First course is to ask for family documents that maybe stored away. Next to listen to family stories & myths Take a look at your parents parents information stuff. Start your paper trail with you and your immediate family, your siblings, parents and so forth.

it costs like $300 but its WELL worth it: https://www.gtldna.net/earth_origins_dna_ancestry.html?source=google&gclid=CLui-MSh9JcCFSJIagod-Wc-Cg

You could always go diggin' in the family cemetery.

I started with what family papers I had, then hit the library. Then I hit the internet. I ended up tracing back to where all my ancestors came into this country. I freely admit I can't seem to find anything else. I'd love to. But that is 6-9 generations I DID find, on my own, free.

Ask gramps?! ;-)

I visit the Zoo

To learn of your family history, always start with yourself then slowly and carefully work your way back in time .. to your parents .. then grandparents .. etc. Get yourself some free genealogy forms that can help you organize the information you're learning. Think in terms of "evidence", "facts", "sources". Some sources are better than others. Learn all you can at home - then from all your living relatives. Write it all down - get copies of any written certificates or records - and who told you each bit of information. Note this basic thing for each person .. VITAL RECORDS .. that look like this: Person: John Q Citizen Born: (when) (where) Married: (when) (where) (to whom) (who was the son or daughter of ______ and _____) Died: (when) (where) Buried: (when) (where) YOu might also see vital records called VRs for short ... or BMD for birth, marriage, death records. For all you're told, you now have to PROVE that. Get ready to visit local government record offices to get copies of BMDs. Visit cemeteries and take photos or transcribe what's on the tombstones. See if there are any church records, if applicable, for religion specific events over the course of any relative's life. Only after all that is it time to head out .. and get into what I'll call "part II" of family history searches. Need another whole question about that! Those searches include looking into: Census records, land & deed records, probate records, military service & pension records, immigration and passenger list records, voter registration records, city directory listings, newspaper articles - ads - obituaries and more! The how to - the strategies - the software to track what you've collected and your sources - the people and organizations around to help can take up volumes!! And the HUNT of all this is half the fun. :) So start with yourself and all your living family. Ask questions. Oh yes .. here's two more things to keep in mind: (1) For all the vintage photos around? Learn WHO THE PEOPLE ARE. So many go unlabeled and thus, unknown. Scan or photograph them to preserve the images. (2) Ask personal questions that the certificates will never tell you .. what older relatives believe, have experienced, love, hate, what makes them cry, what makes them laugh, childhood memories and life lessons to pass on. Enjoy! Lots of others have moved from asking a few questions to adding genealogy to their list of life long hobbies. If you want more info about resources out there, just ask! :)

Ask your elders - parents, grandparents, etc. If anyone in your family kept a scrapbook or memory book, it's a good place to look too. If your relatives aren't an option, you can hire a service to look into it for you. A quick google search will give you many agencies.

Ask an older family member.

Start by asking living relatives for all they can tell you. (You will need that, if for no other reason, to take you back far enough that records become public. Those for people that may still be living (about 100 years) are generally restricted. - Then go to: http://www.familysearch.org/ (It's free) where you will find an astounding amount of information at your fingertips. These people have been collecting public records useful for genealogy from all over the world for generations. They can also tell you a lot about what resources to look for, how to uses them, how to verify and record what you find and so on.