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Genealogy Resources on the Web
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Genealogy or family history research is one of the most popular hobbies in the world. At one time, to research your family, you needed to visit the places where your ancestors lived and conduct research at the local libraries, historical societies, and courthouses to find the information you needed.
With the advent of the computer and development of the Internet, genealogical research has gotten a little easier. Today there are hundreds of thousands of Web pages devoted to genealogy.
But keep one fact in mind: you will not find your complete family history using only online resources. The Internet is only a tool to assist you in finding the actual documentation that you need to document your family history.
 Doing the Groundwork As with any genealogy research, it is important to lay the groundwork. Using pedigree charts and family group sheets, begin to compile what you know about your family, beginning with yourself. Visit local libraries, historical societies, and archives to find information about your family. If your family settled close to where you live, it might be easy for you to fill in those blanks but, remember, many libraries, historical societies, and archives collect materials from places where settlers came from originally. Discover your local Family History Center provided by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS). As part of its religious beliefs, the LDS church and its members have microfilmed and archived a large number of vital records from all over the world. Many of these materials are available at a local Family History Center or can be ordered from the Family History Library in Salt Lake City for you to use at the Center.
How the Internet Enhances Genealogical Research The Internet provides three services to the family history researcher:
What the Internet Cannot Do The Internet cannot provide the following to researchers:
Genealogical Resources Available at Morton Grove Public Library HeritageQuest Online HeritageQuest Online currently provides over 28,000 family and local history books that can be read online, or downloaded to your computer.. These books are searchable by every word in the title, author or text. The U.S. Federal Census Records are available in digitized form. Census records are being added with a completion date of year end 2002 for all images through 1930 and complete indexes of the census completed by 2003. Currently researchers can search the following census years: 1790, 1800, 1810 and 1870. Census images with locality browsing are currently available for the following years: 1790-1840, 1870 and 1910. PERSI is the Periodical Source Index, a subject index of genealogical and local history periodicals written in English and French (Canada) since 1800. The Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Grant Application Files is a collection of over 80,000 individuals who fought during the Revolutionary War and each veteran's file usually contains at least six pages including the veteran's former rank, unit, and period of service, age or date of birth, residence, and occasionally additional information on family members. The Freedman's Bank Records document over 70,000 freed slave bank depositors and their nearly 480,000 dependants and heirs. To access HeritageQuest Online:
Go to the Morton Grove Public Library homepage at www.webrary.org.
Other Tools Available at Morton Grove Public Library
Go to the Morton Grove Public Library homepage at www.webrary.org.
Starting Out Using the Internet Try using one of the genealogical tutorials that are available:
Genealogy Reference and Documentation Tools Social Security Death Index Vital Records Information FamilySearch American Family Immigration History Center Castle Garden: America's First Immigration Center RootsWeb Genealogical Data Cooperative USGenWeb Project Cyndi's Genealogy Homepage National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
Explore Discussion Lists Electronic mail, or email, brings a new method of resource sharing to the world of genealogy. Discussion groups, sometimes referred to as a "list" or a "mailing list" are popping up in cyberspace. And, best of all, there is a group for everyone. RootsWeb hosts many of them. There are lists for researchers researching specific surnames, specific localities, specific ethnic groups, occupations, and many more. There is a down side to the groups, however. They are limited to those who have an e-mail account through an employer, school, or an Internet Service Provider. In her Web site, Mailing Lists, Cyndi Howell has created a database of mailing groups, newsgroups, and Discussion Groups. If you are new to the world of electronic genealogy, start exploring ways to communicate with others who share surnames, common ethnic backgrounds, or just the pleasure of discovering a new resource. If you decide to subscribe, follow the instructions exactly as they are written. Once you've subscribed, get ready for mail! Many lists offer the alternative of a "digest" form, which is a good way to begin with an electronic discussion group. If you choose this option, your messages come to you in large batches instead of individual messages. Most genealogy lists are busy, and you'll see all levels of interest, from experienced researchers and educators to novices who are just beginning.
Networking with Others Search using a surname in any general search engine (Google, Yahoo, AltaVista) or search a surname in one of the Surname Databases in websites such as Cyndi's List, RootsWeb, or Ancestry. Rules to Using Discussion Lists Posting to a Discussion List.
When posting to a discussion list using e-mail use the following suggestions:
Cautions and Concerns
Libraries with Genealogical Collections
Archives
Historical & Genealogical Societies Historical and Genealogical Societies can be useful places to research your family. Local societies are: The following link will assist you in locating the society that will meet your needs.
Morton Grove Genealogy Links The Morton Grove Public Library maintains a Delicious account of bookmarked websites covering all areas of genealogy research. You can access that list at: delicious.com/mgplgenealogy
Bibliography
Clifford, Karen. The Complete Beginner's Guide to Genealogy, the Internet, and Your Genealogy Computer Program. 2001. 929.1 CLI Crowe, Elizabeth Powell. Genealogy Online. 2008. 929.1 CRO Crume, Rick. Plugging Into Your Past: How to Find Real Family History Records Online. 2004. 929.1 CRU The Family Tree Guide Book to Europe: Your Passport to Tracing Your Genealogy Across Europe. 2003. 929.1 FAM Helm, Matthew. Genealogy Online for Dummies.2008. 929.1 HEL Hendrickson, Nancy. Finding Your Roots Online.2003. 929.1 HEN Howells, Cyndi. Planting Your Family Tree Online: How to Create Your Own Family History Web Site.2003. 929.1 HOW Kemp, Thomas Jay. Virtual Roots 2.0: A Guide to Genealogy and Local History on the World Wide Web. 2003. 929.1 KEM Kovacs, Diane. Genealogical Research on the Web. 2002 . 929.1 KOV Kyle, Noeline. Writing family history made very easy. 2007. 929.1 KYL Richley, Pat. The Everything Online Genealogy Book : Use the Web to Discover Long-lost Relations, Trace Your Family Tree Back to Royalty, and Share Your History with Far-flung Cousins. 2000. 929.1 RIC Smith, Drew (Andrew Martin).Social Networking for Genealogists. 2009. 929.1 SMI
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