People find that a geneology chart (actually spelled genealogy) an effective way to visualize your family tree ancestry. Generally, there are three main types: Standard (horizontal display), vertical and fan. There are many versions for you to choose from. Each chart has advantages and disadvantages – just choose the one you like the best. Remember, there is no right or wrong choice when it comes to selecting the ancestor chart you want to use for your trees.
A genealogy chart has the unique ability to display your parents, their parents, and more particularly the ancestor relationships in a tree format for as many generations as you like. A simple ancestry trees diagram looks like this:
It's probably sufficient to include up to 8-10 generations on a single genealogy chart. More generations and it becomes difficult to read. Some ancestor charts include simply the name of the individual; others include the year of birth and death; still others include as many facts about the individual as possible. The family tree chart you choose is dictated by the audience and the size of the charts that you want to display. Most genealogy software programs provide the ability to display the ancestry charts for any one in your trees using any one of the different charts at the click of a button. Naturally, if you are drawing the charts by hand you will not want to draw the chart more than once.
Let the audience, the number of generations in your trees, and the relationship to your ancestor that you have collected dictate the chart format that you use. Remember, more information is not always better when it comes to displaying and visualizing complex ancestry charts. Feel free to experiment with the format and the ancestry that you display.
