BEGINNING GENEALOGY
HOW TO GET STARTED ON YOUR FAMILY HISTORY AT THE HAYES PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY
First - Talk to family - Start charts with self - Record all sources
Talk with older relatives; look for family records, such as Bibles, diaries, letters, and newspaper clippings; collect and record old family traditions and stories - consider using a tape or video recorder to preserve the memories of the older generation. Use ancestor charts and family group sheets to record information. Enter into computer program, if possible. Hayes recommends Roots Magic and copies are available in the Museum Store.
Now - Check sources at the Hayes Presidential Center
Computerized catalog of books on the web – go to maurice.bgsu.edu or our web site www.rbhayes.org and look under the Library – check for family names. Also check www.worldcat.org – now available from home.
Obits on the Web-www.rbhayes.org/index
Over 1 million names from Ohio newspapers from the 1810's to the present, with over half being from Northwest Ohio counties. Also includes indexing of some marriage notices, biographical files, probate cases, and other miscellaneous sources
County books and atlases on shelves and on microfilm (for out of state)
Look for biographical narratives, cemetery records, published vital statistics, etc.
Census records
HPC has Ohio census records on microfilm from 1790 to 1930, all of which are indexed either in books or online. The rest of the country is now available on the web via heritagequest.com, a genealogical service for which we have paid and can be accessed for free at the Library or, if you are a $45 member of the Hayes Presidential Center, at home. AncestryLibraryEdition.com is another online genealogical service which offers census for the whole country on the web, but it is not available for home use. Between HeritageQuest and Ancestry, there are indexes to all the US censuses.
Military and church records
Military reference books and microfilm
Large collection of Sandusky county church records on microfilm, including records of all the Catholic Churches in the county.
Microfilmed records
· Sandusky County records, such as births, deaths, marriages
· Hundreds of Ohio city directories plus thousands of county histories for other states, such as PA, NY, IN, MI, CA & IL
· Extensive collection of newspapers from this area and Ohio.
If you can’t find it at Hayes, we can refer you to the next place to search, such as courthouses, state archives, and other libraries.
Check your local public library for a variety of “how-to” books for genealogy that you can check out. Some titles available via Clevnet:
Carmack, Sharon DeBartolo, .A genealogist's guide to discovering your immigrant and ethnic ancestors : how to find and record your unique heritage
Melnyk, Marcia Yannizze, The weekend genealogist : timesaving techniques for effective research
Hinckley, Kathleen W. Locating lost family members & friends : modern genealogical research techniques for locating the people of your past and present
Carmack, Sharon DeBartolo, Organizing your family history search : efficient & effective ways to gather and protect your genealogical research
Colwell, Stella. Tracing your family history
Best, Laura. Genealogy for the first time : research your family history
Hayes Presidential Centerweb site: www.rbhayes.org
· look under “Rutherford B. Hayes” tab for genealogy of the Hayes and Webb families.
· for online catalog of books see maurice.bgsu.edu
· for obituaries on the web – www.rbhayes.org/index
Family Search Program
LDS (Mormon) Church – millions of names giving births, christening, and marriage information the whole world. Online – www.familysearch.org. Can also download free genealogy program, Personal Ancestral File, off the web site.
The Hayes Library is now a Family Search partner and can borrow film from the LDS Church. Click here for details http://www.rbhayes.org/hayes/resources/display.asp?id=869&subj=resources
Genealogy classes at Hayes Presidential Center, (usually run 9:30-11:30 am) Beginning Genealogy class alternates with Computers and Genealogy Class. Also have a class on RootsMagic sporadically. Call for registration – 419-332-2081; Free
Important addresses for genealogical web sites:
· www.cyndislist.com- lists over 200,000 genealogical web sites, divided by subject
· www.usgenweb.com– genealogical web sites, divided by geography
· www.rootsmagic.com- good genealogy program – Roots Magic
· http://beginninggenealogy.googlepages.com/ - An online tutorial for beginning genealogists from the Genealogy Center at Fort Wayne’s Allen County Public Library
http://www.acpl.lib.in.us/genealogy/getstart.html
· http://home.tampabay.rr.com/centans/genguide.html- an online beginner’s guide to genealogy
· http://genealogy.about.com/-lots of interesting articles about genealogy in general.
Hours: 9 –5 Tuesday - Saturday
Copies $.25 each - photocopies, microfilm copies, computer printouts
Becky Hill
Head Librarian