Researching Your Family Tree Online - Moving Past Beginner Basics

There are literally thousands of Web sites and databases on the Internet offering free access to family trees, historical records and other genealogy information. The author started her search with one of the best - FamilySearch.org, maintained by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It proved to be helpful as well, as she apparently learned more about her husband's ancestor, here. The International Genealogical Index IGI) includes his full name (James Edgar Jewel), year of death (1985), and the names of his parents (Lena Cane and Martin Daus Jewel). This was just enough information to give their search a real boost, assuming that other documents prove it to be true. The information included in the Pedigree Resource File has been contributed by individuals and requires further research to verify its accuracy.

What the author missed here (an assumption since it isn't mentioned in the article) is that she didn't follow up the information found on the wife of James Jewel, by also clicking on the links for his wife. The IGI entry for James Edgar Jewel also includes his wife's full name, including maiden name. A follow-up IGI search for Evelyn Pauline Wilhelmina Paulsen brings up the names of her parents - Jens Poulsen and Marie Elisabeth Eriksen. This is an important clue for further research on her side of the family. Which leads us to the author's next mis-step...
More: 101 Places to Trace Your Family Tree for Free | 5 Steps to Verifying Online Genealogy Sources