Genealogy Records Selection Table
Wilson Cobb Library Blog Welcome to the Wilson Cobb Library! Making it easier for you to search out your ancestry and genealogical history! Genealogy Records Selection Table We are so glad you are here! We hope that this website and the library itself will become fabulous resources for you as you search out your family ancestry. This table should help you see what types of sources produce different types of information. Info Needed Good Sources Possible Sources Vital Records Age Cemeteries , census, pension applications, vital records Military records , tax records Birth date Census, church records, newspapers, obituaries, vital records Cemeteries , military records, obituaries, SSDI (if deceased) Birth name (“maiden” name) Bible records, church records, newspapers, town records, vital records Cemeteries, records of sisters and aunts, military records, obituaries, pension records, personal correspondence, probate records Birth place (especially if foreign) Census, church records, military records, obituaries, probate records, vital records Emigration and immigration records, funeral home records, newspapers Death Cemeteries, census mortality schedules, church records, obituaries, probate and wills, vital records Bible records, military records, newspapers, Social Security Death Index (SSDI) Divorce Court records, divorce records, vital records Newspapers Marriage Bible records, biography, census, newspapers, church records, pension records, vital records Cemeteries, land records, military records, naturalization and citizenship records, obituaries, probate records Place Information County: origins and history of boundary changes Historical maps Gazetteers Emigration/immigration info Census, emigration and immigration records, naturalization and citizenship records, periodicals History (colonization), newspapers, obituaries Ethnic origin Bible records, census, emigration and immigration records, societies Church records, naturalization and citizenship records, periodicals Places (where your ancestor resided) Census (indexed), directories, genealogies, land records Military records, obituaries, tax records, voter registration Family Information Living relatives and adoptions Court records, directories, obituaries Census, church records, newspapers, probate records Occupation Census, death records, directories, emigration and immigration records, obituaries Court records, land records, newspapers Family members (parents, offspring, relatives) Census, church records, court records, directories, marriage records, obituaries, probate records, vital records Bible records, biographies, emigration and immigration records, land records, newspapers Physical description Biographies, military records, obituaries Emigration and immigration records , genealogies (compiled), naturalization and citizenship records, vital records Religion Biographies , church records Bible records, cemeteries, genealogies, obituaries Research compiled by others Genealogies , periodicals, societies Biographies , histories