I have been interested in collecting information about my family history (genealogy) for some time. Every few years I’ll come across the family tree my sister put together for a school project many years ago and it always sparks my interest in my family tree.

I came across a new web site Geni that helps you build and share family trees. Although its still in beta and pretty buggy, the interface is slick and easy to use. It allows all your family members to access it and input information, and its free. So I’ve started a project to collect all the information I can gather and build and extensive family tree. So far I have just over a hundred people on my tree.

My mom sent me a bunch of materials including pictures of many paternal ancestors, data on maternal history, and even an Italian passport and a naturalization certificate from my paternal great-grandfather. I’ve used the web site Ancestry.com to locate census records for many of my relatives. The next task is to query my relatives to verify and extend the data I’ve collected. I’ll also scan and post the pictures and other documents (e.g. census records) I’ve collected. Not only does this share them with the family, it is a good way to archive them for the future.

If you’re in my family and want an invitation to participate in the Geni family tree, send me a email.