculates blood relations only, not in-law connections.
Run Query — in the nav bar. Presents a form for selecting/entering different types of data to search by. Click Run to download a CSV file of the results. CSV files can be opened in any text editor or in Excel.
Person Output Documents
These tools generate downloadable or printable documents for the person you are viewing. Found under in the navigation bar.
Research Request — . Generates a text-based research request suitable for submitting to an AI website or research service. Summarizes what is known and what still needs to be found for the person.
Profile Sheet — . Creates an MS Word-like document containing the person's basic information, all events, and associated images. Useful as a comprehensive reference sheet.
Family Group Sheet — . Produces an HTML document with the person's basic details along with research notes, general comments, and data-to-fix-or-find items. A standard genealogical reference format.
Lifetime Viewer — . Shows a tiered view of all events for the person, indicating the research-completeness status (Have Image, Have Info, To Find) for each. Helpful for spotting gaps at a glance.
Family Tree — . Displays a horizontal family tree for the person that you can view and manipulate to explore family connections.
Pedigree — . Shows a vertical family pedigree for the person with the ability to add and explore additional generations.
Ahnentafel — . Displays all of the ancestors for the person in standard ahnentafel numbering.
Descendants — . Shows a list of all known descendants of the person.
Lifespan Chart — . Renders an on-screen chart showing the lifespans of all ancestors of the person, useful for visualizing generational overlap.
GEDCOM File — . After choosing how many generations of ancestors and descendants to include, downloads a GEDCOM file for the person. GEDCOM files can be imported into most genealogical software applications.
History Timeline — . Shows a timeline of major historical events that occurred during the lifespan of the person, providing context for their life and times.
Bulk Downloads
These tools export data across all ancestors for offline analysis. Found under in the navigation bar.
GEDCOM Files by Family Group or All Ancestors — . Downloads a GEDCOM file scoped to the chosen family group or to all ancestors at once. GEDCOM files can be imported into most genealogical software applications.
Researcher Events — . Exports an MS Excel-like spreadsheet containing all events for all ancestors. Ideal for sorting, filtering, and analyzing event data across the entire database.
Researcher row per Ancestor — . Exports an MS Excel-like spreadsheet with one row per ancestor containing their basic information. Useful for quick lookups and summary analysis.
Repositories — . Downloads a CSV file of all research repositories on file. CSV files can be opened in any text editor or in Excel.
Visualization & Exploration
Interactive tools for exploring family connections, locations, and research resources. Found under in the navigation bar.
Events Mapper — . Displays all events for all ancestors on an interactive map organized by county. Click any county to see full details for every ancestor with events in that location, or click within a state outside any colorized county to see state-level events. From the sidebar, you can download an MS Word-like document of the displayed details. See "Mapper Filters & Views" below for the full set of filtering options.
Repository Search — . Browse and view detailed information about any of the research repositories (courthouses, archives, historical societies, etc.) on file in the system.
Source Viewer — . Browse and review the information for all sources being used in the database. Helps verify what source documentation is on file.
Find Township Map — . Select a U.S. county to launch a browser internet search for a township map of that county. Useful when working with pre-1900 records that reference townships rather than modern place names.
Mapper Filters & Views
The Events Mapper supports a range of filtered views. Each combination of "what events to show" and "for whom" produces a different view. The selected filter applies to both the colorized county overlay and the sidebar details.
What events to show
- All Events — every event in every county.
- Events Needed — only events still missing documentation.
- Major Events Needed — only the "Big Ten" core event types still missing.
- One Event Type Needed — missing events of a single specific type.
For whom
- All Ancestors — everyone in the database.
- One Family Group — a single family group (e.g., a surname-based group).
- One Family Line — a specific line such as SMITH3, JONES4, or WILSON.
- One Ancestor — a single selected person.
Place lookup
Instead of using a filter, you can search for a specific place. The Mapper accepts a state, province, country, county, or town. Some specific sites such as cemeteries or schools may also resolve, depending on what the underlying map service can locate.
State-level views
Clicking inside a state but outside any colorized county shows state-level details (events whose state is known but specific county is not yet identified). The sidebar's Download Word button works for both county-level and state-level views.
Research Trip Tip: Before heading to a courthouse or historical society, use the Research Request to identify gaps, the Events Mapper to see what you already have for the county, and the Repository Search to review details about the facility. These three tools together make for efficient on-site research planning.
Admin Dashboard Tools
The following research tools are available from the admin dashboard () for logged-in administrators.
Event Mapper — Same functionality as the viewer's Events Mapper above. Available directly from the admin sidebar for quick access.
Family Lines — View a list of all persons in any selected family line. Useful for reviewing the completeness of research within a specific branch of the family.
Repositories — Browse and view information about any of the research repositories on file. Same functionality as the viewer's Repository Search.
Viewer vs. Admin: The viewer tools are available to all visitors and operate on the person being viewed. The admin dashboard tools require login credentials and provide database-wide views for research management.
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