This week’s #52Ancestors theme is “Help”. I would be remiss if I failed to mention how social media can assist your research! There is no way I could list all the genealogy-related accounts on all the social media channels, but I can talk about the “why”.
I’d say that social media for genealogy all started with message boards. Various sites (AOL, RootsWeb and others) had message boards where you could post a query to find more information about your ancestors. Perhaps one of the more active message boards today is Genealogy Stack Exchange.
As social media took off, genealogists started tapping into its power. If you’re on Facebook, there are thousands of genealogy and family history groups. Katherine R. Willson started to track them all here, but some further updates might be found on Cyndi’s List. I’ve found that groups focusing on certain ethnicities and geographical areas have been really helpful, and I’ve discovered a few cousins there, too!
On Twitter, it’s all about #hashtags. Putting #genealogy or #FamilyHistory in the search bar will bring up tons of tweets about everything genealogy. It’s also a great place to meet other genealogists. Twitter recently created the ability to have interest groups, and I belong to a genealogy group started by Daniel Loftus. It’s not as active as using a hashtag, but I find it to be pretty focused.
Aside from groups, there are also Twitter chats, such as #genchat, #AncestryHour, #OurAncestors and more. Some are topical, and some are genealogical get-togethers. Follow the chat’s hashtag, or use TweetDeck to view the tweets in the chat; and don’t forget the hashtag when participating!
Discord is another place to discuss genealogy. I’ve created a Discord account, but I’m really not active there. If you know more, feel free to talk about it in the comments!
Instagram is fun, especially when you have lots of ancestral photos. Like Twitter, it’s hashtag-driven. Melissa Dickerson (@GenealogyGirlTalks) instituted a monthly “Genealogy Photo a Day”.
Interactive mainly through the comments section, there are YouTube channels to follow, such as Family History Fanatics, Genealogy TV, and GeneaVlogger. Search on “genealogy” or “family history”, and you’ll come up with lots of accounts and videos!
TikTok isn’t just crazy videos; it has genealogy accounts as well! I’m not a TikTok follower, but I recently read in “American Ancestors” magazine about an account that’s all about cemeteries and gravestone cleaning. Apparently, she has millions of followers, so this is no small thing!
Finally, Pinterest. In 2018, we had a #genchat about using Pinterest for genealogy with guest expert Lisa Lisson. You can organize boards by surname, geographical interest, or just about anything! I created this Twitter Moment that captured the genchatter’s Pinterest boards. I have a board specifically for this blog, with sections for each surname and/or topic. Personally, I find it easier to find stuff on my blog this way!
If there are any other platforms I’ve missed, feel free to mention them in the comments.
Beautiful Water Genealogy 
The genealogy on Tik Tok is getting bigger everyday.
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Yes, I see that you post about it quite a bit!
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Thanks for the great tips! I had not considered using YouTube, Pinterest or TikTok for genealogy. I will give them a try.
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