Consider keeping a journal both for yourself and for posterity. Include your reactions and feelings about tragic or special events, such as the 9/11 tragedy - where were you, and now your feelings 10 years later. Here are ideas worth considering to include. This list came from the Ancestry.com Weekly Discovery dated September 11, 2011.
Interview Questions for Yourself and Others By Juliana Smith 09 September 2011 Email Print Here is a list of questions that can serve as prompts for your personal history, or as the basis for an interview of a family member.
Where did you grow up?
How long did your family live in the area(s)?
How many siblings did you have? What were their names and how old were they?
What were they like?
Were there other family members in the area? Who?
Did you live on a farm? What kind of crops did you grow?
What kind of livestock or other animals did you keep?
Did you have any pets?
What was the house or apartment like? How many rooms?
What kind of amenities did it have? (Indoor plumbing, electricity or gas, phone, television, etc.)
Were there any special items in the house that stand out in your mind (favorite possessions of yours, your parents, or siblings)?
What kind of area/neighborhood was it?
Did the town have a railroad? Post office? What kind of stores or shops?
What was your family's religious affiliation?
Where did you go to church?
What religious ceremonies did you take part in?
Did you have godparents or sponsors?
Where did you go to school?
What level education do you have?
What was your favorite subject to study?
Did you have any special interests when you were growing up (sports, hobbies, crafts, etc.)?
What kind of games did you play?
What was your favorite toy?
What did you do for fun (go to beach, park, movies, zoo, etc.)?
Did your family ever take trips or go on vacation?
Do you speak any foreign languages?
Did you have family reunions?
Who were your friends when you were growing up?
Who were the close friends of the family?
Describe the personalities of your family members.
Are there any physical characteristics that run in your family?
Were there any serious illnesses in your family?
Do any illnesses run in the family?
Were there any memorable traditions that your family practiced?
Can you remember any stories that were told to you as a child (fictional, folklore, or real life)?
What events stand out in the memory of your childhood (historical, personal, familial, storms or disasters, fire, etc.)?
What inventions or developments changed your life, and how?
What was your father's occupation? Where did he work?
Did your mother work? Where?
Did you work? Where?
Did anyone in your family ever serve in the military?
Did anyone in your family ever hold a public office?
What was your favorite song?
Did anyone in your family play a musical instrument?
What were your family's favorite meals? Are there any special family recipes?
Were certain foods eaten or avoided on certain occasions?
Were you ever mentioned in a newspaper?
What kind of organizations did your family belong to (fraternal, charitable, scouting, etc.)?
What special skills do you have?
How did you come into your profession?
When did you move away from home?
Have you ever been married? If so, to whom? When?
Where did you meet your husband/wife?
What qualities drew you to him/her?
Did you exchange any special gifts?
How long did you date before getting married?
Where did you get married?
Who participated in your wedding?
Did you have a reception? Was there music? What songs were played?
Do you have a copy of your wedding invitation?
Was there an announcement in the newspaper? Which paper?
How many children do you have?
How many are still living?
What stories did you tell your children when they were growing up?
Fifty Questions for Family History Interviews From Kimberly Powell, Your Guide to Genealogy.
What to Ask the Relatives A great way to uncover clues to your family history or to get great quotes for journaling in a heritage scrapbook is a family interview. By asking the right, open-ended questions, you're sure to collect a wealth of family tales. Use this list of family history interview questions to help you get started, but be sure to personalize the interview with your own questions as well.
For more family history interview tips, see How to Interview a Relative. Then scroll down for the family history interview questions below.
1. What is your full name? Why did your parents select this name for you? Did you have a nickname?
2. When and where were you born?
3. How did your family come to live there?
4. Were there other family members in the area? Who?
5. What was the house (apartment, farm, etc.) like? How many rooms? Bathrooms? Did it have electricity? Indoor plumbing? Telephones?
6. Were there any special items in the house that you remember?
7. What is your earliest childhood memory?
8. Describe the personalities of your family members.
9. What kind of games did you play growing up?
10. What was your favorite toy and why?
11. What was your favorite thing to do for fun (movies, beach, etc.)?
12. Did you have family chores? What were they? Which was your least favorite?
13. Did you receive an allowance? How much? Did you save your money or spend it?
14. What was school like for you as a child? What were your best and worst subjects? Where did you attend grade school? High school? College?
15. What school activities and sports did you participate in?
16. Do you remember any fads from your youth? Popular hairstyles? Clothes?
17. Who were your childhood heroes?
18. What were your favorite songs and music?
19. Did you have any pets? If so, what kind and what were their names?
20. What was your religion growing up? What church, if any, did you attend?
21. Were you ever mentioned in a newspaper?
22. Who were your friends when you were growing up?
23. What world events had the most impact on you while you were growing up? Did any of them personally affect your family?
24. Describe a typical family dinner. Did you all eat together as a family? Who did the cooking? What were your favorite foods?
25. How were holidays (birthdays, Christmas, etc.) celebrated in your family? Did your family have special traditions?
26. How is the world today different from what it was like when you were a child?
27. Who was the oldest relative you remember as a child? What do you remember about them?
28. What do you know about your family surname?
29. Is there a naming tradition in your family, such as always giving the firstborn son the name of his paternal grandfather?
30. What stories have come down to you about your parents? Grandparents? More distant ancestors?
31. Are there any stories about famous or infamous relatives in your family?
32. Have any recipes been passed down to you from family members?
33. Are there any physical characteristics that run in your family?
34. Are there any special heirlooms, photos, bibles or other memorabilia that have been passed down in your family?
35. What was the full name of your spouse? Siblings? Parents?
36. When and how did you meet your spouse? What did you do on dates?
37. What was it like when you proposed (or were proposed to)? Where and when did it happen? How did you feel?
38. Where and when did you get married?
39. What memory stands out the most from your wedding day?
40. How would you describe your spouse? What do (did) you admire most about them?
41. What do you believe is the key to a successful marriage?
42. How did you find out your were going to be a parent for the first time?
43. Why did you choose your children's names?
44. What was your proudest moment as a parent?
45. What did your family enjoy doing together?
46. What was your profession and how did you choose it?
47. If you could have had any other profession what would it have been? Why wasn't it your first choice?
48. Of all the things you learned from your parents, which do you feel was the most valuable?
49. What accomplishments were you the most proud of?
50. What is the one thing you most want people to remember about you?
This About.com page has been optimized for print. To view this page in its original form, please visit: http://genealogy.about.com/cs/oralhistory/a/interview.htm
©2007 About.com, Inc., a part of The New York Times Company
Interview Questions for Yourself and Others By Juliana Smith 09 September 2011 Email Print Here is a list of questions that can serve as prompts for your personal history, or as the basis for an interview of a family member.
Where did you grow up?
How long did your family live in the area(s)?
How many siblings did you have? What were their names and how old were they?
What were they like?
Were there other family members in the area? Who?
Did you live on a farm? What kind of crops did you grow?
What kind of livestock or other animals did you keep?
Did you have any pets?
What was the house or apartment like? How many rooms?
What kind of amenities did it have? (Indoor plumbing, electricity or gas, phone, television, etc.)
Were there any special items in the house that stand out in your mind (favorite possessions of yours, your parents, or siblings)?
What kind of area/neighborhood was it?
Did the town have a railroad? Post office? What kind of stores or shops?
What was your family's religious affiliation?
Where did you go to church?
What religious ceremonies did you take part in?
Did you have godparents or sponsors?
Where did you go to school?
What level education do you have?
What was your favorite subject to study?
Did you have any special interests when you were growing up (sports, hobbies, crafts, etc.)?
What kind of games did you play?
What was your favorite toy?
What did you do for fun (go to beach, park, movies, zoo, etc.)?
Did your family ever take trips or go on vacation?
Do you speak any foreign languages?
Did you have family reunions?
Who were your friends when you were growing up?
Who were the close friends of the family?
Describe the personalities of your family members.
Are there any physical characteristics that run in your family?
Were there any serious illnesses in your family?
Do any illnesses run in the family?
Were there any memorable traditions that your family practiced?
Can you remember any stories that were told to you as a child (fictional, folklore, or real life)?
What events stand out in the memory of your childhood (historical, personal, familial, storms or disasters, fire, etc.)?
What inventions or developments changed your life, and how?
What was your father's occupation? Where did he work?
Did your mother work? Where?
Did you work? Where?
Did anyone in your family ever serve in the military?
Did anyone in your family ever hold a public office?
What was your favorite song?
Did anyone in your family play a musical instrument?
What were your family's favorite meals? Are there any special family recipes?
Were certain foods eaten or avoided on certain occasions?
Were you ever mentioned in a newspaper?
What kind of organizations did your family belong to (fraternal, charitable, scouting, etc.)?
What special skills do you have?
How did you come into your profession?
When did you move away from home?
Have you ever been married? If so, to whom? When?
Where did you meet your husband/wife?
What qualities drew you to him/her?
Did you exchange any special gifts?
How long did you date before getting married?
Where did you get married?
Who participated in your wedding?
Did you have a reception? Was there music? What songs were played?
Do you have a copy of your wedding invitation?
Was there an announcement in the newspaper? Which paper?
How many children do you have?
How many are still living?
What stories did you tell your children when they were growing up?
Fifty Questions for Family History Interviews From Kimberly Powell, Your Guide to Genealogy.
What to Ask the Relatives A great way to uncover clues to your family history or to get great quotes for journaling in a heritage scrapbook is a family interview. By asking the right, open-ended questions, you're sure to collect a wealth of family tales. Use this list of family history interview questions to help you get started, but be sure to personalize the interview with your own questions as well.
For more family history interview tips, see How to Interview a Relative. Then scroll down for the family history interview questions below.
1. What is your full name? Why did your parents select this name for you? Did you have a nickname?
2. When and where were you born?
3. How did your family come to live there?
4. Were there other family members in the area? Who?
5. What was the house (apartment, farm, etc.) like? How many rooms? Bathrooms? Did it have electricity? Indoor plumbing? Telephones?
6. Were there any special items in the house that you remember?
7. What is your earliest childhood memory?
8. Describe the personalities of your family members.
9. What kind of games did you play growing up?
10. What was your favorite toy and why?
11. What was your favorite thing to do for fun (movies, beach, etc.)?
12. Did you have family chores? What were they? Which was your least favorite?
13. Did you receive an allowance? How much? Did you save your money or spend it?
14. What was school like for you as a child? What were your best and worst subjects? Where did you attend grade school? High school? College?
15. What school activities and sports did you participate in?
16. Do you remember any fads from your youth? Popular hairstyles? Clothes?
17. Who were your childhood heroes?
18. What were your favorite songs and music?
19. Did you have any pets? If so, what kind and what were their names?
20. What was your religion growing up? What church, if any, did you attend?
21. Were you ever mentioned in a newspaper?
22. Who were your friends when you were growing up?
23. What world events had the most impact on you while you were growing up? Did any of them personally affect your family?
24. Describe a typical family dinner. Did you all eat together as a family? Who did the cooking? What were your favorite foods?
25. How were holidays (birthdays, Christmas, etc.) celebrated in your family? Did your family have special traditions?
26. How is the world today different from what it was like when you were a child?
27. Who was the oldest relative you remember as a child? What do you remember about them?
28. What do you know about your family surname?
29. Is there a naming tradition in your family, such as always giving the firstborn son the name of his paternal grandfather?
30. What stories have come down to you about your parents? Grandparents? More distant ancestors?
31. Are there any stories about famous or infamous relatives in your family?
32. Have any recipes been passed down to you from family members?
33. Are there any physical characteristics that run in your family?
34. Are there any special heirlooms, photos, bibles or other memorabilia that have been passed down in your family?
35. What was the full name of your spouse? Siblings? Parents?
36. When and how did you meet your spouse? What did you do on dates?
37. What was it like when you proposed (or were proposed to)? Where and when did it happen? How did you feel?
38. Where and when did you get married?
39. What memory stands out the most from your wedding day?
40. How would you describe your spouse? What do (did) you admire most about them?
41. What do you believe is the key to a successful marriage?
42. How did you find out your were going to be a parent for the first time?
43. Why did you choose your children's names?
44. What was your proudest moment as a parent?
45. What did your family enjoy doing together?
46. What was your profession and how did you choose it?
47. If you could have had any other profession what would it have been? Why wasn't it your first choice?
48. Of all the things you learned from your parents, which do you feel was the most valuable?
49. What accomplishments were you the most proud of?
50. What is the one thing you most want people to remember about you?
This About.com page has been optimized for print. To view this page in its original form, please visit: http://genealogy.about.com/cs/oralhistory/a/interview.htm
©2007 About.com, Inc., a part of The New York Times Company