How To Research and Construct Your Jewish Family Tree

Eastern European Jewish family research is often shrouded in myths and misunderstandings. Many Jewish family trees only extend two or three generations because of the fallacy that no records remain from “the old country” (not true!) or that “names were changed at Ellis Island” (also not true!).

In this new four-part course from author and Jewish genealogy expert Jennifer Mendelsohn, you’ll get started on the path to successfully reclaiming your family’s story — beyond just knowing that your relatives were from, say, “Russia” or “Austria.” 

You’ll learn about the various kinds of records you can mine for valuable information — including Holocaust records — and where and how to find them, both in the U.S. and Europe. Jennifer will share how she uses many of the same strategies she learned during a long career as a journalist to hone in on the hidden clues in your family’s story and to follow where they lead, to amazing discoveries and unexpected relatives. We’ll also cover the basics of DNA testing for Ashkenazi Jews and how you can successfully work with DNA to expand your tree.

Jennifer specializes in helping people with Ashkenazi Jewish heritage construct their family trees, but people of all backgrounds will find her teachings helpful.