Library Research Guide for Genealogical Research

Please feel free to email us with questions. We can make an appointment for you to come in, and we can talk at length about your project.

Anna Assogba (assogba@fas.harvard.edu) Research Librarian, Lamont Library.

Emily Bell (emilybell@fas.harvard.edu) Research Librarian, Lamont Library.

Fred Burchsted (burchst@fas.harvard.edu) Research Librarian, Widener Library.

Featured resource: Ancestry Library Edition provides over 7000 databases of vital records, directories, censuses, military records, and other material from the United States and around the world, intended for genealogical research The various record types are laid out and browseable in the Ancestry Database Card Catalog. Ancestry is the first stop for any of the categories shown on the tabs, but there is no single source for all genealogical information. See the Ancestry Library Edition page in this guide for more guidance.

Understanding the sources: Five National Archives videos discuss the use of census records, military records and immigration records for genealogy. See the Understanding the Resources pages in this guide for more info on these resource types.

Software and Worksheets: Numerous genealogical software programs and forms are available, free and commercially. Several worksheets are available in Ancestry (log in and click on "Charts and Forms" in the main menu bar across the top). Many programs and worksheets are listed on Cyndi's List: Supplies, Charts, Forms, Etc.and on One-Step Webpages by Stephen P. Morse 

The Sociology of Genealogical Research:

Tracking Your Family Through Time and Technology (an article on how genealogical research has changed over the years written by the creator of Cyndi's List)

[Library Research Guide for Finding Manuscripts and Archival Collections.  This guide is not needed for this course, but if you are interested in archives it tells how to find them.]

Helpful non-Ancestry.com research sites:

There's a universe of ancestry sites out there these days. We list several of these sites throughough this guide. Some are free; some are not. Below, we a few other sites with no-cost options:

Cyndi's List of Genealogy Sites  Before the more "big name" databases came along, the web had a network of smaller grassroots sites. Cyndi's list is one of the strongest of these. It's a great way of learning from other individuals who have done this work before you.

FamilySearch Entirely free; similar to Ancestry. The Genealogy Adventures blog did a nice comparison of the two in 2014.

One-Step Webpages by Stephen P. Morse  Compiles links to forms for obtaining information from Ellis Island, passenger lists from various US immigration ports, and other guidance on obtaining specific sources of information. Very helpful where there are gaps in resources posted online.

USGenWeb Project This site assembles information about free genealogical resources, state by state.

RootsWeb is the largest free genealogical community on the web. It aggregates information from many of the sites mentioned here.

Genealogy & Family History Stack Exchange is a question and answer site

Reference Books (not available online, but see link below)

The fundamental genealogical reference book (for US history) is:
The source: a guidebook of American genealogy, ed. by Loretto Dennis Szucs and Sandra Hargreaves Luebking. Salt Lake City, Utah : Ancestry, 2006, 834 p. Table of Contents in HOLLIS record under Details tab  Lamont Reference  | CS49. S65 2006

1996 version in Widener Reference | RR 1905.27.5 (Loker Reading Room, Widener, 2nd floor) (The main difference between 1995 and 2006 editions is the section on online resources)

Full text of 1984 edition

The Red Book : American State, County, & Town Sources, by Eichholz, Alice, and Dollarhide, William.  Salt Lake City, UT: Ancestry Pub., 3rd ed 2004. Table of c0ntents at Ancestry wiki link

First edition, 1989, available as Ancestry's Red Book in Widener Reference | RR 1905.4  (Loker Reading Room, Widener, 2nd floor)

Both these books are major sources in the Ancestry.com wiki, so much of their content is now available online.

Ancestry library has some helpful charts for genealogical research. We especially recommend the Ancestral Chart for forming a family tree.