Genealogy on the Internet

Prepared for the 2009 Senior Connections Computer Fair by Rebecca Shives,York County Libraries; May 2009. 

This is not meant to be an exhaustive list of genealogy sites.  It is intended to give the beginner an idea of what is available and where to begin a search online. 

FamilySearch - updated 05/09
www.familysearch.org

This non-profit site is run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It contains a number of searchable databases, as well as the catalog of the world’s largest genealogical library.

Although a search screen appears on the Home page, clicking on Advanced Search under Search Records will take you to a more detailed search screen laid out like a genealogical chart. Use this screen to simultaneously search the Ancestral File, a selection of census records, the International Genealogical Index, the Pedigree Resource File, the Social Security Death Index, the Vital Records Index, and websites that have been gathered and categorized by FamilySearch volunteers. Or, select just one of these resources to search, by clicking on the menu on the left.

A new Record Search pilot is also available in the Search Records menu.  This allows you to search all indexed records as well as browse through images of records waiting to be indexed.

The following databases are included in the basic (Home page), Advanced, and pilot searches:

Ancestral File - Ancestral File is a collection of genealogical information taken from Pedigree Charts and Family Group Records submitted by individuals to the Family History Department since 1978. The information has not been verified against any official records. The submitter’s name and address is available. Information can be viewed as individuals, families, or as a pedigree chart.

Census - The Census search includes the 1880 United States, 1881 British Isles, and the 1881 Canadian Census. You can search one or all.

International Genealogical Index - This index, a compilation of individual research and original records, is the world's largest collection of genealogical records. It contains the names of millions of deceased persons from throughout the world who lived between 1500 and 1885 and includes dates and places of births, christenings, and marriages.

Pedigree Resource File - The Pedigree Resource File is a lineage-linked database of records available on compact disc containing family history records submitted by individuals through FamilySearch Internet Genealogy Service. Family information is organized in family groups and pedigrees and includes submitted notes and sources. Many charts and reports can be printed from this data. Each disc contains about 1.1 million names. Discs may be purchased individually or as sets.

Vital Records Index - Currently includes records from Mexico and Scandinavia only.

Family History Web Sites - This is a search of websites that have been collected and categorized by FamilySearch volunteers.

Clustered beneath Library on the menu bar are a number of useful resources:

Family History Library Catalog - The Family History Library Catalog link appears below Search Records as well as in the menu below Library. This link will take you to the online catalog of the world’s largest genealogical library with entries for over 2 million rolls of microfilm and hundreds of thousands of books and maps. (Click on Family History Library in the Library menu to learn more.)  The library does not interlibrary loan materials, but microfilm can be loaned to local Family History Centers. (See below.)  The catalog is searchable by place name, surname, and keyword, in addition to title, author, and subject.  Three online video lessons are available to help you learn more about using the catalog.

Family History Centers - This searchable directory helps you locate the Family History Center nearest you. Locations and hours are given.

Education - The Education page points you to a number of useful resources:

Research Guidance is a tool that helps you decide what records to use to find information about your ancestors. You begin by selecting a place—where your ancestor was born, married, died, etc. Then you select the event and a date range. You are then presented with a brief historical context and an extensive search strategy including systematic instructions, research tips, explanations for each step, and links to other resource areas.

Research Helps are found by clicking on Family History Library Publications.  These are grouped by type of document and then arranged in alphabetical order. Using the menu on the left, you can sort instead by place, title, or subject (for example, Cemeteries or Census).

Online classes are now offered on the website.  They are made up of lesson videos that can be watched online or downloaded.  Lesson outlines are also available.

Preserve Your Genealogy

From the FamilySearch.org home page, click on the Share tab. You must register as a member before you are taken to a page detailing how to submit your genealogy to FamilySearch. Once submitted, a copy of your file will be placed in the Granite Mountain Records Vault, located near Salt Lake City, Utah, for preservation. It will also be published in a CD-ROM version of the Pedigree Resource File, which is available for purchase at near cost and indexed on the FamilySearch website. It may also be posted on the Internet as part of the Ancestral File or made available for no charge at a Family History Center near you.

Personal Ancestral File, a free family tree program that allows you to quickly and easily collect, organize and share your family history and genealogy, is also available on the website.  A Download PAF link appears below Free PAF Family History Software in the lower right portion of the home page.  A new PAF Companion is also available that will let you print your family tree in colorful ancestor and descendant charts.

RootsWeb - updated 05/09
www.rootsweb.com

Although owned by Ancestry.com, RootsWeb continues as the oldest and largest free genealogy site on the Internet. It is a complex (and sometimes confusing) but highly useful site providing hundreds of millions of names in free databases, plus thousands of mailing lists and message boards. It also provides access to a variety of search engines, online family trees, an interactive learning guide, a weekly newsletter, and much, much more.

As part of its commitment to keeping genealogy data free on the Internet, RootsWeb hosts thousands of independently authored genealogy websites—from major sites such as the WorldGenWeb to personal sites concerned with a single family or surname.

A search box appears on the RootsWeb home page that allows you to search over 40 of the major databases found at RootsWeb. In addition, a number of search engines are available. You will find them listed in the menu on the left side of the home page.

The RootsWeb site also provides two small but very useful databases. The U.S. Town and County Database (under Search Engines) lets you search the names of all United States towns and cities to find out which county or state has potential matches. The Soundex Converter (under Other Tools) will return the Soundex code for the entered surname, plus other surnames/spellings sharing the same Soundex code.

RootsWeb Surname List - The RootsWeb Surname List or RSL is a database of over 1 million surnames registered by tens of thousands of people. Surnames are listed with areas and dates relating to the family and can lead to contacts with others researching the same lines.

To search this database, go to the RootsWeb home page and click on the RSL link (under Search Engines and Databases on the left side of the page.) At the RSL page, click on Search the RSL Database. 

The search results will often include dates. These indicate the earliest and latest years for which the lister has information about the family. You will also find the migration of the family: where they started out, where they moved to, and where they ended up. (A list of the abbreviations used is available.) Most importantly, there is a link to the submitter’s full name, address (if provided), and email address. Note also the link to See all surname entries by this submitter. This is often a good indicator of a family connection.

At the top of the results page, you will find a link to Alternate Surnames. These are the less commonly used versions of a surname.

Back at the RSL home page, you will see a link to Add or edit your Surnames. Clicking on this link will take you to the RootsWeb Surname List Interactive Data Edit/Submission Form. Follow the Getting started—first time users link for step-by-step instructions.

RootsWeb’s WorldConnect Project - WorldConnect is the RootsWeb GEDCOM hosting service. Found under Family Trees on the left side of the page, this database is currently made up of over 480 million names, submitted by individuals as part of family trees in the GEDCOM format.

Using the Advanced Search, you can search by surname (using exact spelling, Soundex, or Metaphone) and/or given name; by birth date/place, death date/place, and/or marriage date/place; and combined with parents’ and/or spouse’s names. Results appear in chart form with links to each individual’s information.

This is also an ideal place to post your genealogy online. On the right side of the opening WorldConnect screen, under Submit Your Family Tree to WorldConnect, you will see a Start Here link. On the next screen, you assign yourself a user code and password, which will allow you to upload your GEDCOM file. This user code and password also allow you to come back at any time and revise or reupload your GEDCOM file and display parameters. Your family tree may also be submitted by mail.

Your file becomes part of the WorldConnect database, which can be searched from the same opening screen. As with all databases at RootsWeb, this one is free. 

RootsWeb’s Guide to Tracing Family Trees - This guide (found under Getting Started on the main RootsWeb page) is made up of over thirty interactive lessons beginning with "Where to Begin?" and covering names, using technology, various types of records, searching for your roots in a number of different countries, and topics like “What is the question?” and “Why you can’t find them”.  

USGenWeb Project - updated 05/09
www.usgenweb.org

The USGenWeb Project consists of a group of volunteers working together to provide Internet websites for genealogical research in every county and every state of the United States. USGenWeb also sponsors special projects at the national level. Volunteers engaged in the USGenWeb Project take on various projects for which they gather and transcribe data that is then put online.  Click on Projects in the menu bar across the top of the main page for a list.

USGenWeb Project "National Archives" Search Engine - All project data is stored in the USGenWeb Project Archives. The National Archives search engine allows you to search the contents of all of the text files in the Archives simultaneously.  It is located in the menu on the right under Search Engines and has the confusing name Nat'l Archives.  Two additional search engines are listed: Projects Archives and State Archives.  They are the same.  The advantage to using one of these is that you can narrow your search to a single state.

USGenWeb’s State Project - You can get to a state page by clicking in the list of states in the left column of the USGenWeb’s home page or by clicking on States in the menu bar across the top.  The latter will take you to a page where you will find links to the states by map or list. Each state page contains information at the state level plus links to each county within that state.  On the county pages, you will find a wealth of county-related information and links.  Each state and county is adopted by a volunteer, so content can vary. Often a county site will include local addresses, research tips, queries on local families, indexes, databases, and more.
 

WorldGenWeb Project - updated 05/09
www.worldgenweb.org

The goal of the WorldGenWeb Project is to have every country in the world represented by a website, hosted by a volunteer who lives in that country or is familiar with its resources. Over half the countries in the world are currently represented. The WorldGenWeb Project is divided into 11 World Regions. Each region is divided up by countries.  Some countries are further divided into individual provinces, states, or counties.

Content of these websites varies, but often includes local resource addresses of county/country public records offices, cemetery locations, maps, library addresses, archive addresses, association addresses including Family History Centers or other genealogical or historical societies, history and culture of the region, query pages or message boards, mailing lists, historical data, census records, cemetery records, biographies, bibliographies, and family/surname registration websites.
 

Government Databases

The U.S. government is the creator of some of the most basic genealogical sources. Government sites often provide excellent information on what is available, where it is located, and how it can be used or requested. In addition, online access to government data is growing.

Some government records are available online through non-government sites. Notable examples include the Social Security Death Index and census records.

National Archives Genealogy Page - updated 05/09
www.archives.gov/genealogy/index.html

In general, National Archives and Records Administration records cannot be accessed online via the Internet. However, this website provides an excellent guide to what is available at the Washington, DC research rooms and the 13 regional facilities of the National Archives and Records Administration. It provides many of the finding aids, guides, and research tools that can prepare you for a visit or for requesting records from the NARA. 

The website also includes a list of NARA publications that may be requested or purchased and a schedule of genealogical workshops and courses offered by the NARA.  (Links to both appear in the menu on the left.)

Click on Forms, Tools & Aids in the menu on the left for a list of Research Tools and Ways to Search Online.  The first link in the list is to the Archival Research Catalog (ARC). This is the online catalog of NARA's nationwide holdings in the Washington, DC area, Regional Archives, and Presidential Libraries. You can search by keyword, date, location, and type of material.  Below the ARC, there is a link to the Access to Archival Databases (AAD).  (See below.)

The Microfilm Catalog, also listed under Forms, Tools & Aids, is a searchable web database of NARA's over 3,000 numbered microfilm publications. These publications may be searched by keyword, microfilm ID, Record Group Number, and/or NARA location. Each description indicates all NARA locations that have copies of a microfilm publication in part or in full. Every microfilm publication description also indicates whether or not the publication is for sale or rent and provides a link to information about where and how the publication may be obtained.

National Archives Access to Archival Databases - updated 05/09
www.archives.gov/aad

The AAD (Access to Archival Databases) system is also listed in the Forms, Tools & Aids section of the NARA website.  It can also be easily accessed from the URL above. The AAD contains material from more than 30 series of electronic records. The series selected for AAD identify specific persons, geographic areas, organizations, or dates. Some of these series serve as indexes to records in non-electronic formats.

AAD allows you to search for and retrieve specific records from selected series and data files over the Internet.  A much-improved global site search appears at the top of the page.  Results of your search are grouped by data file and indicate the number of hits in each.  Below the global search bar, you can also browse by data file category or by date.  Records may be viewed, printed or copied to your own computer to save as an electronic file.

Social Security Death Index - updated 05/09

The Social Security Death Index is available at a number of sites including RootsWeb and FamilySearch, where it is free, and Ancestry.com, where it is not. This index is generated from the U.S. Social Security Administration’s Death Master File. It contains the records of deceased persons who possessed Social Security numbers and whose death has been reported to the SSA. About 98% of the people in the SSDI died after 1962, but a few death dates go back as far as 1937. Because legal aliens in the U.S. can obtain a Social Security card, their names may appear in the SSDI if their deaths are reported. Some 400,000 railroad retirees are also included in the SSDI.

In the past decade or so, there have been numerous changes to these procedures. All known deaths of Americans are now recorded, regardless of the person’s age, Social Security status, or death benefits paid. As a result, you may find, within the last ten years, death records for many people—even children—who have never received benefits—even though there are no comparable death records for twenty years ago. Unfortunately, there are no plans to record such deaths from earlier decades.

SSDI entries may include surname, given name, social security number, date of birth, date of death, last known residence, location of last benefit, and place and date of issuance. Not all entries include all information.

A link is often provided that will take you to a page that includes a standard letter to the Social Security Administration. This letter may be printed and mailed to the Social Security Administration to request a copy of your ancestor's SS-5 form. This form may contain additional information including father’s full name, mother’s full name and maiden name, place of birth, employer, etc. However, not all information is available and that information is not necessarily correct. What appears is only what was entered by the individual. The Social Security Administration charges $27.00 for each individual copy.  Birth, death, marriage, and divorce records may also be ordered at this site using the VitalChek service.

ARIAS, the Archives Records Information Access System - updated 05/09
www.digitalarchives.state.pa.us/index.asp

ARIAS is designed to facilitate citizen access to archival records created by all branches and levels of Pennsylvania State Government. Record series currently online are:

• PA National Guard Veteran's Card File, 1867-1921 
• Civil War Veterans' Card File 
• Revolutionary War Military Abstract Card File 
• World War I Service Medal Application Cards 
• Spanish American War Veterans' Card File of United States Volunteers 
• Mexican Border Campaign Veterans' Card File 
• Militia Officers Index Cards, 1775-1800 

Vital Records

Vital records (i.e. birth, death, marriage, and divorce) are government records, often housed at the state level, but—especially in the case of older records—also found in county depositories. Vital records themselves are rarely found on the Internet. However, there are several sites that make finding and obtaining these records easy and convenient.

Where to Write for Vital Records - updated 05/09
www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w.htm

This directory, a service of the National Center for Health Statistics, can be searched by state. Information is then listed by event (i.e. birth, marriage, death, etc.). Not only will you find where to write, but also the cost of obtaining a copy and details on what is available and from whom.

Vitalrec.com - updated 05/09
www.vitalrec.com

Vitalrec.com offers addresses for county as well as state repositories. In addition, it offers printable/downloadable forms for requesting records, as well as complete instructions on how to go about it.  Although Vitalrec’s emphasis is on U. S. records, there is also a page of links to foreign vital record sites.

Cyndi’s List - updated 05/09
www.cyndislist.com

The most well-known and highly regarded genealogical directory on the Web, Cyndi’s List is searchable as well as browseable. Categories cover both topical and geographical research and link the user to over 260,000 genealogical sites.

A search of Cyndi's List can be conducted by typing your keywords into the Google search box on the home page and pressing Enter. 

A search will take you to a page with a list of categories containing your keywords. Clicking on a category will take you to a new page with category links at the top. If you scroll down you will see the list of sites contained within each category. Not all of them contain your search terms.

Often the list is long and it is difficult to find the site you want. A quick way to locate the sites containing your keywords is to use your browser's Find feature.