How To Build The Best File Folder System For Your Genealogy Papers
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In this article
Benefits and challenges to a file folder system
Methods for organizing genealogy papers with folders
How to set up your file folder arrangement
Genealogy research generates a lot of records, and not all of them are digital. It’s not hard even today to have a lot of papers, like replies to requesting copies of records.
Getting your papers from your years of genealogy research in order can feel like a challenge. But it’s a necessary one if you want to be able to easily find a document you need and know what records you already have and what you need to get.
No one wants to keep ordering the same documents again because they can’t find the one they already had!
One great way to get your genealogy records organized is using file folders. Another option is to use binders. Both are great, and I’ve used both. You just need to find what works for you.
Digging around looking for things takes your precious free time away from research!
In this article, I’ll go over the basics of setting up a system of genealogy folders and your different options so you can create the process that works best for you.
Benefits and challenges to using a genealogy file folder system
There are both pros and cons to using folders to get your family history work in order.
The benefits are:
Folders are easy to move around. They’re lightweight and easy to take with you somewhere if you need to.
It’s simple to find and pull out just the things you need to reference
You can easily expand and adapt the structure as your needs change
Some challenges are:
Depending on how detailed your process is, you may need a lot of storage space and supplies
You have to stay on top of filing and maintaining your structure for it to keep working
The papers aren’t secured in place so if you drop something, they could get mixed up
If you follow a color-coding practice, supplies can start to get expensive
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How Setting Genealogy Goals Makes You A Better Researcher
Why You Need a Genealogy Research Log
7 Simple Steps To Creating A Genealogy Timeline (And Why You Need One)
How do I organize my genealogy folders?
There are a lot of different approaches you can use to classify your family history papers using folders. It all depends on what works best for you and how you search for information.
Six common ways of organizing your papers into folders are:
1) By couple. For each married couple, you create one folder using both their names, including her maiden name. All their children’s records would also go into this folder, so you’d have everything for the family group in one place.
2) By grandparent line. With this approach, you’d file all the records by your four family lines (or more if you are adopted). While this is similar to organizing by couple, people often take it one step further through color coding so you can quickly see which line someone is on.
3) By surname. For this method, you’d make a folder for each surname. Depending on how many documents you have for a given surname, you could expand each the surname and type of record. But to avoid creating a lot of folders with just a couple of pieces of paper in each that will take up unnecessary space, wait until you have a handful of a record type before creating a folder for a record type for each last name.
4) By record type (births, deeds, obituaries). This is a good approach if it’s easier for you to search first by the type of record you need, rather than the person it is for.
5) By person. This method is also pretty straightforward. You just make a folder for each person. But before you try this approach, take into consideration how many people you know about in your family tree, how much space you have, and how many more people you’ll add to your tree in the future. While this is really simple, it can also start to get bulky really quickly if you create a folder for every person in your tree, including collateral ancestors like siblings.
6) By location. If your family moved around, organizing papers by a specific location may be beneficial to you to make it easier for you to see what records they generated in each place. Like the surname method, if you have a lot of papers for a given place, you could then start breaking it down by place and surname.
And then within those, you can further sort chronologically, by record type, or location.
Choose the one that works best for how you search for things and remember how to find them later. The one you choose also depends on how much information you have and how thorough you want to get.
If you have a lot, filing by couple might make the most sense. But if you’re only just starting or haven’t found much for a branch yet, filing by surname may be the best option.
Besides those directly about your ancestors, you may need folders for items that aren't about a specific person or family.
Some ideas for these folders are:
To enter into your tree software
To transcribe or do something else with
To file
Miscellaneous things like family group sheets, research tips, and blank templates. (Although I do suggest being careful with a miscellaneous folder because it could get out of hand.)
Information on localities
General information on surnames
Correspondence
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Organization supplies ideas
You only need a few basic supplies to get your files set up. But for a few of the items, you have options for customizing, such as color-coding.
1) Folders. You can use plain manila folders or colored folders. There’s a lot of options if you want to go with colored ones, like these, these, or these ones.
2) Hanging file folders. Like the folders themselves, you can go with plain ones like this or this.
You can also go with colored hanging files. There are a lot of options for colored ones, from all one color to variety packs like this and this.
3) File folder labels. With labels, you have the choice of going with white or colored labels, and different sheet sizes. I do recommend using the Avery brand. I’ve tried generic labels before, and they can be hit and miss. But go with what fits your budget.
For smaller sheet sizes, this white label pack and this colored pack are good choices. You can create labels in smaller batches, and they still work in printers.
For full sheets of labels, here are a few good choices:
Make sure to consider how many folders and labels you’ll need. The quantity of labels in the different packs varies a lot, from about 250 to 1500.
4) Storage ideas. The most common choice is storage boxes, which are easy to move around and store in different places. But if you have the space and a lot of paperwork, also consider a filing cabinet.
Boxes. I recommend something sturdy, not a cardboard box, so it lasts longer. You have a lot of options of the types of storage boxes available. A few ideas are:
- This linen one
- This 4 pack of smaller boxes
- This fireproof one
- This clear, stackable plastic one
- This heavy duty, waterproof
- This heavy duty, smaller box
Filing cabinets. While fire safe filing cabinets are unfortunately very expensive, you can get decent, affordable regular filing cabinets like this, this, or this.
5) Other supplies.
You may find a laminator machine handy for laminating document copies. (Note: Do not laminate any original records or photos.)
One other thing you might want to think about picking up is colored dot stickers to help you identify family lines, especially if you go with using manila folders and white labels. These can help you quickly see which folders belong to which family. I suggest getting ones on the smaller side, so they fit well.
Also, if you decide to handwrite your labels, Sharpies and Paper Mate Flair pens in fine or ultra fine are good choices. And they come in different colors if you want.
6) Forms. You may want to include forms like a table of contents, pedigree charts, family group sheets, research checklists, and timelines.
Photo by SPOTSOFLIGHT/Pixabay
How to set up your genealogy filing system
A good basic place to start is to organize your documents by grandparent line, and then by each couple alphabetically.
To use this methodology, the main steps are:
1) Separate your papers by grandparent surname, including your grandmothers’ maiden names. So you’ll end up with 4 piles. Of course, if you have adopted grandparents, like me, or other family circumstances you may have more folders.
2) Sort them further by each direct line ancestor couple.
3) Once you do this, you’ll get an idea of how many folders and other supplies you’ll need to buy. Use the suggested supplies I discussed above or pick out whatever else is good for you.
4) Once you have the folders and other supplies, you can start filing.
Within each couple, you can choose to order things chronologically, by type of record, or other arrangement.
Put everything for that family group into that folder, including their children.
5) Pick a naming standard for your labels. For example, will you use Last name, First name or First name, Last name? Will you include their birth and death years? Will you add alternate surnames or nicknames?
6) Label the folders. Using a computer rather than handwriting the labels may be better for you.
If you don’t know how to make file folder labels in Word, here’s a tutorial on it.
7) Create 4 sections of hanging folders based on grandparent line.
8) File the folders alphabetically by surname within that grandparent line.
An even simpler plan is to follow these same steps, but file alphabetically by surname overall, and not within grandparent surname. You can use stickers or colored labels or another identifier to easily spot which line they belong to if you’d like.
9) Include pedigree charts and family group sheets for each family. This will help you to keep track of where people are in the family tree. A research checklist for each ancestor can also tell you what records you have already located and what’s left to look for.
This may seem like a big project or overwhelming. As you start putting things in order and making folders, things will become clearer. Just get the basics down and you can adjust later on.
As you get your system solidified and have a better idea of what folders you need, you can add more to your process, like one for each child of your direct line ancestor. You can add more color-coding with stickers, labels, folders, or hanging folders.
It is possible to over-organize so start slow. Don’t create an overly complicated practice right away or spend a lot of money on something that doesn’t work for you.
Related posts:
How to Strengthen Your Cemetery Research Skills to Find More Clues
Why Local History Books Are More Important Than You Think For Genealogy
Why You Need to Use Libraries and Archives in Your Genealogy
Tips for using the file folder system
Here are some tips for creating your process and maintaining it as you go along.
Don’t duplicate anything in more than one place whenever possible
Decide when certain records will be placed in a different person’s folder. For example, do items go into someone’s folder when they become an adult and get married?
Schedule time to file things regularly or it may pile up on you
Use consistent formatting when labeling (surname, first name or first name, surname, etc.)
Choose from the start what to do for items that apply to more than one person, like a parent and child in a census. It’s best not to keep anything in more than one place, so do you keep them all with the parent until the person comes of age or with the child? Or you do want to make duplicate copies in these instances?
If you have more than one marriage for an ancestor, you can create folders for each marriage or one for them and all their spouses.
Keep valuable original records in archival storage, not in these folders. Use a scanned copy instead.
If you add one for each kid, the number of folders and space you need will increase. Again, this all depends on how much you have for a given family group. If you have a lot, it may make sense to have more individual folders.
There are some very comprehensive file folder organization tutorials around the internet. They’re fabulous but may be hard to keep up with, depending on your style. Start simple and then tweak it. You don’t want to create a complicated system until you know what works for you and you get your strategy down pat first.
But, if you want to start off using a more detailed color-coded filing system, Mary E.V. Hill’s is a popular one.
Don’t get overwhelmed or daunted about setting this up, even if you have a lot of information! Just go slow.
Related posts:
How and Why to Research Your Collateral Ancestors
Final thoughts
As genealogists, we can collect lots of paper while doing our research.
Grouping your researching into family history folders will help you find information faster and remember which documents you have.
It does take some time to think through at the start, but once you get going, you’ll be able to set up the best process that works for you and can adjust it later. And the supplies for file folder organization are also generally affordable, so you can find items that fit whatever budget you have for this project.
Start with a basic system and then change it up as you learn what works well or not well for you. Pretty soon, you’ll come up with a process that works, and you’ll be motivated to keep using it.
Let me know in the comments if you’re going to set up a file folder system for your genealogy papers and what arrangement you’ll use!