MyHeritage: A young German genealogist’s story

David Krüger

At an age when most young men tend to look at the world outside instead of their own family roots, David Krueger, 15, from Germany, is already working on his family history at MyHeritage. He began his research at age 13.

In 2010, he “Googled” his own name, just for fun. He looked at the results and saw a family tree with many branches.

Under the picture was written: “My ancestors, determined by a genealogist.” “It looks interesting,” I thought, and clicked on it. I discovered more and more fascinating information about genealogy.

David went to his mother and asked about his grandparents, writing down their birth and death dates. When he asked about his great-grandparents, there was no room on the paper.

I quickly turned on my computer and looked for a way to represent this piece of information online, so that I had a clear view in a way I could understand (I was then 13).

On Google, David discovered MyHeritage, clicked on the link and was impressed by how beautifully the site was designed. He registered and added the standard information into the tree.

When I clicked and saw my family tree at MyHeritage, I was surprised that there were so many features, so I went through all the functions and read everything that was available. I was also impressed by the beautiful design of my tree (which was then very small). I tested many functions, including how to edit my family tree, add new people, upload pictures, etc.

David's great-great-grandparents

Over the next two years, David continued developing his family tree and received a few Smart Matches, which he could not confirm because he wasn’t yet a premium user.

By early January, my family tree was nearly 250 people, and I decided it was time for an upgrade so I could continue adding more people and pictures. I paid the fee and after two days I was able to confirm the SmartMatches and add new people.

I had matches from Germany (relatives who had already created a family tree themselves), from the US, including researchers who had also focused on the BUNTROCK family, and from South Africa (the ancestors of my grandmother’s husband).

The wedding of David's great-aunt and great-uncle

David was amazed to see how his family tree grew in such a short time. His relatives supported him so he could research even faster and they also registered at MyHeritage and helped to complete the tree with additional information. Today he has 247 people, and he keeps searching everywhere.

The oldest information I have entered is the birth of an ancestor born in 1785.

David's great-grandparents with friends at their home in Revenow, Cammin (now Poland)

What tips does David offer for researchers of any age?

I’ve learned that if you don’t advance in your research, you should look into joining a genealogy forum or association, where you can get immediate help. In my case, I needed help with the old German handwriting. I belong to two clubs and will soon participate in a volunteer project with one of them. I am also happy to get to know other club members, hear their stories and get tips from them.

I hope that, one day, I will have even more people in my family tree. Thanks to the beautiful design of MyHeritage, everything will be clearly presented.

We thank David for sharing this story about his research at such a young age! His example is truly inspiring.

Perhaps his story will inspire you and help you motivate the younger generations in your family.

Do you know a young researcher whom we could interview in our blog? Let us know in the comments below.