FamilySearch & Ancestry

FamilySearch and Ancestry are where a lot of Italian lines already have a hint, and where a common surname quietly attaches the wrong cousin. The reliable check is the same one a consulate file needs: the name on the act, the date, and the parents. Atto builds a filtered search from your Documents note — surname, given name, place, and year — and opens it in your browser, where you sign in with your own account. You read the image, bring back the citation, and Approve the fact that matches.

What the deep links give you

A search URL with surname, given name, place, and year when your note includes them.
A one-time import of a .ged file you exported yourself, from Home.
Your own login on FamilySearch, Ancestry, or MyHeritage, in the browser you already use.
A proposed fact that waits on Approve until you compare it with the image.

You bring the citation back on purpose. The tree changes when you accept that comparison.

Opening a link from the find plan

Build or refresh search links on Find in the desktop kit on your computer.
Prefer a row under Open & check — Atto opens the search in your browser, then takes you to Documents to bring the result back. Open only just opens the browser.
Your browser opens the search results page. Log in with your free or paid account if prompted.
Open the indexed record image. Read the original — indexes mistranscribe Italian names constantly.

Ancestry links work the same way when they appear in your plan. Some images sit behind an Ancestry subscription on the account you sign in with.

Capture to Documents

When you find something useful, bring it back to Atto deliberately:

Paste from website or Read screenshot (on-device OCR) can soft-fill a Documents note from the page you opened — treat it as a starting point, still read the record, and verify before Approve.

Paste a short citation note — source title, film number, page, URL — into Documents.
Save a screenshot or downloaded image into your project folder if you already organize files there; reference the filename in the note.
Do not paste full SSNs, living people’s details, or entire certificate PDFs into chat or Discord.

Documents notes stay on your machine under ~/AttoVault/. They are not uploaded to Atto’s servers.

Approve is the human gate

A hint on Ancestry or a suggested FamilySearch record is a lead. When Atto proposes a structured find, from a practice run or from text you captured, it waits on Approve beside the name, date, and parents you already have.

You compare that proposal with the image, then choose Add to tree or Reject. Rejecting costs nothing, and it is the ordinary outcome when the cousin is the wrong one. You are the person who writes the tree.

Already have a tree?

If you exported a .ged file from Ancestry or FamilySearch, import it on Home instead of retyping everyone. Treat imported facts as starting points — still verify Italian lines against Antenati or comune copies before you order filing-grade documents.