Research Logs: The Tool Behind Real Genealogy Work

At the end of December, I posted my intended list of blog topics for my blog and Substack account. If you want to see the list, I’ll be posting the graphic at the bottom of this post. January’s topic was about research logs. I’m posting this in February because, after reviewing the current logs, I wondered if they could be improved. Then I asked one of my genealogy heroes, Elizabeth Shown Mills, if I could use something she posted on her personal Facebook account. That led to further information, and I wanted to take the time to write this to give proper credit to Elizabeth and do a good job.

Thank you, Elizabeth, for reviewing what I wrote. It means the world to me.

Research logs don’t usually get much love.

They’re often described as something you’re supposed to do, but somehow we are all probably guilty of never quite keeping up with, and as being tedious and overly formal. And yet, when genealogy research goes deep—when we move beyond quick lookups and into real problem-solving—research logs can become one of the most important tools we have.

As genealogy research becomes more complex—brick walls, indirect evidence, DNA, cluster research—it’s the structure behind our work that determines whether we make real progress or simply gather more information.

To understand why research logs matter, we need to step back and look at how successful research actually works.

The Research Process: More Than Just Searching

In QuickLesson 20: Research Reports for Research Success, Elizabeth Shown Mills explains that successful research follows three core steps, with a fourth added when we use databases or spreadsheets:

1. Preparation
2. Performance (Execution)
3. Reporting
4. Data Entry (when applicable)

As Elizabeth emphasizes, Steps 2 and 4—searching and data entry—tend to get all the attention.
However, it is the often-neglected Steps 1 and 3 that determine whether research is successful in the long run.

This framework is the work of Elizabeth Shown Mills and, forms the foundation for professional genealogical research.

Where Research Logs Fit In

At its simplest, a research log is a record of:

• What you searched
• Where you searched
• When you searched
• What you found (or didn’t)

But in practice, a good research log should track much more than searches. It should preserve your thinking.

It should answer questions like:

• Why did I look here?
• What did I expect to find?
• What does this result suggest?
• What should I do next?

Without that record, we rely on memory—and memory is a terrible filing system. As I grow older, I like to say I have “sometimers, sometimes I remember, and sometimes I don’t.”

The Work Many Researchers Avoid

In a recent Facebook post, Genealogist Elizabeth Shown Mills spoke to the things that genealogists often avoid. I am paraphrasing (with Elizabeth’s permission):

• Developing a research plan based on a serious analysis of the problem
• Identifying every known Friend, Associate, and Neighbor (the FAN Club) connected to the person of interest
• Creating a working list of all sources for a geographic area—not just online databases, but local, state, and federal records
• Reading footnotes and endnotes in books and articles to discover additional sources
• Systematically working through those sources, one by one
• Slogging through courthouse and town hall records that others might skip—deeds, mortgages, probate packets, tax rolls, and court records
• Looking beyond indexes and recognizing that AI and full-text search tools still miss names, misread handwriting, and lack context
• Building conclusions through indirect evidence, assembling pieces like a detective rather than waiting for a single perfect record

This is not fast research. But it is accurate research, and this level of work cannot live only in our heads.

Where Research Logs Fit into Real Research

This is where research logs can do their best work.

A research log:

• supports the research plan
• clearly state the research question
• documents exhaustive research
• capture what is already known or suspected
• captures negative results
• identify associated individuals (FANs)
• outline which sources we plan to consult
• records evolving hypotheses
• preserves reasoning behind decisions
• provides the foundation for a research report

Without this preparation, searching becomes random. With it, research becomes intentional.

The log holds the details.
The research report explains the reasoning.

When written well, the report reflects confidence.
That confidence comes from the log.

Why Traditional Research Logs Often Fail

Many genealogists struggle with research logs because traditional formats:

• Focus only on searches, not capturing our thinking
• Feel rigid or academic
• Leave no room for DNA or hypotheses
• Don’t help us restart after time away

The simple “date–website–result” log that we are familiar with doesn’t support the kind of work I’m describing above.

That’s why I’ve been rethinking how research logs could function.

Improving the Research Log

If research logs have felt intimidating in the past, here’s my suggestion:

• Pick one person or one research problem
• Start a fresh log (I’ll give you access to my revised log below)
• Focus only on current work
• Let the log grow naturally

You do not need to recreate the past to move forward.

Research Logs Aren’t About Perfection

They’re about continuity. They should allow you to:

• step away without losing momentum
• explain your work to someone else
• return months later and know exactly what you were thinking
• build strong, defensible conclusions

In short, they should support the kind of genealogy most of us want to do—even if it’s the part that takes the most effort.

I combined my idea of what a research log should look like with Elizabeth Shown Mills’ suggestions for creating a research plan, then entered it into ChatGPT and asked it to create a new, improved research log. If you’d like to give it a try, I have it available as a FREE download at the Family History Hound Dog Park.

I invite you to download the log and try it to see whether it could work for you.

Note: I encourage you to read Elizabeth Shown Mills QuickLesson 20 and other lessons on her website. If you want even more education from Elizabeth, you can find webinars she’s given at Legacy Family Tree Webinars. You need a membership to view them, but I believe all the webinars at Legacy are worth every penny.

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