The Formidable Genealogist

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The Formidable Genealogist šŸŒ³Professional GenealogistšŸŒ³
Iā€™m Jen & my rate is $200/hr. Only 2 hr minimum. I also write research guides to help you research like I do.

https://www.theformidablegenealogist.com/category/all-products Hi, I'm Jen and I like to keep it very simple and transparent. If you're here, you're interested in family history, which happens to be my full-time job and full-time passion. I love being a small business owner and am ecstatic to be doing my dream job every day.

10/26/2026

25 Oct 2026 Totally agree. People often did not know their exact birthdate. Historically, it didnā€™t really matter.

10/26/2026

25 Oct 2026 Genealogy Unconference: Twin Cities was amazing yesterday.

How cool is this? I received this sterling silver personalized pendant from Litania Studio. It's based on this photo of ...
10/25/2026

How cool is this? I received this sterling silver personalized pendant from Litania Studio. It's based on this photo of my 2nd great grandmother, Abby Shankland White (1856-1896).

https://litania.studio/

10/25/2026

25 Oct 2026 Brand new guide launched today! Link in comments, story or from profile.

Thanks to Cheryl, who attended Genealogy Unconference: Twin Cities yesterday, for telling me about this excellent print ...
10/25/2026

Thanks to Cheryl, who attended Genealogy Unconference: Twin Cities yesterday, for telling me about this excellent print service for my research guides. She ordered from the below company and they were beautiful full color copies.

https://copykrea.com/document-printing

I did a quick price test of a 100 page guide and to print 2 sided on high quality paper, in color and have it spiral bound came out to about $16. $9 shipping, but you could also order more and get free shipping.

New research guide just launched!!! I'm so excited to get this out into the world. This 49-page guide shows you how to g...
10/25/2026

New research guide just launched!!! I'm so excited to get this out into the world. This 49-page guide shows you how to get the whole packet of records surrounding someone's federal land process, not just the land patent.

https://www.theformidablegenealogist.com/category/all-products

It was only a couple years ago that I found out that the land patent on the Bureau of Land Management General Land Office record site was only the tip of the iceberg. That final land patent has a whole lot of paperwork leading up to it and you can get that paperwork from the National Archives and some select packets are available online.

This guide shows you how to determine if the person you're researching may have had federal land, what might be in the file, how to locate the records and then some real-life examples from 6 different federal land entry case files from the National Archives.

Grab it during the launch sale for just $10. I launched this new series called Record Spotlight a few weeks ago and also created Asylum and Institution Records. I put that one back down to $10 during this launch sale, too, in case you missed it.

I can't wait to hear what you find in Federal Land Entry Case Files!

Thank you to everyone who came to my sold out Genealogy Unconference: Twin Cities event today!
10/25/2026

Thank you to everyone who came to my sold out Genealogy Unconference: Twin Cities event today!

10/24/2026

24 Oct 2026 New on Fold3

In my genealogy files, I always put a photo of a family heirloom next to photo evidence of where it belonged to.Yes, I h...
10/24/2026

In my genealogy files, I always put a photo of a family heirloom next to photo evidence of where it belonged to.

Yes, I have this 1919 photo of my 2nd great grandparents Jacob and Ingeborg Jensen in my regular Jensen folder.

But I ALSO have a copy of this in an heirloom folder next to his cane that we have inherited. Clearly illustrating whose cane this was so that my daughter will easily be able to identify it.

What are some other hacks you've used in your family history organization?

I've got a new research guide ready to launch tomorrow! Let me know in the comments which record type you hope this one ...
10/24/2026

I've got a new research guide ready to launch tomorrow!

Let me know in the comments which record type you hope this one covers!

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Saint Paul, MN

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