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A free family history research worksheet

Genealogy research log you can fill in and print.

One question. One source. A record you can return to. Keep track of what you searched, what you found or did not find, and the next thing you want to check.

Up to 20 searches · Your own words · Text download · Blank or filled browser printing · No account

Getting the worksheet ready…

Your entries stay in this page's memory. They are not autosaved: refreshing or closing clears them. Download text or print before leaving. This tool records your work; it does not search archives or check family relationships.

Keep a record of one search

Start with one entry and add up to twenty. Record a useful find, a search that came up empty, or a lead you still need to check.

Search 1

Include the name, approximate years and what you want to find out.

Write the search date, or leave blank if it was not recorded.

Archive or website; collection, title, page or image number, call number or URL.

Keep the spellings, variants and range you actually checked.

Keep references and uncertainty. A search with no result is worth recording too.

Leave yourself a specific place to continue.

Genealogy research log

Keep the question, source, search and result together. An uncertain detail can stay uncertain.

Search 1

Research question or person

Date searched

Source and where to find it

Names, dates, places and filters searched

What you found or did not find

Next step or question to check

Made with MemoirWell · memoirwell.com/tools/genealogy-research-log

Leave enough detail to retrace your steps

Give each search a question or person's name. Note the website or archive, the collection and a page, image or document reference. Record the spellings and date ranges you checked, then keep the result and any uncertainty beside them.

A search that found nothing can still help you decide where to look next. The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society's guide to research logs explains why recording both successful and unsuccessful searches, their scope and their sources is useful. These are original MemoirWell fields; this page does not search records or establish that two people are related.

A small example, not a real family record

Question: Where was Jo living around 1940? Source: an invented town directory, page 24. Search: Jo and J. Example, entries under E, 1938-1941. Result: no matching entry on the pages checked; other years have not been reviewed. Next step: check the earlier directory and keep its exact reference.

Before you save your log

Is this a free printable genealogy research log template?

Yes. Start with one search and add up to twenty. Type your question, date, source, search details, findings and next step. An entirely empty log prints one blank form with handwriting lines. Once you enter details, printed and saved copies include the written entries and skip untouched searches.

Does it search genealogy databases or verify my findings?

It organizes the information you type. It does not search databases, upload documents, use AI, verify sources, build a family tree or decide whether a relationship is correct. Keep evidence and open questions in your own wording.

Where are my entries saved?

Only in this page's memory. They are not uploaded or autosaved, and refreshing or closing clears them. Download text or print before leaving. You choose who receives your saved copy.

How do I save a PDF or continue later?

Print or save PDF opens your browser's print dialog. Choose Letter or A4 and check the preview. Browser-menu printing also works while editing. Longer entries may use more pages. Download text saves a TXT copy; this tool cannot reopen the TXT as an editable log.

Does a source connect with a remembered scene?

Keep your research log first. MemoirWell's separate guided interview can help you develop your own memory into an AI-assisted draft chapter to check and edit. Your log is not transferred automatically.

Start a free first chapter

Download or print your log before leaving this page.