Websites for Family History Beginners: Difference between revisions

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[[Image:Lab Pups.jpg|thumb|right|250x230px]]Many websites can help beginners with family history research. This article lists websites that can be used at the Family History Library, Family History Centers, from home, or wherever one has access to the Internet, such as cybercafés or libraries.  
Many websites can help beginners with family history research. This article lists websites that can be used at the FamilySearch Library, FamilySearch Centers, from home, or wherever one has access to the Internet, such as cybercafés or libraries.  


== '''Electronic Family Trees and Family Websites'''  ==
== '''Electronic Family Trees and Family Websites'''  ==
[[Image:Lesson 3 Apple tree.jpg|frame|right|350x300px]]


*[https://www.familysearch.org/ FamilySearch]: Largest free online collection of genealogical databases, including Ancestral File, International Genealogical Index, 1880 U.S. federal census index, Pedigree Resource File, U.S. Social Security Death Index, and the Vital Records Index—North America.
*[https://www.familysearch.org/ FamilySearch]: Largest free online collection of genealogical databases, including Ancestral File, International Genealogical Index, 1880 U.S. federal census index, Pedigree Resource File, U.S. Social Security Death Index, and the Vital Records Index—North America.
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== Directories of Genealogical Websites  ==
== Directories of Genealogical Websites  ==
 
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*[http://www.cyndislist.com/ Cyndi's List<span id="fck_dom_range_temp_1260565416542_253" />]: A large genealogical directory that can be searched by&nbsp;location or topic. Select a location or topic, then select a category of records or topics. Scroll to the specific record or topic desired.<br>
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*[http://www.cyndislist.com/ Cyndi's List]: A large genealogical directory that can be searched by&nbsp;location or topic. Select a location or topic, then select a category of records or topics. Scroll to the specific record or topic desired.<br>


*[http://ldsgenealogy.com LDS Genealogy]: an extensive directory of U.S. genealogy records
*[http://ldsgenealogy.com LDS Genealogy]: an extensive directory of U.S. genealogy records
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*[https://familysearch.org/search/ Family Search Historical Records]: A free site that contains indexes and images of&nbsp;U.S.,&nbsp;Canada, and international records. For the U.S., it includes&nbsp;selected federal and state censuses; birth, marriage, and death records; funeral home records, Freedman's Bank and Freedman's Bureau records; military pensions; probate records; passenger lists; WWI draft registrations; and land records. Check back often as this website is updated&nbsp;with new records regularly.
*[https://familysearch.org/search/ Family Search Historical Records]: A free site that contains indexes and images of&nbsp;U.S.,&nbsp;Canada, and international records. For the U.S., it includes&nbsp;selected federal and state censuses; birth, marriage, and death records; funeral home records, Freedman's Bank and Freedman's Bureau records; military pensions; probate records; passenger lists; WWI draft registrations; and land records. Check back often as this website is updated&nbsp;with new records regularly.


*[http://www.ancestry.com/ Ancestry]&nbsp;or [http://www.ancestryinstitution.com/ Ancestry Institution]&nbsp;$: Ancestry is a subscription site, but access is free in the Family History Library. Ancestry Institution, with a limited subset of Ancestry.com data, is available free in larger Family History Centers.
*[http://www.ancestry.com/ Ancestry]&nbsp;or [http://www.ancestry.com/ Ancestry Institution]&nbsp;$: Ancestry is a subscription site, but access is free in the FamilySearch Library. Ancestry Institution, with a limited subset of Ancestry.com data, is available free in larger FamilySearch Centers.


*[http://www.fold3.com Fold3] $: Contains digital original sources such as naturalizations, Revolutionary War papers, Civil War papers, Mormon Battalion pensions, newspapers, Southern Claims Commission, and Texas births and deaths. Free at the Family History Library and many Family History Centers.
*[http://www.fold3.com Fold3] $: Contains digital original sources such as naturalizations, Revolutionary War papers, Civil War papers, Mormon Battalion pensions, newspapers, Southern Claims Commission, and Texas births and deaths. Free at the FamilySearch Library and many FamilySearch Centers.


*[http://www.heritagequestonline.com/hqoweb/library/do/index HeritageQuest] $: This website contains indexes (1790-1820, 1860-1880, and 1900-1930) and images (1790-1930) to U.S. federal censuses; over 22,000 family and local histories; PERSI, an index to 2 million genealogical periodical articles; Revolutionary War pension and bounty-land warrants; Freedman’s Bank records; and U.S. Congressional records. It is free at the Family History Library, larger Family History Centers, and many public libraries.&nbsp;Check with your local library for free access to HeritageQuest.&nbsp;
*[http://www.heritagequestonline.com/hqoweb/library/do/index HeritageQuest] $: This website contains indexes (1790-1820, 1860-1880, and 1900-1930) and images (1790-1930) to U.S. federal censuses; over 22,000 family and local histories; PERSI, an index to 2 million genealogical periodical articles; Revolutionary War pension and bounty-land warrants; Freedman’s Bank records; and U.S. Congressional records. It is free at the FamilySearch Library, larger FamilySearch Centers, and many public libraries.&nbsp;Check with your local library for free access to HeritageQuest.&nbsp;


*[http://www.worldvitalrecords.com/ World Vital Records] $: A subscription website with vital records, church records, newspapers, and other information from around the world. Free access is available at many Family History Centers.
*[https://www.myheritage.com/ MyHeritage] $: A subscription website with vital records, church records, newspapers, and other information from around the world. Free access is available at many FamilySearch Centers.


*[http://www.myheritage.com/ My Heritage] free &amp; $ features: Subscription website with records (US and some international), family trees, articles, record matching.
*[http://www.myheritage.com/ My Heritage] free &amp; $ features: Subscription website with records (US and some international), family trees, articles, record matching.
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*[http://books.google.com/books Google]: Google Books contains a large number of public domain family histories and genealogies, plus many local and regional histories of value to genealogical researchers.
*[http://books.google.com/books Google]: Google Books contains a large number of public domain family histories and genealogies, plus many local and regional histories of value to genealogical researchers.


*[http://www.archive.org/ Internet Archive] contains public domain books, including family and local histories, records transcriptions, and more.
*[https://www.archive.org/ Internet Archive] contains public domain books, including family and local histories, records transcriptions, and more.


*[http://www.hathitrust.org/ HathiTrust Digital Library] millions of e-books including biographies, local histories, and more
*[http://www.hathitrust.org/ HathiTrust Digital Library] millions of e-books including biographies, local histories, and more
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== Libraries  ==
== Libraries  ==


*[https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Introduction_to_the_Family_History_Library_Catalog Introduction to the FamilySearch Catalog]: Explains how to use and search the FamilySearch Catalog at FamilySearch. (Also available in older versions on on compact disc, and on microfiche.)<br>
*[https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/Introduction_to_the_FamilySearch_Catalog Introduction to the FamilySearch Catalog]: Explains how to use and search the FamilySearch Catalog at FamilySearch. (Also available in older versions on on compact disc, and on microfiche.)<br>


*[http://www.worldcat.org/ WorldCat]: WorldCat is a union catalog of the collections of 71,000 libraries in 112 countries that participate in the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) global cooperative. It is built and maintained collectively by the participating libraries. Created in 1971, it is the world's largest bibliographic database, containing more than 150 million records pointing to over 1.4 billion physical and digital assets in more than 470 languages.<ref>Wikipedia contributors, "WorldCat," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WorldCat.</ref>
*[http://www.worldcat.org/ WorldCat]: WorldCat is a union catalog of the collections of 71,000 libraries in 112 countries that participate in the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) global cooperative. It is built and maintained collectively by the participating libraries. Created in 1971, it is the world's largest bibliographic database, containing more than 150 million records pointing to over 1.4 billion physical and digital assets in more than 470 languages.<ref>Wikipedia contributors, "WorldCat," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WorldCat.</ref>
*[http://libdex.com/country.html International Library Index by Country]: This is a listing of academic and public libraries around the world. Choose the country first, then go to the specific locality.


== Maps and Gazetteers  ==
== Maps and Gazetteers  ==


*[http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic Geographic Names Information System]: The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database that contains name and location information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories. It is a type of gazetteer. GNIS was developed by the United States Geological Survey in cooperation with the United States Board on Geographic Names (BGN) to promote the standardization of feature names.<ref>Wikipedia contributors, "Geographic Names Information System," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geographic_Names_Information_System</ref>
*[https://geonames.usgs.gov/apex/f?p=138:1:5707269042885 Geographic Names Information System]: The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database that contains name and location information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories. It is a type of gazetteer. GNIS was developed by the United States Geological Survey in cooperation with the United States Board on Geographic Names (BGN) to promote the standardization of feature names.<ref>Wikipedia contributors, "Geographic Names Information System," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geographic_Names_Information_System</ref>


*[http://www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/vocabularies/tgn/ Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names]: This website allows you to search for a geographic name and shows the hierarchy of jurisdictions associated with that location.
*[http://www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/vocabularies/tgn/ Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names]: This website allows you to search for a geographic name and shows the hierarchy of jurisdictions associated with that location.
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== Passenger Lists  ==
== Passenger Lists  ==


*[http://www.castlegarden.org/ Castle Garden]: Free index to New York City passenger arrivals from 1820 to 1892, containing roughly 12 million immigrants.
*[https://www.statueofliberty.org/discover/passenger-ship-search/ The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation, Inc.]


*[http://EllisIsland.org Ellis Island]: 1892-1924 New York City passenger arrival index and passenger list images showing ethnicity, arrival date, residence, age, ship, port of departure, passenger manifest image, and ship’s image. The site is also indexed at [http://stevemorse.org/ One-Step Webpages by Stephen P. Morse].
*[http://stevemorse.org/ One-Step Webpages by Stephen P. Morse].


*[http://www.immigrantships.net/ Immigrant Ships Transcriber's Guild]:&nbsp; Over 11,000 ships passenger manifests.
*[http://www.immigrantships.net/ Immigrant Ships Transcriber's Guild]:&nbsp; Over 11,000 ships passenger manifests.
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*[http://www.germanroots.com/onlinelists.html US Passenger Lists]: This website includes links to transcribed passenger records&nbsp;and&nbsp;indexes.
*[http://www.germanroots.com/onlinelists.html US Passenger Lists]: This website includes links to transcribed passenger records&nbsp;and&nbsp;indexes.


*[http://www.theshipslist.com/ The Ships List] Website containing transcriptions of worldwide passenger lists, newspaper records, shipwreck information, ship pictures, ship descriptions, shipping-line fleet lists and more.
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20240805101250/https://www.theshipslist.com/ The Ships List] Website containing transcriptions of worldwide passenger lists, newspaper records, shipwreck information, ship pictures, ship descriptions, shipping-line fleet lists and more.


== Search Engines  ==
== Search Engines  ==


*[http://www.google.com/ Google]<br>
*[http://www.google.com/ Google]<br>
 
*[http://www.dogpile.com/ DogPile]:DogPile is a metasearch engine.&nbsp;It gathers information from several search engines and&nbsp;displays them under&nbsp;one search site.&nbsp;This allows the user to search several search engines with only one&nbsp;display list.
*[http://www.dogpile.com/ DogPile]:DogPile is a metasearch engine.&nbsp;It gathers information from several search engines and&nbsp;displays them under&nbsp;one search site.&nbsp;This allows the user to search several search engines with only one&nbsp;display list.<br>
 
*[http://clusty.com/ Clusty]: Clusty is also a metasearch engine, but the results are delivered in clusters of information.<br>
 
*[http://stevemorse.org One-Step Webpages by Stephen P. Morse]: A search engine for selected genealogical websites.
*[http://stevemorse.org One-Step Webpages by Stephen P. Morse]: A search engine for selected genealogical websites.


*[http://www.mocavo.com Mocavo]: A genealogy search engine for free websites.
== Free Genealogy Lookups  ==
*[http://www.mocavo.com/karma Mocavo Karma]: Find volunteers to do free lookups.


== Worldwide State Archives  ==
== Worldwide State Archives  ==
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[[Category:Beginners]][[Category:Genealogy Websites and Online Collections]]
[[Category:Beginners]][[Category:Genealogy Websites and Online Collections]]