Crowdsourcing the Reconstruction of the Human Family Tree

The erosion of traditional cultures with the emergence and proliferation of modern, “melting pot” culture and technology has coincided with a longing for reconnection with individual ancestral heritage. Family historyresearch grew gradually in popularity as a largely private, but increasingly organized pursuit beginning in the mid-19th Century, with interest spreading rapidly across the globe in the 1970s. With the dawn of the internet age, family history took on a grass-roots global character with an army of volunteers working to reconstruct the human family tree. The benefits and future of this enterprise are discussed.