Why transcription is the heart of family history research and writing

The secret to solving your toughest genealogy mysteries lies in transcription. Here’s how AI can make it better and faster than ever.

Confession: I used to think transcription was a waste of time. I’d open a record, glance at the names, grab the dates, and move on. Everyone said I should transcribe, but it just bored me to tears.

Everything changed when I finally did it. Since 2024, I’ve transcribed over 200 pages of handwriting, and everything about how I do genealogy has changed.

Transcription isn’t busywork. It’s the foundation of every confident conclusion and interesting writing.

What transcription actually means

Transcription is the process of converting a historical document—word for word, line for line—into text. It’s one of the core Genealogical Standards, because it creates an exact copy you can analyze, share, and cite without constantly going back to re-read the original handwritten record.

When I transcribe, I start to notice details I miss while skimming. My biggest personal find with transcription was four years ago with this deed for Nancy Bloom Curry, recorded after her death when the land was sold to settle debts.

The highlighted phrase —Nancy Bloom the daughter now intermarried with Robinson Curry party of the second part — is the only proof I have of her marriage to Robinson Robert Curry. Church records are missing and marriage licenses were not required for another 30 years. This deed also solves the mystery of why the land was not titled in the husband’s name. It was passed parents to daughter.

Without stopping to transcribe this deed, I would have missed this proof of marriage entirely.

The easiest way to get transcription

Today, before I transcribe, I check to see if has already been completed.
FamilySearch Full-Text Search lets me search millions of already-transcribed historical documents—wills, deeds, probate files, and more—from major collections. Try it here: FamilySearch Full Text Search

The old way vs. the new way of transcription

If a pre-completed transcription is not available, there are two choices to get it done: the old way or the new way with AI.

When I transcribed that deed back in 2021, I had to do it like a medieval monk by candlelight. Okay, not quite, but it felt agonizingly tedious. The old way: open a historical record, look at it, go to Word and type a few words, look back at the record, type a few more, scroll down, repeat for hours (or days).

Now I do all my transcription the new way: using AI that reads, formats, and extracts key details from the text for me in minutes.

I’ll be showing exactly how this works in my upcoming AI Transcription Workshop this Friday at 1:00 PM ET.

Get AI to Transcribe Like a Pro (Without the Headaches)

• No prior AI experience needed

• Works for all genealogists, and any record type

Your registration ticket includes:

• The difference between OCR, transcription, and translation

• A 4-page quick-reference guide with transcription standards, prompts, and a QA checklist

• A ready-to-use GPT and Gem prompt that delivers human-level transcription quality

• A tool selection matrix for matching the best AI to each record type

• A completed transcript and abstract created during the session

• Recording of the workshop for 30 days.

👉 More details and Reserve your seat here: Register for the Workshop

If you’ve been skimming through records like I once did, this is your sign to dig into those documents.

You might be just one line of text away from the discovery you’ve been waiting for.

—Denyse