How the Computer and the Internet Have Changed Genealogical Research Larry D. Crummer Lib15, Spring 2004 Joy Chase, Instructor

Records Used in Genealogy Government – national, state, and local vital statistics – births, marriages and deaths Law – wills, probates, court records, taxes, and rights of ownership Land and Property ownership, both on national and local levels History – the migratory patterns of peoples from different parts of the world, and within this country, patterns of migration as a result of westward expansion and modes of transportation.

Records Continued Immigration and Ship Records – what modes of transportation used and where these routes of passage were found. Geography – Climate/Topography similar to homeland Church records – Baptisms, Marriages, Deaths Newspapers – Obituaries and other “tidbits” Military records Cemetery and burial records Rights and treatment of women Foreign records – including some or all of the above categories.

Old Ways of Gathering Info Reading genealogical “how to” books to find types of information and its location Talking with relatives Travel to area of research to visit libraries, cemeteries, relatives who might live in area Writing to researchers in the area to do volunteer or paid research Visiting local repositories such as Mormon Branch Libraries

Major Free Online Resources Cyndislist.com – a comprehensive source of where to locate records both off and online Familysearch.org – the records of LDS (Mormon) church USGENWEB.com – hyperlinks to every county in every state of the union – amount of information varies Search engines such as Google and Yahoo

How the Internet Has Changed Genealogical Research Availability of Information on the Internet –Search Engines and Keyword Searching – Google & Yahoo –Governmental Repositories Census Bureau NARA – Government Pension Records –Genealogical Websites – both free and by subscription – and Message Boards Speed of Exchange of Information –Downloading from databases and websites –Communication with institutions and organizations online Location and Communication with relatives online –Sources for finding addresses and phone number –Surname message boards

Subscription Resources – Ancestry.com Claims to be the largest source of records – some indexed, others are to be browsed –U.S. Census Records –Social Security Death Index –Immigration Records –Military Records and Pensions –Historical Newspapers –Ancestry World Tree – family trees submitted by subscribers –Biographies and Historical Records –Trees & Community – others working on same surnames

Subscription Resources – Genealogy.com Similar to Ancestry.com with records – some indexed, others are to be browsed –Genealogy Library of 100 million records –U. S. Census – different years are searchable –Family and Local Histories –World Family Tree Collection – family trees submitted by subscribers –Free online databases which are searchable –CDs of various record types available for purchase

and Message Boards Anywho.com – Basically an online white pages, one can search for surnames found in any part of the country – possible cousins still in the area Ancestry.com – Another free white pages search Message Boards – most websites offer postings of people working on the same surnames. These are organized by: –Surname –Location – county or city

Software for Organization of Family Records There are several computer software programs with various levels of sophistication and capabilities. One should read about these and talk to others who use them before deciding upon one. –Family Tree Maker, Version 11 Photos can be stored Book can be created Searches of internet and genealogy.com or ancestry.com can be made directly from the software program –Personal Ancestral File, 5.2 Free downloadable program from LDS (Mormons) Most simplistic of most software The most important aspect of any program is that it has GEDCOM capability, a file form allowing easy exchange of family information between the various genealogical software programs.

For Further Information If you would like a copy of the entire paper How the Computer and the Internet Have Changed Genealogical Research by Larry D. Crummer, please me at: Happy Family Tree Hunting!!!!!