This Is Web Site's Genealogy Section

Home       Genealogy Directory       Ancestral Chart of James Earl Cathey

 
 
How to Read an Ancestral Chart

---

This type of chart is often called a "Pedigree Chart."   Its organization is standardized amoung genealogists.   Indentions: The first thing you might notice is that each older generation is indented to the right from the next younger generation.   Father Above & Mother Below: Each person's father is charted above the person and the person's mother is charted below. This holds true at every generational "fork" in the family tree.   This may place a husband and wife far apart on the chart, even though they were very close in life. Vertical space must be opened to account for the charting of all their ancestors.   Numbering System: A consistant numbering pattern is used, and it is best understood by your study of the chart on the right. For each person included in the chart, the person's father is given a number that is exactly twice the number given to the person; and the person's mother is given the father's number plus one. This continues for as many generations as are charted.   When people are unknown and left out of the chart, their absences do not alter the numbering pattern. If persons number 10 and 11 are totally omitted, the mother of person number 6 is still numbered 13.

---

Home       Genealogy Directory       Ancestral Chart of James Earl Cathey