One Hour Biography and Genealogy Interview

Questions to ask your interviewee

This article presents a series of questions to ask of your interviewee in order to extract details to write their biography and research their genealogy.

Authors

Your Ancestors

  1. What is your father's full name?
  2. Did he have any nicknames like Shorty, Butch, Whitey or familiar forms of his name like Jack, Bob, or did he often just go by initials like "E B"?
  3. Where was he born, town, county, state and country ?
  4. What were the full name's of his parents?
  5. What is your mother's full name?
  6. Did she have any nicknames like Princess, Tiny, Red or familiar forms of her name like Polly, Katie, Sue, or did she often just go by initials like "J A"?
  7. Where was she born, town, county, state and country?
  8. What were the full name's of her parents?
  9. How did your parents meet?
  10. When and where were they married, town, county, state and country?
  11. What were the full names of your father's siblings?
  12. What were the full names of your mother's siblings?

Your Childhood

  1. How many children did your parents have, including children born dead?
  2. Starting with the firstborn, what were the full names of all your parents children?
  3. Starting with the firstborn, what were the birthdates of all your parents children?
  4. Starting with the firstborn, what were the birthplaces of all your parents children?
  5. Did your mother or father ever remarry?
  6. What were the names of the other spouses?
  7. What was the name of your elementary school?
  8. What was the name of the secondary school you attended, if any?
  9. Did your family have a farm, and if so what was raised there?
  10. Did your family have a business which was not a farm, and if so what was it?
  11. Did your father have any other job, other than a farm or family-owned business, and if so what was it?
  12. Did your mother have any other job, and if so what was it?
  13. What was your first job, other than working on a family farm?
  14. What was the highest grade you complete?

Your Adult Life

  1. Did you attend any sort of college, university, technical school or other training program?  And if so, what?
  2. Did you serve in any war, and if so describe your service?
  3. Where and under what circumstances did you meet your first spouse?
  4. When and where were you married?
  5. Did either of you have any other spouses, before or after?
  6. What are the full names of your spouses parents?
  7. When and where was your spouse born?
  8. If you ever divorced, when and where did you divorce?
  9. If either of your parents, or any step-parents are deceased, when and where did they die?
  10. And where are each of them, if any, buried?
  11. Have you any children, and if so, what are their full names, starting with the eldest?
  12. Please name each town you've lived in, starting with the town where you were born and continuing to the present .
  13. Please name each job you've held, starting with your first job and continuing to the present?
  14. Name the siblings of your spouse, if any.

Other

  1. Are you working now, or are you retired?
  2. What hobbies do you enjoy, or what activities do you enjoy?
  3. Do you belong to any organizations?
  4. Have you ever held political office?