One thing I've learned from working on this project is how to pinch pennies while still gathering valuable information. I don't have much in the way of new research findings to share so instead I'll share with you how I do my research without spending an inordinate amount of money. Researching your genealogy should be fun and not discouraging because you can't afford to do so. If you're interested in researching but not sure where to start or don't have cash to blow, try out the below resources.
Relatives: This may be the most obvious step but you'd be amazed at what you can find out from your own family. When you're researching genealogy, you're piecing back together family memories and the older living members in your family are a fountain of this invaluable information. If you are fortunate enough to still have this resource at your disposal, stop reading this and talk to them... NOW! Not only will they give you clues for names, dates, and locations, family stories can provide a lot of context for your research that you couldn't possibly gather from vital records. That context is what makes the research experience that much more fulfilling so please don't ignore this source if you have access to it.
Family Search: Familysearch.org is a free genealogy research site run by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and it is an absolute gold mine. There is a wealth of free material here, ranging from old census searches, complete vital record indices for some states, the Social Security Death Index and beyond. Even more interesting for beginners such as myself were their free video classes. I took comfort in knowing that they have a 48 minute video dedicated to researching German town origins (which I've already started struggling with but that's a different story). They have videos for how to search the censuses as well as practical researching advice. This site is really worth checking out as a first stop in your research.
Local Libraries: I would not be able to do my research if it were not for my library. Your local library is a very good place to start when it comes to beginning your genealogy research. In a lot of cases, your local library will have a public license to at least one of the major private research databases (Ancestry.com and Genealogy.com are the two big examples that initially come to mind) that you can use for free just by being a library patron. Compared to what would normally be a $200 annual subscription just for one major database, I'd say you got a good deal right there. This is not to mention all the other goodies you could find there, such as local historical records if your family has lived in the area for a long time and old newspapers. This is probably one of the best single sources of information I can think of so trust me when I say do not ignore your library.
Interment.net: If you can find your family's burial site, then you are likely going to find A LOT of data for multiple deceased family members at once (birthday, date of death, possibly where they lived depending on the cemetery record). Interment.net contains thousands of cemetery records based on location and lists of who is buried there. While I have not personally had luck with this site yet, you can take it from me that there is some great data here. The site seems to be regularly updated by their dedicated volunteers so the information here will just keep getting better as the cemetery rolls become more comprehensive. It will be a lucky find for the descendants of those it currently has included in its search.
Religious Records: If the parish your families attended still exists, you may be able to uncover some surprisingly easy to find and valuable data. Depending on how well the records of the religious institution are kept and how long your family lived in the area, you may be able to find baptismal, marriage, and burial records all in one place. I don't care if your queasy about religion - for the sake of your research, put that bias aside and don't be afraid to contact the institution you know your families worshiped at. At worst, they won't have anything and you'll be where you would have been anyway. At best, you may be pleasantly surprised at what you stumble across.
Cyndi's List: Cyndi's List is the equivalent of a genealogical flea market. They have everything and you'll be amazed at what you can find. Need a list of New Zealand birth and death records? They have it. If you want links to old newspapers from around the world, it's there. Interested in other genealogy blogs but don't know where to look? I got two words for you: Cyndis' List. There are such a mind-boggling number of sites and databases on the internet, it becomes difficult to track. Cyndi's List breaks the multitude of these sites down into categories and from there, you'll never stop being amazed at what you find (I personally only just discovered the free New York Times archive search through Cyndi's List). If you're just starting out, this site may be a bit confusing since you have to know what you want to find something of value so I'd say hold off on this until you have some sense of direction. However, when you get that direction, go to Cyndi's List.
As I get further into my research, I will undoubtedly find other cool sites I'll add to this list. If anyone knows of any other sources, please let me know through the comments as I do not claim to be omniscient in this field =)
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