Sample Records Sources
These categories correspond to those on the Genealogy Records Selection Table, and are sample websites to give you an idea what you can find on the Web. All websites are free except for the two marked Subscription website.
Please remember that your searches will be more effective if you qualify them with a specific surname or location. For example: McKean: land Pennsylvania
Bible Records
- Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center - Family Bible records http://www.genealogycenter.info/bibles/
- Ancestor Hunt http://www.ancestorhunt.com/family_bible_records.htm
- Bible Records Online http://biblerecords.com/
- The Genealogy Spot http://www.thegenealogyspot.com/family_bibles/
- Your Guide to Finding Family Bible Records http://www.barbsnow.net/Bible.htm
Biographies
- Ancestor Search – Free Historical Biography Records Search http://www.searchforancestors.com/records/biographies.html
- People: Biographies and Genealogy http://www.teacheroz.com/biographies.htm
Birth Records
- Free Birth Record Lookups https://ancestralfindings.com/birth-record-lookups/
- Free Birth Records http://genealogy.lovetoknow.com/Free_Birth_Records
- Free Genealogy Online – Birth Records http://genealogy.ucan.us/birthrecords.htm
-
Free Online Birth Indexes, Transcriptions and Records
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~thecohens/birthindexes.html
Cemeteries
- Cemetery Records Online http://www.interment.net/
- Free Cemetery Record Searches: http://www.searchforancestors.com/records/cemetery.html
- Access Genealogy Cemetery Records: http://www.accessgenealogy.com/cemetery/
- Find A Grave http://www.findagrave.com/
- Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness - U.S. Cemetery Research Guide https://raogk.org/cemetery-records
Census Records
- Free Genealogy Census Records Search http://www.searchforancestors.com/records/census.html
- AllCensusRecords.com http://allcensusrecords.com/usa/
- Census Records and County Boundary Changes http://www.genealogyblog.com/?p=19203
Census Mortality Schedules
- MortalitySchedules.com http://www.mortalityschedules.com/
- Federal and State Census Mortality Schedules http://newhorizonsgenealogicalservices.com/mortality-schedule.htm
- List of Available Mortality Schedules http://www.census.gov/history/pdf/mortality.pdf
Church Records
- Awesome Genealogy Church Records: http://www.awesomegenealogy.com/churchrecords.shtml
- Locating Church Records http://www.genealogy.com/5_grnwd.html
Court Records
- Court Records – Finding Your Ancestors http://www.genealogy.com/47_neill.html
- Court and Legal Records http://dir.genealogytoday.com/court_and_legal_records.html
-
Free Genealogy Court Records
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~tqpeiffer/Documents/Free%20Gen%20Records%20&%20Databases/COURT%20Records.htm - >Historic Court Records http://www.historiccourtrecords.org/
Death Records
- Ancestors at Rest http://www.ancestorsatrest.com/
- Death Records Search http://www.death-records.net/
- Free Death Record Lookups http://www.ancestralfindings.com/death-record-lookups/
- Online Searchable Death Indexes & Records http://www.deathindexes.com/
Directories
- City Directories of the United States of America http://www.uscitydirectories.com/
- Effective Use of City Directories http://familyhistorymagic.com/uploads/EffectiveUseofCityDirectories_2011_.pdf
- Cyndi’s List – Directories County, City, Address, etc.: http://www.cyndislist.com/directories/
- City Directories http://dir.genealogytoday.com/city_directories.html
Emigration and Immigration Records
- Emigration and Immigration Records and Resources http://www.germanroots.com/ei.html
- NARA Immigration Records http://www.archives.gov/research/immigration/index.html
- Ellis Island http://ellisisland.org/
- Cyndi’s List – Immigration & Naturalization Records http://www.cyndislist.com/immigration/records/
- Immigration Records - Ports and Their Records http://www.understandingyourancestors.com/ar/portsRecords.aspx
Funeral Home Records
-
Tips to Obtain Funeral Home Records
https://sites.rootsweb.com/~pawashin/funeral-homes/10_tips_to_obtain_funeral_home_records.html - Funeral Cards Online http://www.genealogytoday.com/guide/funeral_cards.html
- Funeral Home Records http://ancestorsatrest.com/funeral_recs/
- Cyndi’s List – Cemeteries & Funeral Homes http://www.cyndislist.com/cemeteries
Gazetteers
- Gazetteers http://dir.genealogytoday.com/gazetteers.html
- Cyndi’s List – Maps & Geography http://www.cyndislist.com/maps
- Gazetteers and Genealogy – From Ireland to Vermont http://a3genealogy.blogspot.com/2011/05/gazetteers-and-genealogy.html
Genealogies
-
Using Compiled Family Histories to Research Family Genealogies
http://people.howstuffworks.com/culture-traditions/genealogy/genealogy-websites5.htm - Locating Published Genealogies http://www.genealogy.com/15_genes.html
Historical Maps
- >Historic Map Works – Residential Genealogy http://www.historicmapworks.com/
- Perry Castañeda Library Map Collection - Historical Map Websites http://lib.utexas.edu/maps/map_sites/hist_sites.html
-
Using Maps for Family History Research
https://blog.genealogybank.com/genealogy-101-using-maps-for-family-history-research.html - Historical Maps http://www.42explore2.com/historicalmaps.htm
- Historical Maps Overview http://www.culturalresources.com/Maps.html
- Atlas of Historical County Boundaries http://publications.newberry.org/ahcbp/
Histories
- Finding and Evaluating Local Histories http://www.genealogy.com/genealogy/15_local.html
- Genealogy Resources – Local History http://genealoger.com/genealogy/gen_local_history.htm
Land Records
- Land Records, Deeds, Homesteads, Etc. http://www.cyndislist.com/land
- Genealogy Land Records Search http://www.searchforancestors.com/records/land.html
- Federal Land Records http://www.freegenealogytools.com/2009/10/federal-land-records.html
- The Official Federal Land Records Site http://www.glorecords.blm.gov/
Marriage Records
- GenWed Genealogy Marriage Database: http://www.genwed.com/cgi-bin/addrbook.cgi
- How to Find United States Marriage Records https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/United_States_Marriage_Records
Military Records
- Genealogy Research in Military Records https://www.archives.gov/research/military
- Military Records http://www.accessgenealogy.com/military/
- Online Military Indexes & Records http://www.militaryindexes.com/
- Researching Through Military Records http://www.genealogy.com/00000106.html
- Military Records and Genealogy Research http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~vanhornfamily/genealogy/military.htm
Naturalization and Citizenship
- Naturalizationrecords.com: http://www.naturalizationrecords.com/usa/
- Finding U.S. Naturalization Records http://www.germanroots.com/naturalizationrecords.html
- Ships Passenger Lists http://www.olivetreegenealogy.com/ships/shipresource.shtml
- Online Searchable Naturalization Records and Indexes http://www.germanroots.com/naturalization.html
- Naturalization Records http://www.infoukes.com/genealogy/primer/naturalization.html
-
Canadian Immigration and Citizenship Guide
http://www.immigrationdirect.ca/tracing-family-history-canada-immigration-citizenship-genealogy-guide/
Newspapers
- Cyndi’s List – Newspapers http://www.cyndislist.com/newspapers/
- Free Newspaper Archives http://www.freegenealogytools.com/2009/08/free-newspaper-archives.html
- Historical Newspaper Archives http://www.archives.com/genealogy/records-newspaper-archives.html
- Genealogy Bank (Subscription website) www.GenealogyBank.com
- Newspapers.com (Subscription website)"https://www.newspapers.com
- Newspaper Archive (Subscription website) www.newspaperarchive.com
- Obituarieshelp.org http://obituarieshelp.org/
- Obituaries Genealogy Sites http://www.obitlinkspage.com/
- Genealogy Obituary Records Search: http://www.searchforancestors.com/records/obituary.html
- Obituary Lookup Volunteers http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~obitl/genealogy/
- Cyndi’s List – Obituaries http://www.cyndislist.com/obituaries
- USGenWeb Archives Obituary Project: http://usgwarchives.net/obits/
Obituaries
Pension Records
- Pension Records http://dir.genealogytoday.com/pension_records.html
- Confederate Pension Records http://www.archives.gov/research/military/civil-war/confederate/pension
- Confederate Pension Records https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Confederate_Pension_Records
- Ordering Civil War Pension Records – Union & Confederate http://www.genealogybranches.com/civilwar/
- USGenWeb Pension Project http://usgwarchives.net/pensions/
Periodicals
- Your Guide to Finding & Using Genealogy Periodicals http://www.barbsnow.net/GenPeriodicals.htm
- Finding Ancestors in Periodicals http://www.genealogy.com/34_kathy.html
- PERSI – the PERiodical Search Index (Subscription website) https://www.findmypast.com/persi
Probate and Wills
- Cyndi’s List – Wills & Probate http://www.cyndislist.com/wills/
- United States Probate Records https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/United_States_Probate_Records
- U.S. Wills and Probates (Ancestry.com - subscription website) https://www.ancestry.com/search/categories/US_willsprobate/
- Maine Wills, 1640 – 1760 http://www.mainegenealogy.net/maine_wills.asp
Social Security Death Index
- The Social Security Death Index http://www.deathindexes.com/ssdi.html
-
U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 (Ancestry.com - subscription website)
https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/3693/
Societies
- Cyndi’s List – Societies & Groups http://www.cyndislist.com/societies/
- Genealogy Societies http://www.archives.com/genealogy/free-societies.html
Tax Records
-
Finding and Using Tax Records in Your Genealogical Research
http://www.archives.com/experts/jackman-susan/tax-records-in-genealogical-research.html - Tax Records Online http://philibertfamily.blogspot.com/2009/01/tax-records-online.html
-
Tax and Voter Records
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~tqpeiffer/Documents/Free%20Gen%20Records%20&%20Databases/TAX%20&%20VOTER%20Records.htm - Cyndi’s List – Taxes http://www.cyndislist.com/taxes/
Town Records
- Research Tip 8: Local Records http://www.genealogy.com/tip8.html
- Finding and Evaluating Local Histories http://www.genealogy.com/15_local.html
- German Genealogies – Local Histories http://www.genealoger.com/german/ger_local_histories.htm
Vital Records
- Vital Records & Genealogy http://www.archives.com/genealogy/vital-records.html
- Free Vital Records Directory https://www.publicrecordcenter.com/vitalrecords.htm
Voter Registration
- Voters, Poll Books, Electoral Records http://www.cyndislist.com/voters/<
- Voter Registration Records and Genealogy http://www.geni.com/blog/voter-registration-records-and-genealogy-367291.html