The best kind of oral interview is the one where the subject of your interview knows exactly what to expect. Your interviewee has been preplanning for the interview and knows what to expect from you and may have some documents with them that will help them to refresh their memory.

Suggestions and discussion prior to the meeting will help to bring the interview off with both of you feeling satisfied about the meeting.

This will be particularly true if this is a family member with whom you are not well acquainted or a distant relative you have not yet met.

Suggest things they may want to have with them such as copies of old photos, family bibles, older newspapers, or tell them what you have that you would like to discuss, so that they are prepared and have had some time to really think about the questions you’re going to present and to have answers prepared. This will be very helpful in the case of older people. They tend to need a bit more time to consider and remember the answers to the questions you’re going to present.

First of all, always be on time for the interview that you’ve scheduled. Don’t leave them hanging or waiting for you to show up, even for just ten or fifteen minutes. You know yourself that being put on hold isn’t going to make the best impression and you are trying to gain information that will help you to make your family tree more complete.

If you will be using video or tape recorders, let them know, so they are comfortable with the equipment that you’re going to use. Make sure that they agree to be videotaped or recorded prior to presenting yourself there with your equipment. In some cases it makes people nervous if they are presented with it and are not aware that this is going to be the case.

If you can avoid it, don’t read your questions from a sheet of paper. Lead into them as if a naturally flowing conversation. Try to keep salient points on the paper if you like, but memorize your questions if you can, so that you can make eye contact with the person you are interviewing and make them feel more at ease. Take notes, and write down anything that strikes you as strange or unique to follow up on it. The best tool that you’re going to have is your tape recorder or your note pad.

As soon as you get the chance after the interview, transcribe your tape recording or your notes so that you have everything in one place, along with any more questions that you might want to ask the person you were talking with.

Last, but most assuredly not least, make sure that you offer a thank you to the people you are working with, send a note or a letter thanking them for seeing you and offering the information that they did. Mention a particular thing that you had not known that you learned from them and express your gratitude for the interview.

Tags:  gathering genealogy records Genealogy Interviews genealogy oral interviews oral interviews