Tip: When writing requests to genealogy lists or message boards

I see these mistake made time after time, especially by newbies.

Always give the City, County and or State where the person you're inquiring about is located. This usually confuses almost everyone else in the group.

Say you belong to the "Doe" mailing list, if you ask if anyone knows where "John and Jane" are located without giving even a general location, it will be highly unlikely that anyone can help you.

Another thing left out is the date or time period of when they lived.

If you don't know the dates of the parents, use the dates of the children and indicate the parents were born (and probably married) prior to the earliest birthdate of the child.

If nothing else, use a reference to a famous relative that most people should be aware of.

You'll give so much more help if you can just add a little more info!