Library Research Guide for Genealogical Research

Note: Ancestry Library Edition does not offer the ability to create family trees or see the trees of Ancestry individual members.

Ancestry Library provides an extensive collection of vital records, directories, censuses, military records, and other material from several countries worldwide for the purposes genealogical research. Includes fully-indexed, full-text images of United States federal census returns, 1790-1940, passenger lists, slave registers and more.

To get started, enter a name and, if possible, estimated birth year and place your ancestor might have lived. When you begin entering place, Ancestry offers suggestions. Below is information for Asvera Matz of Massachusetts.

I recognize the first result as Ms. Matz,  as she was listed in the 1930 census. Finding her was relatively easy because of her unusual name.

By clicking on View Image on the left, we can see the page from the 1930 census records and find entries for other members of the family. The categories answered in the 1930 census include Sex, Color or Race, Age at last birthday, Age at first marriage, and details about Place of Birth, Mother Tongue, and Citizenship.

Finding Asvera Matz's name leads us  to her father. Though the 1930 Census records show he was not a citizen, his 1940 Census Citizenship category is PA, which (according to this guide to understanding Naturalization records, including abbreviations also used in the Census) indicates "has first papers." From other results for this basic search, we see he was naturalized in 1941 and registered for the draft in 1942.

Note that the spelling of his first name, his birthdate, and birth year vary in all these records.

Ancestry Library Edition ProQuest guide: Much useful information here, especially the links to quick Ancestry Guides on YouTube  and the Search Tips. 

The Ancestry Family History Learning Hub is a general portal for search advice (which is free outside Ancestry Library Edition). 

Most of the differences are due to an ordinary Ancestry subscription being intended for an individual. It includes features (some free; some at additional cost), that would personalize the site in a way that wouldn't work for a library database used for scholarly research.

In the Library Edition you cannot:

• Find and hire an expert
• Collaborate with other member, post to message boards etc.
• Add your own family tree to the family trees
• Use the DNA testing service
• Save records between sessions
• The Ancestry Family History Learning Hub is not included, but it is a free web site and available separately.

There are also a few databases and collections listed in this explanatory document from ProQuest (Ancestry) which are not available in the Library Edition. In most cases, the library has access to this information in another way.