Are you new to genealogy? Are you wondering where to begin? Are you overwhelmed by all of the genealogy sites and what each one offers?
Let’s break it down and take a deeper look.
- Ancestry.com—Ancestry is the leading genealogy site to research family history. You can have your DNA tested, upload your own tree and research documents and other people’s family trees.
Fee based . - Findagrave.com—FindaGrave is an online graveyard where you can look up where people are buried. FindaGrave allows you to link parents, spouses
and children and insert a biography. There are many cemeteries very well documented, but there are many others who have not been added. Free site. - LibraryofCongress—The library of Congress has many of their records online or a directory to let you search if they have a document or book. There are many collections online which can be searched. Newspapers, books, audio, maps, personal narratives
and many other categories can be searched. Free site. - NationalArchives—Provides documents from the founding of the United States to military records to photos and a variety of other documents to search. Free site.
- Chronicling America—Chronicling America is powered by the Library of Congress. Here you can search newspaper images across the United States from 1789-1963. This is a wonderful resource to search, but there are many newspapers which have not been uploaded. Free site.
- FamilySearch.org—Search census records and a variety of other documents. You can also upload a family tree to connect documentation. Free site.
- Fold3—Military records from the Revolutionary War through the Vietnam War {and some causality records after then}.
Fee based . - Newspapers.com—search newspapers from the 1700s through today in the United States and parts of Canada. Has many newspapers, but there are newspapers which have not been added. Tier
fee based . - WeRemember.com—a new site by Ancestry, which allows a place for everyone to come together and remember a loved one. This is a memorial site to exchange memories, pictures
and discussions of loved ones both living and deceased. Included in Ancestry membership. - Cyndislist.com—
guide to links and websites on every topic related to family history and genealogy imaginable. Free site. - StateArchives—State archives are a wealth of information and documents, especially if you are looking for documents going back fifty or more years. Every state archive is different and you can gain more information from their website and/or staff.
- Local Libraries—local libraries or the largest genealogy library in the area will also offer a wealth of information on ancestors, history of the area, native people and events which took place in the area.
Do you have a site which is your favorite?