Vanessa WoodI’m delighted to share some news. I am now a Certified Genealogist® through The Board for Certification of Genealogists®. From now on, you’ll see my name written as Vanessa Wood, CG®.
What Certification Involves
Earning the credential means submitting a portfolio of original work. Independent judges evaluate it against Genealogy Standards, looking closely at research, evidence analysis, kinship determination, and written reporting. The bar is high, and I chose to pursue research in distant locations on families unrelated to my own.
Unlike a genealogical “brick wall” that presents an impediment, preparation for certification entails building knowledge one “brick” at a time. It takes time and fortitude.
What It Means Going Forward
My focus hasn’t changed. I’ll keep untangling hard American problems, especially in the South, using the FAN Principle, cluster migration analysis, land and cemetery plot diagramming, handwriting comparison, and photograph analysis. I’ll also keep writing for genealogical journals and sharing what I learn here on the blog.
Thank You
No one earns this alone. I’m grateful to Boston University’s Genealogical Research Certificate program, to my teachers at the genealogical institutes, and to my peer readers and journal editors who sharpened my thinking over the years. Thank you, too, to my clients and readers, whose questions keep me digging. For genealogists, learning never stops.
— Vanessa Wood, CG®
FEATURED IMAGE: CoPilot AI, “CG Ahead Road Sign,” 2026.
