What Makes A Well-Crafted Family Tree?

Family trees make for great visual representations of your family history and ancestry. Although there are no fixed rules on what makes a good family tree, genealogy experts stress that a well-crafted family tree should have all the information, facts and numbers accurately depicted.

The family tree could be as small or as large as you want it to be. Whatever the size, remember to always ensure adequate space for expanding your project. You can use a notebook or a large binder, so that you will have extra space for letting your family tree chart grow as it needs to be. Here are other aspects that make a well-crafted family tree.

A Family Tree Has to Be Well-Researched

A good example of a well-crafted family tree is one that has been extensively researched, with no blank spaces in your lineage. Well-researched family trees generally have no blank spaces when it comes to names, dates, places and other pertinent information. But if you think some of the details are sketchy and you’re not 100% sure of, interview your family members again, and compare each of the details you get.

Easy-To-Follow Family Tree Formats Make For Better Reading

A well-crafted family tree chart should also have an easy-to-follow format. Always ensure that you keep your information and lines as simple and clean as possible. An easy-to-follow and visually-appealing family tree chart will make for a refreshing and informative reading experience, and will also help avoid confusing you and your tree’s viewers, since it won’t be jammed with too much information. However, if you plan on putting all the information you gathered into your genealogy chart, it would be best if you create a bigger chart instead, to include more details of your family’s history.

Keep Your Data As Accurate As Possible

Lastly, before you write anything on each box or line, always ensure the accuracy of your data, so the information on your family tree will be correctly preserved and recorded. You could ask your family members and relatives to take a look at your completed genealogy chart, and ask if they see anything suspiciously erroneous or misplaced. It would also help if you take a look at the family tree charts made by other members of your family or friends. Not only will you be gaining extra ideas for your own family chart project, but you will also find some information that’s worth putting into your own chart.

There are a lot of ways for enhancing your family tree project. With a little online research, and a lot of interviews and suggestions from your family and relatives, you’ll be slowly but surely on your way towards creating that perfect family tree.