Dear George,
You begin with yourself and work back. Try to obtain all the vital
records for yourself and your parents. You may discover the names of
your grandparents from their birth records and/or marriage records.
There are census records available from 1920 back to 1850 which list the
children's names so you may be able to trace your ancestors from those.
Be aware that names are not always spelled the same through history.
For instance, many Castors, Casters, Kesters, etc., may be more
closely related to me than a Custer and we may be descended from a
Kuster with two dots over the "u". The 1930 census records should be
available in a few years and may be most helpful to you. When was your
father born? Family research takes time, but if you do it one step at a
time, you will discover much about your family history on your own. Go
to your public library and ask for guidebooks on doing family research.
A good one is "The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy" by Val D.
Greenwood and there are more out there. Also check on guides to
research on the internet as more information is being added all the
time.
Best wishes, Grace
Grace Custer Ebneter
Peachtree City, GA
http://members.tripod.com/~EbneterG/index.html