Discover Your Family Story

Getting Started with FamilySearch

Family history research—also known as genealogy—is the study of your ancestors, their lives, and how their stories connect to your own. One of the most powerful tools available for this is FamilySearch, a completely free, global genealogy platform.

Unlike many other genealogy services that require subscriptions, FamilySearch is entirely free to use. It is funded and maintained by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), whose mission includes preserving historical records and making them accessible to everyone.

Why FamilySearch is Free

FamilySearch exists as part of a long-standing effort by the LDS Church to preserve records and connect families across generations. Because of this mission-driven purpose, the platform is not built for profit. Instead, it is funded through church resources and supported by volunteers worldwide.

This allows FamilySearch to provide free access to billions of historical records, a shared global family tree, and ongoing digitization of records from around the world.

What Kind of Records Are Available?

FamilySearch contains a vast collection of public-domain and historical records, including census records, military draft registrations, birth and death certificates, marriage records, immigration documents, church records, cemetery records, and land or probate records.

These records are gathered from archives, governments, churches, and historical societies worldwide and are made available because they are considered part of the public historical record.

Creating Your Free Account

To get started, visit https://www.familysearch.org and click "Create Account." Enter your name, birthdate, and contact details, choose a username and password, verify your email or phone number, and then log in to begin exploring your family history.

Understanding the FamilySearch ID System

Each person in FamilySearch is assigned a unique identifier, such as L28K-5F9. These identifiers function much like primary keys in a relational database. Every individual record is connected using these IDs, allowing relationships such as parents, children, and spouses to be accurately linked together.

This structure makes FamilySearch a massive collaborative database where millions of contributors can work together without duplicating records.

Connecting to Our Family Line

To connect yourself to our family, create an account, log in, and use the search feature. The most accurate way is to enter a known FamilySearch ID directly. Once you locate a relative, you can link yourself into the tree by adding your relationship.

About This Website

This site is being created by Jeffrey S. Thomann to share family history with relatives and friends. It is intended to provide richer storytelling, context, and personal history alongside the structured genealogical data found in FamilySearch.

Over time, individual HTML pages will be created for each ancestor, linking directly back into the FamilySearch system.

Immediate Family Connections

My father, Mark Steven Thomann (1951–2024), FamilySearch ID: L28K-5F9

My grandparents on my father’s side:

• William Eugene Thomann (1929–2007), FamilySearch ID: L28K-5JF
• Mary Ann Thomann (Scarborough) (1929–2018), FamilySearch ID: L28K-5KR

William Eugene Thomann, known as "Grandad," and Mary Ann Thomann, known as "Granny," lived in multiple locations throughout Columbia, Missouri. Grandad originally lived in Benton, Illinois.

During their lives, they flipped several houses in Columbia, so historical records may show multiple addresses.

In the 1980s and 1990s, they lived at 815 Cypress Lane, Columbia, Missouri. The property included a small hill where cousins remember sledding and playing. Later, they moved to Lilac Drive and other nearby locations.

Approximate location: View on Google Maps

Going Up the Thomann Line

William Eugene Thomann’s parents:

• Anthony Adam Thomann (1886–1959), FamilySearch ID: L28K-5BG
• Louise Weingaertner (1888–1972), FamilySearch ID: L28P-LZS

Anthony Adam Thomann’s parents:

• Adam Thomann (1859–1912), FamilySearch ID: 9K8V-JD9
• Carolina Vogel (1860–1932), FamilySearch ID: 9796-989

Adam Thomann’s parents:

• Jacob Thomann (1829–1898), FamilySearch ID: LZZZ-4L8
• Anna Barbara Von Brunn (1831–1909), FamilySearch ID: LZZZ-4LJ

Siblings and Extended Family

• Henry Arthur Thomann (1911–1984), FamilySearch ID: L28P-LWM
• Robert John Wagner ("Uncle Bob") (1914–1999), FamilySearch ID: PQDB-WHN
• Aunt Agnes Thomann (1913–1998), FamilySearch ID: L28P-LW1
• Anton Carl Thomann (1914–2003), FamilySearch ID: L28P-L4J
• Albert W Thomann (1918–2004), FamilySearch ID: L5FQ-CVF, married Mary Elizabeth Wilson (1919–2008), FamilySearch ID: L5FQ-49W
• Carl Thomann (1922–?), FamilySearch ID: L28P-LHD
• Helen Thomann (d. 2022), FamilySearch ID: L28P-L6Q

Maternal Side – McGee and Howell Lines

• George Libourne McGee (1924–2008), FamilySearch ID: LBYM-TGD, married Mary Alice Howell (1926–2013), FamilySearch ID: LBYM-VPC
• Thomas Joseph McGee (1931–2017), FamilySearch ID: L16M-72G, married Ella Mae Howell (1934–2022), FamilySearch ID: L1S3-B2G

Future Individual Pages

The following HTML pages will be created for each ancestor:

• mark-steven-thomann.html (ID: L28K-5F9)
• william-eugene-thomann.html (ID: L28K-5JF)
• mary-ann-thomann.html (ID: L28K-5KR)
• anthony-adam-thomann.html (ID: L28K-5BG)
• louise-weingaertner.html (ID: L28P-LZS)
• adam-thomann.html (ID: 9K8V-JD9)
• carolina-vogel.html (ID: 9796-989)
• jacob-thomann.html (ID: LZZZ-4L8)
• anna-barbara-von-brunn.html (ID: LZZZ-4LJ)
• george-libourne-mcgee.html (ID: LBYM-TGD)
• mary-alice-howell.html (ID: LBYM-VPC)