How to Use Airtable to create a Genealogy FAN Club Research Log

[@sl5311]

Probably the biggest FAN challenge regarding my brickwall ancestor is that they moved often and arrived in the new location with seemingly no one from their last location. She was born in 1795 and I have spent years building an awesome FAN chart from deeds, tax tables, witnesses, but nothing that goes back to her possible maiden name. It is like they started brand new in 1814 in her first marriage, then again when they moved to Ohio in 1817 and all the friends and nieghbors were new. I have traced all of them back an no one goes back to their original location in Delaware. No witnesses or neighbors from Delaware where she got married and became a mother in 1813/1814 show up later anywhere near them. She and her husband lived in Central Ohio but the rest of the family went further west to Butler County, Ohio. I have figured out a lot of allied families they traveled with on the National Road-and the marriages between them, but nothing that connects any of them to her. Is there something this does that might help someone like me? Thank you.

[@hawkinsjh]

Just a note on the first column field. If you want it to be the person's name and you have the second and third fields set up as you do with first and last name, there is an automated way to do it. Make the first field a "formula" field, then in the formula type CONCATENATE(Name of Second Field, Name of Third Field). When you fill in the second and third fields, the first field will autopopulate.

[@nedyer]

Thank you for sharing this. I love the formula field. I learned how to use it after making this video and now I always use it for the primary field!

[@hawkinsjh]

It's a very useful tool! @@nedyer

[@danaleeds9819]

Thanks so much, Nicole. Very helpful! I can't wait to try my own research with Airtable. :)

[@ridif]

Learned a lot. Thanks for your help !

[@tammymacdonald2421]

Nice work.

[@Ana8188]

Is there a way to link the people listed in the FAN (like a witness) to another database that lists family members? I believe my grandmother was witness to other individuals in the community, though I have not yet figured out relationships. This video was very helpful, thank you.

[@FamilyLocket]

You can only link within the base. Within your base, you can have a lot of tables to link within!

[@bonbon251]

I have been loving this table. Thank you so much for sharing it. A couple questions: When you know a FAN member in one record is without a doubt the same as in another record, do you add them again on their own line for the new record, or just add the new record to the FAN member's original entry? I can see how adding them multiple times would help see certain pictures, but can create a very large list of people by the time so many people are added multiple times.

[@FamilyLocket]

You could do either way! I have tried both. If you do it the way where you add the person multiple times, you can then group by that name or sort to see all the instances. You could also edit the FAN Club table once you determine that one certain FAN club name that keeps turning up is the same person to combine the rows into one person; just by doing it manually and adding the linked record to the same man.

[@msforemny6481]

I am SO THRILLED to see this video! I feel so incompetent with airtable!