Researching Your Family Tree at Sayville Library

Toni Raptis, a reference librarian at the Patchogue-Medford Library and a genealogy specialist, offered tips and guidance to those looking to research their family history recently in Sayville. In the first of a two part series held at the Sayville Library, Raptis focused on educating attendees as to what information could be found in county libraries that could help with a genealogical search.

Designed as a beginner course to get people started on their genealogy searches, Raptis offered the group all of the tools they would need to begin to gather information on their family history. "This class is designed to give you the basic knowledge of genealogical searches. Through this search, you will find the fabric of your family," she said.

Raptis showed the group how to fill out genealogy forms correctly, provided a sheet of rules for the group to follow and had everyone fill out a practice form.

There are multiple sources that can be used in family history searches and Raptis told attendees where to find them. Primary sources like birth and death certificates are the most valuable, but other sources like family bibles and mortality census results could be helpful as well, according to Raptis.

Raptis also explained that some sources contain a lot of information that may surprise people, like military records and naturalizations records. She also covered some of the roadblocks that may hinder the search for family history as well as some special tips to ensure that seekers are maximizing results.

"One of the things you need to learn is how to misspell your own name. You have to find every possible way your last name could have been spelled, otherwise you could end up following someone with the same name, but in a completely different family," she said.

Barbara Sims, a resident of Sayville, said that the way Raptis presented the material made her want to learn more about genealogy. "I like her devotion to the subject and her enthusiasm for it. I found the class very interesting," she said.

Eileen Moran, a resident of Bohemia, came to the presentation because she was interested about beginning to find out more about her genealogy and wanted to arm herself with the correct tools to do so. "It was great to learn that the Patchogue-Medford library has all of these resources available. I can't wait for next week."

Some tips Raptis gave to those interested in getting started with a genealogy search include:

• Go from the known to the unknown. Start with yourself and work your way back.
• Look for documents at home.
• Write down everything that you know about your family history.
• Interview family members.
• Document all of your research.

Part two of this series will explore online tools for genealogical searches. It will be held on Thursday, August 26 at the Sayville Library.