Descendant Charts

Reviewing a family tree descendant chart poster

Click on the photo above to see a larger version

Descendant charts, or descendancy charts as they are sometimes called, are usually formatted and displayed from the top down in a landscape layout and are usually very wide. A descendant chart is normally the type of family tree chart which is displayed at a family reunion. The starting person who is usually a great-great-grandparent born in the 1800's is located at the top of the chart, and then each successive generation of children and whom they married is shown one row below. The spouse or multiple spouses of the starting individual are also included. If there are stepchildren in any family, they won't appear on a descendant chart as they are not blood descendants. If you'd like any stepchildren to appear on your chart, you will need to enter them a second time in your genealogy software under their step-parent as if they were actually a blood descendant. You don't need to change their last name.

A typical descendant chart for a family reunion is about 20-50 feet wide, although we also routinely print charts that are 100, and even 250 feet wide for larger families. By the same token, some small descendant charts are only 10-15 feet wide. Photos of each individual, when available, are a popular item to include in a descendant chart for a family reunion.

The photo which you see to the above-right and which appears in our video and on our home page is of a descendant chart.

If you're designing your own descendant chart, your genealogy software program may lay out your information differently than the examples shown below; however, since we can print from most any genealogy software program, the actual design is not an issue for us. To view other examples of family tree charts, return to our examples page.

The example below is of a small 4-generation descendant chart which begins at the top of the chart, and then branches down to show each generation of blood descendants and who they married. Using 12 point bold for the names and 10 point regular for the birth, marriage, and death facts, this family reunion descendant chart would measure about 16 feet wide. Click on the descendant chart image below to see a larger version in a pop-up window

Below is an enlarged portion of a small section of the descendancy chart shown above

Displaying a long descendant chart at a family reunion is easy to do indoors or outside. See our family reunion tips for more ideas on displaying your descendant chart.

If you haven't already designed your family tree chart so that it is ready for printing, we can do the chart design for you. Once we've completed the layout and design work we will send you a non-printable PDF preview of what your chart will look like when printed for you to review and approve. At that point we will also know the dimensions of your chart which is what will determine the cost for printing. If the design, size, and cost for printing are satisfactory to you, we then, and only then, proceed with printing.

In addition to the other types of family tree charts shown on our examples page which you just came from, there are also many other examples of printed family tree charts on almost every page on our site, so please take the time to browse around for awhile. There are even a few examples of charts with a photographic background on our page about enhancing your chart. We've also included several tips to keep in mind on our page titled submitting your order that you might find helpful as you go about designing your chart.

We're so sure you'll love our genealogy printing services that we confidently provide a complete money back guarantee on all orders. We look forward to being able to work with you and your family. Please call us at 630-653-8400 or e-mail us at sales@ancestryprinting.com if you have any questions about our family tree chart printing services. International callers can also Skype us if preferred; however, we ask that you email us to set up a convenient time for a Skype to Skype call.  We are located in the central time zone of the U.S. (GMT/UTC-6 and -5 in the summer), and can make arrangements for incoming Skype to Skype calls up to around 10:00 PM local time on most nights. We only accept Skype to Skype calls that have been pre-arranged by email.

And, if you haven't already done so please watch the video about our services.