Genealogy Online

by Elizabeth Crowe

  Ethnic/National

  Here’s a list of some important ethnic pages:

  • Australian National Library (http://www.nla.gov.au/guides/#Genealogy_-_Australia) This is a subject guide page with links to Australian genealogy resources, organizations, military service records, and so on, as well as an online card catalog.

  • Center for Basque Studies (http://www.basque.unr.edu) This site, at the University of Nevada, Reno, covers history, anthropology, and other aspects of Basque culture.

  • Center for Jewish History (http://www.cjh.org) This site has a special section on family history at http://www.cjh.org/collections/genealogy/.

  • Christine’s African-American Genealogy Website (http://www.ccharity.com) This is an excellent site about African-American history and genealogy.

  • Federation of East European Family History Societies (http://www.feefhs.org) This site has databases, maps, and directories to help with genealogy in this region. The group is also on Facebook.

  • History and Genealogy of South Texas and Northeast Mexico (http://www.vsalgs.org/stnemgenealogy) This is an interesting source if you’re looking for relatives from the South Texas/Northeast Mexico area. The database has over 11,000 names, all linked as lineages.

  • Hungarian Genealogy (http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~wghungar) This is a good place to start if your research leads you to Hungary.

  • India Office Family History Search (http://indiafamily.bl.uk/UI/Home.aspx) This site has data taken from a card index at the British Library. The card index was compiled by members of staff at the India Office Records from the mid-1970s onwards to meet the growing interest in genealogy. Although less than 10 percent of the biographical sources available in the India Office Records were incorporated into the index, the site notes that future additions are in the works.

  • Johannes Schwalm Historical Association (http://www.jsha.org) This is a registry for descendants of Hessian soldiers, the German auxiliary troops the British used in the Revolutionary War. Many of them remained here, became citizens, and are the ancestors of thousands of Americans. JSHA maintains an archive of materials and resources at the Franklin and Marshall College Library. You can search the inventory of the archives at http://www.library.fandm.edu/archives/jsha.php.

  • New Zealand History Online (http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/handsonhistory/genealogy-links) This is a page of links to various sites with shipping lists, cemetery records, tribal history, archives, and so on in New Zealand.

  • Scotland’s People (http://www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk) This is one of the largest online sources of genealogical information, with almost 80 million records. This is the official government source for genealogy data in Scotland.

  • Spanish Heritage Home Page (http://www.shhar.net) This is a great site with articles, links, and networking resources for those researching Hispanic family history in the Western Hemisphere.

  Historical Background

  Certain historical events may have an impact on your genealogy. The following sites can give you some information on the people in history:

  • The History Detectives TV series (http://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/) This is a favorite of genealogy junkies across the United States. They take an object from a submission (click the link on the home page) and trace its history, provenance, and origins. Based on viewer submissions, the History Detectives investigated Goering’s gun, Lewis and Clark’s cane, an antislavery flag, Jean Lafitte’s spyglass and a Revolutionary War prisoner letter.

  • American Civil War Home Page (http://www.sunsite.utk.edu/civil-war) This site has links to fantastic online documents from many sources, including those of two academics who’ve made the Civil War their career.

  • British Civil War, Commonwealth, and Protectorate (http://www.british-civil-wars.co.uk) This site offers timelines, biographies, and military history on the United Kingdom from 1638 to 1660.

  • Calendars Through the Ages (http://www.webexhibits.org/calendars) This site explores the fascinating history of how we have tried to organize our lives in accordance with the sun.

  • Castle Garden (http://www.CastleGarden.org) This is the educational project of The Battery Conservancy. Castle Garden was a major port of entry for immigrants before Ellis Island opened. The free database has information on more than 11 million immigrants, spanning most of the nineteenth century.

  • Glossary of Terms Used in Past Times (http://www.johnowensmith.co.uk/histdate/terms.htm) This site, written by John Owen Smith, is a page of definitions of “assart,” “toft,” and other terms you may come across in old records.

  • Dan Mabry’s Historical Text Archive (http://www.historicaltextarchive.com/) This is a compilation of articles and documents on various topics. Of special interest are the collections on African-American history and genealogy.

  • Daughters of the American Revolution (http://www.dar.org) This is the organization for those who can prove an ancestor fought in the American Revolution. A free lookup in the DAR Patriot Index is just one of the site’s many features.

  • Fold3.com This is a site for original documents and photographs concerning American military history. The free membership allows you to create your own Footnote pages; search and browse all images, and documents; upload images to your gallery; annotate member images; upload, annotate, and print your own images; and view and search member images. The paid membership allows you more interaction, notations, and control.

  • Hauser-Hooser-Hoosier Theory: The Truth about Hoosier (http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Flats/7822) This site explains how genealogy solved the mystery regarding the term “Hoosier” in a whitepaper titled “Migration, Ministry, and a Moniker.”

  • Immigration: The Living Mosaic of People, Culture & Hope (http://www.library.thinkquest.org/20619) This is a student project about immigration in the United States.

  • Mayflower Web Pages (http://www.mayflowerhistory.com) These pages contain the passenger lists of the Mayflower, the Fortune, and the Anne, plus many related documents.

  • Medal of Honor Citations (http://www.history.army.mil/moh.html) This site contains the names and text of the citations for the more than 3,400 people who’ve been awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor since 1861.

  • Migrations (http://www.migrations.org) This site has two separate parts. First is a database of migration information submitted by volunteers (secondary source information, of course!), searchable by name and place. Second is a list of links to resources on migration.

  • The Olden Times (http://www.theoldentimes.com/newsletterpage.html) This site has historic newspapers online that can be searched for free.

  • Pitcairn Island Website (http://www.lareau.org/genweb.html) This is one place to go for information on over 7,500 descendants of the crew of the H.M.S. Bounty, of Mutiny on the Bounty fame. Another good site for history and to buy stamps and coins is found at the island’s government site: http://www.government.pn/.

  • Sons of the American Revolution (http://www.sar.org) This site has information on this organization’s genealogical library, articles from its quarterly magazine, the history of the American Revolution, and more.

  • United States Civil War Center (http://www.lib.lsu.edu/cwc) This site from Louisiana State University publishes book reviews, research tips, and articles about studying the War Between the States.

  Libraries

  Search the web catalogs (Yahoo!, Lycos, Google, and so on) for “library” plus “state” or “national” or the region you need. Some state libraries also have special genealogical collections, which you might find with a search such as “Michigan State library genealogy.” These are some of the best library sites for genealogy:

  • Abrams Collection, Archives of Michigan (http://www.the-abrams-foundation.org/grantees/archives-of-michigan/) The Library of Michigan’s genealogy collection is known as the Abrams Foundation Historical Collection. The Abrams Collection provides a variety of resources for researchers to explore their family h
istory. Materials are mostly for states east of the Mississippi River. This includes the Great Lakes, New England, Mid-Atlantic, Southern states, and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The Abrams Collection Genealogy Highlights lists what researchers can find at this wonderful library. From assistance on specific genealogy topics to an online newsletter, this page lists resources at the Library of Michigan and at other libraries and research centers.

  • Allen Public Library Genealogy Division (http://www.genealogycenter.org) This is one of the leading genealogy departments in a public library in the United States. Be sure to use the library’s online catalog to prepare before you make a trip to this outstanding facility. This will help orient you to the scope of the collection and help you plan your actual research time in the department. Also, be sure to check the library’s main webpage (http://www.acpl.lib.in.us) for any important news and announcements regarding hours or closures. Librarians experienced in genealogical research are always on duty to answer your questions.

  • Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research (www2.houstonlibrary.org/clayton) This library is in Houston, Texas, but with much more genealogy information than just Texas research resources. The site has searches for their collections, microprint collection, periodical collection, and online catalog.

  • Connecticut State Library History and Genealogy Unit (http://www.cslib.org/handg.htm) This page explains the special collections and services the state library has for genealogists.

  • Elmer’s Genealogy Corner (http://www.elmersgenealogycorner.com/) This site, established by Elmer C. Spear, features Madison County, Florida, and several other categories of records. Elmer is a past Genealogist of the Year in Florida.

  • Gateway to Northwestern Ontario History (http://images.ourontario.ca/gateway/search) This site has more than 1,000 photographs and drawings, as well as the full text of several books.

  • Indiana State Library Genealogy Division (http://www.in.gov/library/genealogy.htm) This site has searchable databases and an online card catalog.

  • Midwest Genealogy Center (http://www.mcpl.lib.mo.us/genlh/mgc.htm) This is a branch of the Mid-Continent Public Library, based in Independence, Missouri. The branch has its own page, building and card catalog and participates in interlibrary loans.

  • Mobile Local History and Genealogy (http://www.mplonline.org/lhg.htm) This site covers the area from Pascagoula to Pensacola. The Local History Collection includes works by local authors, Mobile histories, periodicals, an extensive clippings file, Mobile newspapers on microfilm from 1819 to the present, city directories back to 1837, and the federal census records for most of the southeastern states. A recent addition to the collection is the Mobile Historic Development Commission’s survey of historic architecture in Mobile, with 10,000 images stored and indexed on CD-ROM.

  • Repositories of Primary Sources (http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/special-collections/other.repositories.html) This site is a listing of over 5,000 websites describing holdings of manuscripts, archives, rare books, historical photographs, and other primary sources. Sorted by geographical region, this site is worth a look.

  • South Carolina State Library (http://www.statelibrary.sc.gov) This is the online card catalog for the South Carolina Library, which houses an extensive collection of genealogy holdings. Be sure to look at the pages under the menu choice “S. C. Information” for links to sites with obituary records, history of counties and towns, and libraries across the state.

  • Texas Archival Resources Online (http://www.lib.utexas.edu/taro/index.html) This site is just a really large index in a way. You use a drop-down box to search specific repositories for descriptions of archival materials, manuscripts, and museum collections held in repositories across the state.

  • Texas General Land Office (http://www.glo.texas.gov) Just like the federal GLO, this site has volumes of land records. In fact, one genealogy speaker, James Harkins, said they scan 5,000 records a week. Poke around in the collections; search the Texas Land grant database, the online map database, the online surname index, and all archival collections located at the GLO, and learn how to use the GISweb Mapping Viewer. Also, look into buying one of their research guides.

  • Texas State Library and Archives (http://www.tsl.state.tx.us) This site for the library in Austin, Texas, has a genealogy page with various links, such as an index for county records on microfilm. These films are available for free via interlibrary loan within Texas. The TSLA also has microfilm of the federal census schedules for all states through 1910, selected states from the 1920 and 1930 censuses, printed family and county histories, and a variety of Texas government records. As with all state archives and manuscripts, the riches here are mind-boggling.

  • Virginia Memory (http://www.virginiamemory.com) A starting point where you can search Virginia colonial records, as well as bible records, newspapers, court records, and state documents.

  Sources of Free Online Books

  When a book outlives its copyright in the country where it was registered, it becomes public domain. Many sites on the Internet are dedicated to gathering audio and textual versions of such books, and genealogy books are among these projects. Here is a list of sites you might consider searching for terms such as “genealogy” and “history”:

  • Books Should Be Free (http://www.bookshouldbefree.com) has thousands of titles, including public-domain audiobooks and e-books in formats for iPhone, Android, Kindle, and MP3 players. When I searched for genealogy, I got only about 30 results, but some of them were quite interesting titles, such as The Tribes and Castes of the Central Provinces of India.

  • Digital Public Library of America (http://www.dp.la/) is a project to allow access to digital resources of American libraries and archives. This includes, among many others, the NewYork Public Library, University of Michigan, Harvard University, and the Library of Congress. Bookshelf is the catalog to search, as it has over 1.6 million items. Clicking a search result will redirect you to the page of the institution that holds that specific item.

  • Europeana (http://www.europeana.eu/) and The European Library (http://www.theeuropeanlibrary.org) are online catalogs of digitized and physical items from European museums, libraries, and archives. Sometimes, you find books; sometimes, other media. Some are digitized, like Project Gutenberg, but some are not. The best way to search is to choose Text and Public Domain before putting in your search terms.

  • Internet Archives (http://www.archive.org) is a nonprofit Internet library. It offers access to historical collections in digital format. The last time I searched for “genealogy” there, I got 85,000 hits, many of them single surname genealogies. Searching for “Powell genealogy” got nearly 100 hits. These results were almost all available for download. Based on U.S. copyright, it nevertheless has materials in many languages.

  • Open Library (http://www.openlibrary.org) is actually a lending library of all titles, digital or not, held by many U.S. libraries. First, determine whether your library participates, usually by entering the number under the barcode on your library card. Then start searching to find titles, many of which you can load onto your e-reader for two weeks.

  • Project Gutenberg (http://www.gutenberg.org) is the original online access to public-domain books. Started in 1971 by Michael Hart, it is a collection of books that are out of copyright in the United States. There are over 42,000 of them, and many are self-published genealogies.

  • Projekti Lönnrot (http://www.lonnrot.net) is a collection of public-domain books in Finnish and Swedish. It’s a cooperative, volunteer effort, so what is there represents what someone was willing to scan, index, and upload.

  • World Public Library (http://www.worldlibrary.org) is what it says. Audio, video, and text are available online—some of it is in the public domain, but not all. The materials under copyright may only be on your device or computer for a limited time, or may only available to read in your browser. Still, it is a fantastic collection of materials, with a plethora of hi
ts on “genealogy” in all media.

  Maps, Geography, and More

  “Where is that township?” is sometimes a hard question to answer. It can be even harder to find a community that no longer exists, or where county or state lines were moved. Searching for “historical maps” and the name of the county, state, province, or nation in question may turn up a hit in Google, Yahoo!, or other search sites. An excellent article on this topic can be found at http://www.joycetice.com/articles/place.htm. It’s titled “You Gotta Know the Territory—The Links between Genealogy, Geography, and Logic.” Some other good sites to help with maps include:

  • Deed Platter (http://www.genealogytools.net/deeds) If the deed with your ancestor has the metes and bounds, you can have this site draw a map. Learning to do this can sometimes help you see a connection you didn’t see before.

  • The Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library (http://www.libs.uga.edu/hargrett/index.shtml) This library at the University of Georgia has a collection of over 800 historic maps spanning five centuries.

  • Global Gazetteer Version 2.2 (http://www.fallingrain.com/world/index.html) This is a directory of over a quarter million of the world’s cities and towns, sorted by country and linked to a map for each town.

  • GEONET Names Server (http://earth-info.nga.mil/gns/html/) This site lets you search for worldwide geographic feature names, and it responds with latitude and longitude coordinates. For names in the United States and Antarctica, visit the U.S. Geological Survey site (http://www.usgs.gov) or the Geographic Names Information System site (http://geonames.usgs.gov). The GNS contains 4 million features with 5.5 million names.