Genealogy biography

Welcome to the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives' Genealogy Research Guide. That guide identifies a select list outline resources of digital collections, subscriptions, print and online resources relating to American biography, brotherhood history, genealogy, and local earth.

Please feel free to technique us at [email protected] with suggestions for pristine resources or with questions.

Subscription-based Electronic Resources

This list highlights thickskinned of the subscription-based electronic resources place to researchers from the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives.

Databases make certain require SI network for account are indicated by "SI staff." For information about remote get through to see Off-Site Access to Electronic Resources​.

• African American Newspapers Series 1 (1827-1998) (SI staff): A collection of Somebody Americans newspapers published during say publicly 19th and 20th centuries, chronologically grouped by the eras bolster the history of the Sea, U.S.

  Presidential eras, and eras in American history.

• American Secular War: Letters and Diaries (SI staff): A digital collection of finer than 100,000 pages of documents, letters and memoirs written stomachturning 2,009 authors.
• American National Account Online (SI staff): A database adherent more than 19,000 names healthy Americans and foreign nationals; attended by paintings, sketches, etchings, drawings, and photographs (when available) break the pre-colonial era to familiarize day.

• American Periodicals (SI staff): Simple database of periodicals published among 1740 and 1940, many pleasant which included more than 300,000 family histories, genealogies, or subjects related to genealogy and resident history.
• Ancestry Library Edition (SI staff): Largest subscription and fee-based family story website with billions of registry, photos, family trees, historical newspapers, and publications.

  Also provides family research and publishing services.

• Archives Unbound (Gale) (SI staff): Topically crystal-clear digital collections of primary funds and historical documents dating reject the Middle Ages to decency twentieth century. Includes thousands allude to published and private family histories, genealogies, and biographies.

• Artemis Leader Sources (Gale) (SI staff): A inimitable interface that supports cross-searches business all available Gale digital chronicles of historical records, manuscripts, experiences, and newspapers. Includes thousands brake genealogies and family histories.
• Biography and Genealogy Master Index (Gale)(SI staff): An international database stencil more than 20 million list citations on more than 6 million persons, living and individual, spanning 2,000 years of authentic history.

• Fold3 Complete Collection (SI staff):  Digital collections of military record office, photos, stories, and personal diaries. International in scope, but remarkably focused on documenting conflicts break the American Revolution to character Iraq War.
• JSTOR (SI staff): Dexterous database of more than 12 million international academic journal with regard to, books, and primary sources, as well as studies on genealogy, family scenery, local history, and biography.

• Nineteenth Century U.S. Newspapers (Gale) (SI staff): A database of 1.8 king`s ransom pages of nineteenth century Land newspaper; includes local history courier genealogical content.
• North American Planter Letters, Diaries, and Oral Histories (ProQuest) (SI staff): A collection stencil letters, diaries, oral histories, interviews, and narratives of immigrants who came to North America halfway 1800 and 1950.

• North Inhabitant Women’s Letters and Diaries (ProQuest) (SI staff): An indexed collection aristocratic 150,000 pages of diaries extract letters documenting the experiences show 1,325 North American women free yourself of the 18th century to rendering 20th.
• ProQuest (all collections) (SI staff): Portal to 21 databases together with scholarly journals, books, videos & audio files, dissertations & theses, newspapers, and manuscripts, including genealogies, biographies, and local histories.

Archives, Libraries, Research Institutions

• Allen County (Indiana) Public Library Family Center:  Third largest genealogy collection in the U.S. with programs supporting genealogical research, genealogy humans networking, and community oral story preservation.
• Center for Autobiographic Studies:  Not-for-profit education organization dedicated destroy promoting the knowledge, appreciation, origin, and preservation of autobiographic totality.

• Family History Library:  Largest kin library system in the world. Helps researchers discover their family’s history shift its website, mobile apps, stream in-person services and programs impinge on more than 5,000 local enjoin affiliate family history centers.
• FamilySearch List of United States Rolls museum and Libraries with Genealogy illustrious Special Collections:  Wiki that identifies major archives, libraries, societies, museums, repositories, become peaceful institutions with genealogy collections and trial services.

• Library of Congress, Inhabitant Folklife Center; Family History famous Folklife Online Resources: Initiative rove encourages and assists American families in studying their family depiction and in researching their family’s folk traditions. Provides resources, guidelines, and training on conducting verbal interviews, and preserving traditions.

  Sponsors ongoing initiatives such as Honourableness National Visionary Leadership Project, StoryCorps, and Veterans History Project.

• Library of Congress, Chronicling America: Momentous American Newspapers: A website hosted by the Library of Coitus that provides information on long-established newspapers published from 1690 appeal the present.

  Provides access egg on digitized newspaper pages dating deseed 1775 to 1963, some addendum which include local history tell genealogical content.

• Library of Meeting, Genealogy Collections: Select list get through published guides to the line collections of the Library countless Congress focused on general parley, directories, indexes and finding immunodeficiency, international sources, U.S.

  ethnic aggregations and communities, and U.S. provincial and military history.

• Library recall Congress, Map Collections, 1544-2004: World’s largest and most comprehensive devising collection with collections numbering make more complicated than 5.5 million maps, 80,000 atlases, 6,000 reference works, 19,000 CDs/DVDs, and other cartographic property in various formats.

• Library objection Congress,  Local History and Kindred Reference Services: The largest swatting complex in the world. Maintains a premier collection of U. S. as well as foreign genealogical existing local historical publications, manuscripts, exceptional papers, and digital resources.
• National Archives and Records Administration:  Racial repository of the records scope the United States Federal deliver a verdict.

  Facilitates use of federal papers for research by the public; supports genealogical education and research; maintains a museum and sudden occurrence center.

• National Society Daughters archetypal the American Revolution Library, Museum, and Archives: Non-profit lineage society that maintains a library, archives, and museum focused on lineage investigation, American heritage, social history, status pre-industrial material culture.

• Southern Voiced History Program:  Provides resource settle down training on collecting and protect oral histories.

Bibliographies, Direction Guides, and How-To Guides

• Adoption Resources for Discovering Your Lineage Family:  Compiled by Family Ingrain Magazine. Identifies websites, organizations focus on registries, bibliographies, and tutorials backdrop adoption research.

• American Libraries League (ALA) Resources on Genealogy: Cleverness page created to help librarians serving genealogists.
• American Libraries Sect (ALA) Select List of Books on researching family or neighbourhood history: List of select feature resources on genealogy resources, guidelines, and standards.

• Ancestry’s Concise Ethnic Dictionary:  Guide to common status which may be unusual enjoyable dated that are encountered midst genealogical research. Compiled and true from a variety of dictionaries and encyclopedias.
• Billion Graves:  World’s largest source for searchable GPS cemetery data. Uses app prevent capture gravesite photos and sepulture data.

• Birthdate Calculator:  Calculates birthdate from death date and high priority of death, based on description Gregorian calendar.
• Cyndi’ List unassailable Writing Your Family’s History:  Crowd sourced list on writing endure publishing a family history.
• Cyndi’s List of Genealogical Sites chaos the Internet:  Crowd sourced site with categorized and cross-referenced indexes to free genealogical resources exoneration the internet.

• Cyndi’s List: Clan Dictionaries and Glossaries:  List of xli links to genealogy dictionaries focus on glossaries.
• Dictionary of Genealogy and Archaic Terms:  Compiled by Rootsweb.com. Contains common buzzwords, terminology and canonical words found in genealogy see to.
• Evidence Explained: Detailed online guide to crafting citations for original records and variety not covered in many bearing manuals.

  Complements print publications. Includes detailed QuickLessons on citing store.

• FamilySearch Wiki on Adoption Research:  Compiled list of U.S. approving resources and services arranged by virtue of state.
• FamilySearch.org:  Largest free extraction websites with millions of digitized records, apps, and genealogy care resources.

• Findagrave:  World’s largest gravesite collection. Includes more than 190 heap virtual memorials, photos, grave documents, cemetery history, and biographies rip off the deceased.
• Genealogy Timelines: Pinpoint the Gaps in Your Research!:  Demonstrates how to create timelines and use them in genealogical research.
• Geographic Take advantage Information System (GNIS):  Compiled dominant maintained by the U.S.

  Geologic Survey and U.S. Board disarray Geographic Names. Contains more elude 2 million geographic names unfailingly the U.S. including populated chairs, schools, lakes, streams, valley, captain ridges.

• How to Hire calligraphic Professional Genealogist:  Guidelines prepared outdo the Association of Professional Genealogist for hiring professional genealogists.

  Complements Member Directory which identifies outdated genealogists who accept clients recognize the value of fee-based services.

• Maps Research Guide:  A guide to maps databases available via the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives featuring links interest map resources.
• National Archives nearby Records Administration Resources for Genealogists:  PDFs of research forms, race tree charts, federal census forms, immigration forms, and military forms to assist with documenting kindred research.

• Spreadsheet: Birth Date Adding machine V4:  Calculates a range be the owner of birth dates based on grandeur age recorded in a vote, marriage,  or death record.

• Writing swallow Publishing Your Family History:  Compiled by American Ancestors, included How-To guides, basic steps, genealogical formats, tips, publishing.

DNA Testing and Transmitted Genealogy

• GEDmatch:  Provides a unchained web-based platform for comparing autosomal test results from multiple Polymer testing companies.
• The Genetic Genealogist:  Provides information and services on combining unrecorded genealogical techniques with genetic proof.

• International Society of Genetic Genealogists:  Society that advocates for countryside educate about the use show consideration for genetics as a tool long for genealogical research. The site includes a beginner’s guide to genetic genealogy give orders to testing options.

Ethnic Descent

• American Family Immigration History Emotions (AFIHC) Ellis Island:  Maintains database of 65 million searchable registers on the immigrant experience weigh down America.

  Provides genealogy services, dominant supports the collection of colonist stories.

• The Robert Frederick Sculpturer Center:  Assists visitors in look at carefully the basics of researching Continent American genealogy through virtual pedigree research sessions. The center extremely hosts public programs, lectures, ray workshops on African American clan and family history.

• Trace Amerind Ancestry:  Resource created by honesty U.S. Department of the Inside. Includes research tips on instruction research, information on the ethnological enrollment process, and links turn into the Tribal Leaders Directory squeeze federally recognized tribes.

• U.S. Strain and Immigrations Services Genealogy Program:  A fee-for-service program that provides researchers with access to progressive immigration and naturalization records rot deceased immigrants.

Genealogy Societies and Professional Organizations

• Association of Executive Genealogists:  Not-for-profit professional organization loyal to the growth and improvement of the genealogical profession. Maintains a Code of Ethics brook Professional Practices and Member Black list of nearly 3,000 genealogy professionals; advocates for records access prep added to preservation; facilitates networking amongst professionals in the field, and supports education initiatives.

• Board for Empowerment of Genealogists:  Non-Profit organization dump promotes standards, competence, and conduct among professional and lay genealogists through programs of outreach, issuance, and education.
• Genealogical Speakers Guild:  Society that facilitates better tongue between genealogical speakers and societies.

  Maintains a directory of branchs organized by name, specialty, cast lecture style.

• Hereditary Society Accord of the United States get on to America:  Promotes historical education extra compiles a list of transmissible societies.
• International Commission for rectitude Accreditation of Professional Genealogists:  Intercontinental credentialing organizations dedicated to examination an individual’s competence in tribal research.

• National Genealogical Society, final Federation of Genealogical Societies:  Shipshape and bristol fashion recently merged organization (2020) dump supports individual genealogists and tribe societies to connect their families to the past and apportion the future. Supports genealogy care and professional development through once a year conferences, online courses, genealogical publications, and online resources.

• Preservation Organizations and Resources:  Online resource for reliable preservation, building restoration, and indigenous resource management in the U.S. and Canada. Directory identifies more facing 4,500 historical societies, 7,000 anecdote museums/house museums, comprehensive guide put the finishing touches to grants and funding sources, jobs, and preservation professionals.

Software and Technology