AI for Genealogy SIG Meeting (Register)

"AI Research Projects Part 2: Digging Deeper with AI Projects"

Building a Genealogy Research Workspace

Watch AI read a handwritten page from more than a century ago — then follow one real ancestor from a faded register entry through to a finished, sourced report.

Most of us meet AI the same way: one chat, one question, a promising answer — and then the next day we’re explaining the whole family puzzle from scratch all over again. The real shift comes when you stop treating AI as a search box and start giving it a proper place to work.

In this session, Shelly Wilson builds that place in front of you, using one real, completed research project. Harriet (McRae) Wilson was a Victorian schoolteacher, and you’ll watch her traced from two scanned, handwritten records through to citable reports you could file straight into your own research.

Along the way you’ll see:

• AI read genuine handwriting on screen — and why you always check it against the original
• how a research “workspace” keeps your question, your sources, your standing rules and your working notes in one place, so the AI understands your problem instead of starting cold each time
• a small piece of detective work — a misread place name (Jamleugh? Tamleugh?) untangled by setting two sources against each other
• why a record that looked like a death turned out to be nothing of the kind, and how to hold that sort of uncertainty honestly

Throughout, we keep to the SIG’s standing principle: AI is a research assistant that helps us think more clearly, not a source of truth. Every result is checked against the original records.

You’re welcome whether you’ve used AI for years or are simply curious and a little sceptical. There’s no need to have attended the June session — this one stands on its own, and it leads neatly into our hands-on October workshop.

Booking & details

• Cost: Members free  ·  Non-members $25
• Format: Held via Zoom — please book a ticket to receive the meeting link
• Recording: Available to registered participants via our website for 30 days after the event

This workshop is part of our 2026 AI in Genealogy program.The AI in Genealogy SIG explores practical, responsible and creative ways to use artificial intelligence in family history research. Our sessions are friendly, hands-on and suitable for a range of experience levels — from curious beginners to confident experimenters. For more information about the activities of the AI in Genealogy SIG, including details of future events click here 

Family History ACT values the intellectual property of our speakers and the privacy of all meeting participants.
To protect these rights, the use of third-party AI note-taking or transcription tools,  including but not limited to Otter.ai, Read.ai, Fireflies, or similar services is not permitted during FHACT meetings, webinars or events.