100 Questions for Your Family Interview
This list is dedicated to my Grandmother who passed away earlier this month. May her memory be a blessing.
My Grandmother suffered from Alzheimer for the last 12 years of her life - making it difficult to interview her and document her story. Even though I recorded her telling over a few stories on my iPhone’s Voice Memos app, I never had he opportunity to record her entire life story and it will forever be one of my biggest regrets.
Here is a list of 100 questions you can ask any family member to record their story:
INTRO
1. What is your full name?
2. When were you born?
3. Where were you born?
4. Were you named after any relatives?
5. Did you have a nickname?
6. What are your parents’ names?
7. When were they born?
8. Where were they born?
9. How did you parents meet?
10. What are your siblings’ names?
11. When were they born?
12. Which sibling were you closest with?
13. What are your grandparents’ names?
14. Do you know their birthdates?
15. Where did you grow up?
16. What do you remember about your grandparents?
17. Did you ever meet any of your great-grandparents?
18. What do you know about your family surname?
CHILDHOOD
19. What was your childhood like?
20. What were your siblings like?
21. What was your house like?
22.. Did you have any pets?
23. Was your family religious?
24. Where did you grow up?
25. What was your neighborhood like?
26. Did you have more family living nearby?
27. Where did you go to school?
28. Who were your friends growing up?
29. What did you do for fun as a kid?
30. Did you have any special interests?
31. Do you or did anyone in your family play a musical instrument?
32. Did you play any sports or games?
33. What did you do during the Summer when you weren’t in school?
34. Did you have chores or work as a kid?
35. What did you want to be when you grew up?
36. What was your favorite song as a kid?
37. Was your mother a good cook?
38. Did you remember any specific family meals or recipes?
39. Can you remember any stories that were told to you as a child?
40. What did your parents do?
41. Do you have any fond memories of your parents?
42. Where did you go to high school?
43. Were you a good student?
44. What was your favorite subject?
45. What were your teenage years like?
46. Did you ever get into trouble?
47. What did you do for fun as a teenager?
48. Did you have any boyfriends/girlfriends growing up?
ADULTHOOD
49. Where did you go to college?
50. What did you study in college?
51. What is your spouse’s name?
52. When did you meet your spouse?
53. What was your first impression of them?
54. Where was your first date?
55. When did you know you wanted to marry them?
56. How did you/they propose?
57. When did you get married?
58. Where did you get married?
59. What was your wedding like?
60. Did you go on a honeymoon?
61. Where did you live together?
62. What car did you have?
63. What did you do for fun as an adult?
64. Who were your close friends?
65. How many children do you have?
66. What are their names?
67. Why did you give them those names?
68. When did you have your children?
69. What was it like being a parent?
70. What was the hardest part about raising children?
71. Were you a strict or relaxed parent?
72. Did you take any family vacations?
WORK
73. What was your first job?
74. What did you do with your first paycheck?
75. Did you like your job?
78. What was your least favorite job?
79. Do you have any memorable coworkers?
80. When did you stop working?
LOST FAMILY
81. When did your grandparents pass away?
82. How did they die?
83. Which cemetery are they buried in?
84. When did your parents pass away?
85. How did they die?
86. Which cemetery are they buried in?
87. Have you lost anyone else important to you in your life?
LIFE QUESTIONS
88. What are some values your parents instilled in you?
89. What has been your favorite vacation?
90. Do you have any funny stories from your life?
91. What’s your proudest moment in life?
92. What are the best memories of your marriage?
93. When you look back on your life, what are some of your favorite memories?
94. What are you most looking forward to in your life?
95. Do you have any regrets in life?
96. What brings you the most happiness?
97. Do you have any marriage advice?
98. What advice would you give to your children/grandchildren?
99. How do you want to be remembered?
100. What message would you want to share to your future descendants?
P.S. Many of these questions will not apply to the person you are interviewing (for example, if they were never married or did not go to college). There are also many questions you should ask that are not on here (immigration, military, etc.). For example, one person who I interviewed was a holocaust survivor and immigrant so many of the questions were geared towards World War II and emigrating. Someone else that I interviewed already lost her husband, so I asked her many questions about his life in order to record his story as well. I recommend allowing the interviewee the time to fully think and answer each question. Also, ask a lot of following up questions to get more information.