Genealogy Starting Points on the Internet

[macwilkin]

It has been my experience that very, very few libraries will share their genealogical books---other than the more general works about history--- via the interlibrary loan program. Most are printing in small runs, and I was told that they are stolen too often, or rather, not returned by the borrower.

Our department did quite the ILL trade in microfilmed newspapers (and other documents) for researchers, Gil -- you'd be surprised what a resourceful ILL librarian can get. In some cases, you'll have to pay a fee, of course.

Most states also have borrowing agreements between public & academic libraries -- Missouri has the MOBIUS system, where there are over 20 million items available to loan. Most are more general titles, but I have borrowed a few "gems" over the years.

This is based on my experience as a librarian at public and academic libraries, including two years as a genealogical librarian.

Besides, genealogical assistance in the form of seminars, workshops, etc. at libraries are free -- the magic word to genealogists!

Todd

[tartanherring]

Hi Jamie,
I actually work in the history field and used used to be a reference archivist--a job in which I helped genealogists to do research. It really depends on the state in which you need to do the research. Some states have their county records centralized in the state archives and some states leave them in the counties. But you need to start with what you know and work backwards using birth & death records when available (many Southern states didn't keep these until the 20th century), wills, estate records, marriage records, census, deeds, etc. Genealogy libraries are good starts if you have one nearby. But Ancestry is getting better the census is its strong point in terms of remote geneaology. Beyond that it depends--it is great if you can solve everything via the census and some scanned reference books. But not many people can. I do use Ancestry regularly in my job--it is good for military pensions, as well--but that isn't really what you need when getting started trying to trace your family. People don't list their parents in military pensions.
So all that said--you can probably get access to Ancestry at a library and try it out--you may also be able to do a decent amount of research at a genealogy library. If the line you are working on is actually from CA, try to use the original records if possible. There are also genealogists for hire in most areas.
Good luck!
Ansley

[macwilkin]

Hi Jamie,
I actually work in the history field and used used to be a reference archivist--a job in which I helped genealogists to do research. It really depends on the state in which you need to do the research. Some states have their county records centralized in the state archives and some states leave them in the counties. But you need to start with what you know and work backwards using birth & death records when available (many Southern states didn't keep these until the 20th century), wills, estate records, marriage records, census, deeds, etc. Genealogy libraries are good starts if you have one nearby. But Ancestry is getting better the census is its strong point in terms of remote geneaology. Beyond that it depends--it is great if you can solve everything via the census and some scanned reference books. But not many people can. I do use Ancestry regularly in my job--it is good for military pensions, as well--but that isn't really what you need when getting started trying to trace your family. People don't list their parents in military pensions.
So all that said--you can probably get access to Ancestry at a library and try it out--you may also be able to do a decent amount of research at a genealogy library. If the line you are working on is actually from CA, try to use the original records if possible. There are also genealogists for hire in most areas.
Good luck!
Ansley

Well said, Ansley!

What do you do in the history field?

Todd

USNPS Seasonal Park Ranger
History Instructor, Librarian

[tartanherring]

Hi Todd,
I am a research historian for the state. (One of the main things my office does are the state's highway historical markers) I often miss my days as a reference archivist though...
What about you? Where do you teach and work--your career looks quite varied!
Ansley

[Big Paul]

Go to Ebay!! Seriously! Buy Family Tree Maker Version 16 (you can get it cheaper, like 30 bucks). It comes with a 1 year subscription to Ancestry.com.

You can also check out Genforum, it has a lot of info.

[cessna152towser]

I've found Ancestry well worth the money. If you only need to research Scottish records, Ancestry.co.uk membership is less than half the cost of Ancestry.com and will be well worth the money for access to census records. Once you have some census information you can then go onto www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk which gives you access to searches and birth, death and marriage records on a pay per view basis. You can also access census records on Scotlandspeople on a pay per view basis but if you need to look at a lot of them Ancestry will work out cheaper.

[Erisianmonkey]

Some good advice here for you, Jamie. I'll definitely add my vote to the LDS site, Rootsweb, and USGenWeb. Those were some of the biggest helps to me when I was doing a lot of research. Especially USGenWeb. The project is an attempt to get all extant government records accessible online. Using info from their NY and PA affiliates, I was able to trace a line that had been a dead end for those researching our family for over 20 years. Just remember to verify!

Good luck, and have fun. It's almost as much fun as drooling over tartan samples.

[SteveB]

Gentlepeople,
I spend many hours in genealogical research. I am current president of the National Society of Old Plymouth Colony Descendants, and president of Piscataqua Pioneers. I assist many applicants and others in their research from my home. My spouse is the historian for the Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants... genealogy day and night. Our house is home to four thousand genealogical books that we have purchased over the last twenty-five years. The published vital records of most of the cities and towns of New England reside up in our "office". The living room wall of shelves is loaded with a variety of works on Scot, Irish, Welsh, and British records, and families/clans. We do have subscriptions to a few internet services. When using Ancestry.com the "Historical Records" tab will lead you to mostly accurate information. The "Family Trees" tab will lead you to what has been submitted over the years, and although corrections have been made, the erroneous information is never removed. There are very many errors. The Ancestry trees are a good frame to base your research as long as you verify each "fact" against a primary document.
The local library may be of benefit. A good many genealogy works are in the inter-library systems, but must be used on the premise of the receiving library. I have the good fortune to live in Boston, Massachusetts. The New England Historic Genealogical Society Library is a short subway ride from my house and has over 100,000 genealogical works available to its members. Two blocks from the Hist-Gen is the main library of the Boston Public Library, in whose McKim building there are hundreds of thousands of documents and books from the beginning of our nation to today. A wee bit longer walk is the Boston Athenium's Genealogy Library, another treasure trove of information.
Once you have researched as much as you can on this side of the pond, the next stop in Scot research is the Scotlands Family Tree website. It is a genealogical cooperative of people helping people with research in Scotland and Northern Ireland. The subscription is only a tenner (10 GBP) a year, and well worth it. Another website for the UK, Scotland, and Ireland is the Origins website, it is a little creeky to get into, but it has a lot of useful info.
I did forget one thing... Many of us have our Scot heritage by way of Canada, and usually Cape Bretton, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia are the routes of social migration. Gen-web Canada, and the New Brunswick genealogy sites are coming into their own for this type of information. I know of a lot of MacNaughton families in New Brunswick and on P.E.I. from these sites.

[Phil]

This site has a wealth of information on Scottish genealogy and most of it is free which should appeal to your Scottish background -
http://www.censusfinder.com/scotland.htm