The GEDCOM specification was created by the Family and Church History Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1984. GEDCOM was first proposed at the National Genealogical Society(NGS) Conference held in Salt Lake City in July 1985.
The last official version was 5.5 released on January 2nd 1996. The principal author and GEDCOM Product Manager was Bill Harten up until April 1997. The project was turned over to Robert Booth who oversaw several draft versions, none were officially approved.
Original FAQ created by Bill Harten
Legacy Documents
Legacy GEDCOM example files