"Links" to the Past

I was surprise when I started researching my family tree at how much information I could find online. There is a wealth of information living “in the cloud” and it’s growing all the time. Here are a few web sites I’ve used in my research as well as some I’ve recently discovered.

Ancestry.com – Subscription required. A good place to start your research. Most help will be from other’s family trees found but verifying their info may be difficult. You can request contact information for family tree authors but I’ve never gotten a reply from ones I’ve contacted.

Genealogy.com – Subscription required. Very similar to ancestry.com.

Footnote.com – Subscription required. I just discovered this web site and am only starting to search it. Let me know what you think. It’s linked to the National Archives so you can search all their census, military, death, land or any other kinds of records.

Deadfred.com – Free. Another recent discovery of mine. Seems like a relatively (no pun intended) new site. It is an online database of old family pictures. Some are unidentified and the posters are hoping to learn who they are. Others are posted just for sharing. I haven’t found any pictures of my family here but am considering posting a few of my own for any distant relatives who might be researching their family.

Photodetective.com – Free. If you need help dating or interpreting an old photo, Maureen Taylor may be able to help. Her site gives tips and tricks of the trade and she’s also written several books on the subject.

Find A Grave – Free. Good for finding graves but not a lot of rural cemeteries will be transcribed here. Excellent for finding graves of celebrities or historical figures.

Rootsweb – Free. I use this to search cemeteries. The link will take you to an index by state. Click on your state to go to an index of counties. Click on your county for a list of resources. Click on “cemeteries” for a list of cemeteries in your county and then click on the cemetery you want to search. Directions to the cemetery are usually included at the top.

Other good online resources include local historical or genealogical societies. These will have links to local resources that might be unique to the area you’re searching. Happy surfing!