Family Tree Maker

During the period from 1989 to 1997, the Family Tree Maker product line created the foundation for today’s multi-billion dollar family history industry:

First to use professional, warm & welcoming packaging
First to de-emphasize the word genealogy in favor of family history
First to focus on an intuitive software user interface that would be successful in markets beyond the professional genealogist
First family history software to enable organizing any quantity of any kind of information, including audio, photos, & video
First to start a large scale project to digitize family records
First software to integrate searching for digitized family records with the user’s tree
First to enable massive collaboration among users with the World Family Tree

These innovations drove the sales volume to support sophisticated product development and the wealth of products you see in today’s family history marketplace.

The Family Tree Maker app is now available from Software MacKiev at https://www.familytreemaker.com and Family Tree Maker’s many family history databases are part of Ancestry.com’s offerings.

Below are many of the key documents from Family Tree Maker’s early history.

Version 1.0 (September 1989)

Family Tree Maker Version 1.0 User Guide

Family Tree Maker Version 1.0 Read Me First Pamphlet

Family Tree Maker Version 1.0 Brochure

Version 1.01 (April 1990)

Family Tree Maker Version 1.01 Supplement (This supplement was used with the Version 1.0 User Guide until supplies ran out.)

Family Tree Maker Version 1.01 User Guide

Family Tree Maker Version 1.01 User Guide B

Version 2.0 (August 1991)

Family Tree Maker Version 2.0 was published in March, 1990. This version offered the ability to hold more information about your family while continuing to keep it organized and easy to find. Family Tree Maker Version 2.0 could also print beautiful, more compact trees, and it supported the use of a mouse.

Family Tree Maker Version 2.0 User Guide Supplement

Family Tree Maker Version 2.0 User Guide

Family Tree Maker 2.0 Brochure

Version 3.0 (June 1993)

Family Tree Maker Version 3.0 User Guide

Family Tree Maker 3.0 Brochure

Version 4.0 (February 1995)

Family Tree Maker Version 4.0 Read Me First Pamphlet

Family Tree Maker 4.0 Brochure

Data Exchange Utility

Version 2.0 (September 1991)

Family Tree Maker Version 2.0 Data Exchange Utility Reference Manual

Biography Maker

Version 1.0 (February 1993)

Biography Maker was published in January 1993. This program assisted the user in writing biographies or autobiographies.

Biography Makers Version 1.0 User Guide

Family Tree Maker for Windows

Version 1.0 (October 1993)

Published in October 1993 Family Tree Maker for Windows First Edition. This version allowed the user to store almost any kind of family information.

Family Tree Maker for Windows Version 1.0

Family Tree Maker for Windows Brochure

Deluxe Version 5 (May 1998)

Family Tree Maker for Windows Deluxe Edition Version 5 Brochure

Family Tree Maker German Edition

Version 1.0 (January 1995)

A German version of Family Tree Maker was released in April 1996. The tutorials explained the installation and features of Family Tree Maker.

German Family Tree Maker for Windows User’s Guide

German Family Tree Maker for Windows User’s Guide Supplement

Family Archive

Volume 1.0 (January 1995)

Family Archive CD Brochure

The World Family Tree

Volume 1.0 (November 1995)

World Family Tree User’s Guide

World Family Tree Brochure

Family Tree Maker Online

Version 1.0 (February 1996)

We developed Family Tree Maker Online to take advantage of the recent introduction of Netscape Navigator, which opened up the Worldwide Web to everyone.

Family Tree Maker Online User’s Guide