Hi there! I'm Lisa Lisson, and I'm passionate about helping people like you discover their ancestors and expand their family tree without feeling overwhelmed or uncertain about the next steps.
A little good news before the holiday weekend 🙌
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Hi, Reader, With the 4th of July weekend coming up, I hope you have a little time carved out for rest, family, and maybe even a bit of genealogy research, preferably somewhere cool if your weather is anything like ours! I also have some exciting news to share. The Are You My Cousin? website has been selected for Family Tree Magazine’s 101 Best Genealogy Websites of 2026. My site was included in the Best Genealogy News and Advice category, and I’m truly honored. Family Tree Magazine has been publishing its 101 Best Genealogy Websites list for more than 25 years, and researchers use it each year to find helpful tools, resources, and websites for their family history research. To have Are You My Cousin? included as one of those resources means a great deal. But mostly, I want to say thank you. If you read the blog, watch the videos, reply to these emails, or share the resources with a genealogy friend, you are part of why this site continues to grow and serve family historians. You can see the full 2026 list here: Family Tree Magazine 101 Best Genealogy Websites List. You can also find the 2026 list in the July/August issue of Family Tree Magazine if you receive the print edition. I found some new-to-me websites I look forward to exploring, too. If you have a little research time this weekend, this is a reader-favorite post to revisit: How To Find Vital Record Info When Birth Records (& Others) Cannot Be Found​ It’s a practical one, especially if you’ve ever searched for an ancestor's vital records and come up empty. Free workshop coming July 14I’m hosting a free live genealogy workshop on Tuesday, July 14 at 7:00 PM Eastern: Build a Family Tree You Can Trust​ It’s designed for beginners, but also for anyone who wants to revisit their research with fresh eyes. (That's most of us!) The workshop is free, with an optional donation invited to support my Susan G. Komen 3-Day walk coming up in August. Registration is open now, and I’ll share more details next week.
Thanks again for being part of the Are You My Cousin? community. I’m grateful to have you here. Happy researching, and have a safe 4th of July weekend! Lisa |
Are You My Cousin? Newsletter
Hi there! I'm Lisa Lisson, and I'm passionate about helping people like you discover their ancestors and expand their family tree without feeling overwhelmed or uncertain about the next steps.
Hi, Reader, Is there an ancestor you haven’t searched for in a while because you felt you’d already looked everywhere? It might be time for another look. Sometimes moving forward means trying a different type of record. The census might leave you with questions that a city directory, church record, or another community source can help answer. If you’re unsure where to look next, start here: When Census Records Fail: 5 Community Records That Solve Genealogy Mysteries Choose one record type...
Hi, Reader, A census record looks like a fact. Name. Age. Birthplace. Written neatly in a column. But every one of those answers came from someone standing in a doorway, talking to a stranger with a pen. Maybe it was your ancestor. Maybe it was a twelve-year-old. Maybe it was the neighbor, because nobody was home and the census taker had forty more houses to get through before dark. I have to wonder about the story behind my grandmother being enumerated with the neighbor's name in the 1940...
Hi, Reader, With Labor Day coming up, I’ve been thinking about work, specifically, the work our ancestors did. When I look at my own family tree, I see a lot of farmers. Farmer. Farmer. Farmer. Not particularly exciting at first glance. 🙂 But an ancestor’s occupation can tell us much more than simply how they earned a living. Their work could influence where they lived, why they moved, who they interacted with and even the types of records they left behind. And sometimes, understanding why an...