Top Ten 21 Century Genealogy Websites st
Thomas Jay Kemp Director of Genealogy Products GenealogyBank.com Family History Expos 23 February 2013
Ancestry.com
Ancestry.com • Essential Tool – Mission Critical • • • •
• Ancestry – FamilySearch – Pinterest - Facebook • ‘Permanent’ record sites Makes it fun & easy Put your family history here Begin with first generation where the couple have both passed away Put everything you know about the family online – Hold nothing back – Photos, documents
• Encourage your relatives to participate
• Your tree can’t be changed
Facebook.com
Facebook.com • Essential Tool – Mission Critical • Ancestry – FamilySearch – Pinterest - Facebook • ‘Permanent’ record sites
• Put your family history online • Essential for children, grandchildren - Magnet for cousins – Photos, documents – Explain why they are essential – Practical; appropriate
• Connect with your extended ‘living’ family
Facebook.com
Family Photos, Clippings
Robert & Abigail (Haskell) Starbird
Garcelon.Free.fr
Garcelon site
Site included scans of original documents
FamilySearch.org
FamilySearch.org • Essential Tool – Mission Critical • Ancestry – FamilySearch – Pinterest Facebook • ‘Permanent’ record sites • Keep family tree on both Ancestry & FamilySearch – keep both current • Put up everything – sources, photos
FamilySearch.org – – – –
700 Million Digital Images 2 billion transcribed records 3 billion searchable name Census • Federal • State Census: FL, MA, SD, WI
– Vital Records • AZ, GA. ID, IL, LA, MI, PA, UT, WV, WA, WI and more
– International • Census; Parish Registers; Vital Records
FamilySearch.org
FamilySearch: Family History Books http://books.familysearch.org/
• Your library on demand – 24/7 • 40,000 genealogies & local histories – and growing • Can search on every word • Can download page or complete book • Permanent URL • Books from many libraries, individuals • Can upload your “book” – permanent site
FamilySearch: Research Wiki https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Main_Page
• Essential Tool • Best one-stop source – Tips, How to, Where to • Links to FamilySearch Collections; outside sources • English, German, Spanish, etc. • Books from many libraries, individuals • Like having an on call librarian 24/7
FamilySearch: Research Wiki https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Main_Page
Find-A-Grave
https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Main_Page
• • • • • •
Essential Tool Crowdsourced – be a part of it Also searchable through Ancestry.com English, German, Spanish, etc. Books from many libraries, individuals Like having an on call librarian 24/7
Find-A-Grave
https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Main_Page
Find-A-Grave
https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/Main_Page
GenealogyBank.com
GenealogyBank www.GenealogyBank.com
– Best source for old newspapers on the planet! • Newspapers – 1690 to Today • Over 6,500 newspapers – All 50 States
– Government Documents, Books & Reports • US Serial Set • American State Papers • US Army Register; Navy Register; etc.
– Over 219 million obituaries & death records
GenealogyBank.com Newspapers
Discover Your Ancestors in Newspapers
Obituaries
Birth & Marriage Notices
Books.Google.com
Google Book Search
http://books.google.com
• Millions of books – Over 1 million genealogies & local histories
• Can search on every word • Can download book and retain searchability • Permanent URL • Can create your own “library” on Google Books or your own computer
http://books.google.com/
http://books.google.com/
http://books.google.com/
GoogleBook Search
http://books.google.com
GoogleBook Search
http://books.google.com
GoogleBook Search
http://books.google.com
Archive.org
Internet Archive www.Archive.org
• More than 3.9 million books – Over 400,000 genealogies & local histories
Can search on every word Can download book and retain searchability Permanent URL Books from many libraries Can create your own “library” on your computer • Can upload your “book” – permanent site • • • • •
www.archive.org
Over 1,600 city directories
Over 1,600 city directories
ChroniclingAmerica.loc.gov
Library of Congress Chronicling America http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/
• • • • •
Project to digitize US newspapers 5.2 million pages 1836-1922 26 States Slow build
Library of Congress Chronicling America http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/
Pinterest.com
http://pinterest.com/
• Essential Tool – Mission Critical • Ancestry – FamilySearch – Pinterest - Facebook • ‘Permanent’ record sites
• Organize the photos of your family history • Create ‘Boards’ • • • • •
Towns where they lived Heirlooms Photos describing an event Photos that tell their story Generally not for personal/portrait photos
http://pinterest.com/
http://pinterest.com/
Scribd.com
Scribd
http://www.scribd.com/
• Put ‘your story’ online • Family History • Put your research reports online • Change & Update - often
• Every word searchable – Google, Bing etc. • Make your family history easy to find
Scribd
http://www.scribd.com/
Scribd
http://www.scribd.com/
Scribd
http://www.scribd.com/
USGenWeb.org
U.S. GenWeb Project http://usgenweb.org/
• Started in 1996 • Consistently valuable • Crowdsourced • Uneven • Changed & Updated - often
• Feels like yesterday – but you need it today
U.S. GenWeb Project http://usgenweb.org/
Thank You Thomas Jay Kemp Director of Genealogy Products GenealogyBank.com Family History Expos 23 February 2013