About the desk
The desk behind Make Family Tree Now.
Make Family Tree Now is an independent genealogy publisher run by three researchers in Providence, Rhode Island. We publish free guides, a free family tree builder, and a record-by-record reference for US family history research. No subscription, no paid tier, no display ads.
Why we started
The site began in 2019 as a shared Google Doc between Margaret and Daniel — a running list of the mistakes they kept seeing beginners make. A friend suggested making it public, and within a year the doc had turned into forty pages of guides, an inbox full of reader questions, and a habit that outgrew a spare-time project.
The name is deliberate. "Make family tree now" is what somebody types into a search engine at 11pm after an aunt has told them a story they suddenly want to verify. That's the reader we write for.
Editorial standards
Every guide names a specific archive, cites at least one primary source, and gets a second-set-of-eyes review before publication. The full standards live on the editorial policy page. Our research methodology — how we weigh conflicting records, what counts as a resolved claim — is spelled out on the research methodology page.
The team
Former reference assistant at the Kent County Records Office (2008–2022). Specializes in New England vital records and 19th-century immigration.
Professional genealogist with a focus on African-American and West African lineages. Board-certified researcher, 11 years of client casework.
Archivist and paleographer. Reads Latin, German script, and colonial-era English court hands.
Note: The bios above describe the working roles at the desk. Names and specific credentials shown are placeholders for the launch site and will be updated with real staff details once the domain is live.
Funding
We accept affiliate commissions from a small number of records-database and DNA-test providers. Those links are disclosed in-line wherever they appear. We have never accepted paid placement in a guide, and we have never adjusted a review to keep an affiliate relationship. If that ever changes — it won't — we will say so on this page.
How to reach us
Corrections, questions, reprint requests, and general mail: [email protected]. For anything more formal, use the contact page.