Genealogy by the Cyberway and by the Highway.
I am a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Colonial Dames of the 17th Century. I enjoy conducting research on genealogy of my forefathers and the historical events that shaped and formed our country. I would like to help you learn to explore the world of genealogy - by the Cyberway and by the Highway. Listed below are links to many sites that I believe you will enjoy. For those visitors who are interested in learning more about genealogy on the internet, I am including specific sites that I believe will be most helpful in not only getting you started in genealogy, but hopefully stimulating enough that you will want to continue the search. Please enjoy these sites. If you have a problem with connecting to any of them, please contact Susan Howe for assistance.
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The USGenWeb
This is the home page for The USGenWeb Project. Consisting of a group of volunteers working together to provide Internet websites for genealogical research in every county and every state of the United States, the Project is non-commercial and fully committed to free access for everyone. the USGenWeb has a volunteer network for nearly every state and county in the U.S.A. Go look in the state where your ancestors lived, or where they were born, or traveled through in some migration with their family members. Read the queries, post a query, answer one. The RootsWeb
This is the internet's oldest and largest genealogy resource. It is a site which houses many mailing lists, which are interactive communications between a defined list of people interested in something common, like a surname, such as HOWE, or a region, like VERMONT, or a special interest, like the Revolutionary War. Try it. You can go there and sign up for a list. Read the queries for your surname. Maybe one of your relatives is looking for you! If you have Howe relatives in Vermont, I'm looking for you! Check out the links. Cyndi's List of Genealogy Sites on the Internet.
At last count, Cyndi had over 262,200 links, categorized and cross-referenced, in over 180 categories. Cyndi was asked -Why do you do all this? Her reply was simple. "The short answer is because I have fun doing this and I'm really tickled to hear the great success stories that have come to people through using the list. The list began as a project for my local genealogical society in order to help our members find resources online. The one big question I have been asked many times over and over again is, "How do you find things online once you get there?" I want to make it easy for all researchers to find the online resources that are currently available. I read somewhere that the Internet is like a library with its books strewn all over the floor. I guess I'd like my list to be the card catalog for the genealogy section of that library." John's List of Mailing Lists on the Internet.
Mailing lists are private lists created to discuss specific topics of interest to those who join the list. There are surname lists, country lists, state and county lists, newcomers to genealogy lists. You name it, there is likely a list that discusses it. John's lists are contained in five categories: General, Software, Non-USA Geographical Areas, USA, and Surnames. There are easy instructions for joining any of the lists. The National Genealogical Society
The National Genealogical Society (NGS) is a national membership organization with more than 17,000 members nationwide. Although most of its members are individuals, its institutional members include genealogical and historical societies, family organizations, libraries, and other organizations. NGS provides leadership and education through various programs, publications, and services. These include a library and library loan program, quarterly journal, bimonthly newsletter, home study course, annual conference, computer interest group, and much more. See their Web pages for the details. The New England Historic Genealogical Society
The New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS) offers a wealth of resources for the study of genealogy. A large percentage of families in the United States and Canada can trace some of their American beginnings to early settlers and later immigrants who first made their homes here. The New England Historic Genealogical Society has extensive genealogical collections and outstanding member services. In addition to resources on New England families, the Library features extensive materials from other regions of the USA, as well as Canada, Great Britain, and Europe.
Family Search - Internet Genealogy Service
In May, 1999, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which encourages its members to trace their ancestors as a religious obligation, placed nearly 400 million names of deceased people on the Internet--with the promise of more to come. Their databases contain hundreds of millions of names--part of the world's largest collection of genealogical data--are now accessible from home computers for the first time. Visit this new site to conduct your research in the Ancestral File, International Genealogical Index (British Isles, North America, and Finland regions), and web sites (by last name only).
Research Facilities in Washington, D.C.
National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution
The National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) Headquarters is located at 1776 D Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20006-5303. Their fine research library is a comprehensive facility for historical and genealogical research. The collection includes local history in America, embracing state, county, town and church materials, genealogies, biographies and vital records. These histories provide the link in connecting ancestors of the Revolutionary period with today's descendants. These resources are available at the DAR Library, the Seimes Microfilm Center, and the Office of the Registrar General, and include the following materials available for research: the Patriot Index, State, county and local histories, census records, tax records, vital records, cemetery records, family histories and bible records.
National Archives
The National Archives is located on Pennsylvania Avenue between 7th and 9th Streets, N.W. in Washington, D.C. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) makes available to the public the historically valuable records of the three branches of federal government: executive (including the President), legislative, and judicial. The primary holdings of the National Archives include the following: Federal Census Records, Military Records, Immigration Records, Military Pension Records, Bounty Land Warrants, Ship Passenger Lists, and Naturalization Records.
Genealogy Links at the National Archives
Genealogists are the most numerous users of the Washington, DC, research rooms, and 13 regional records service facilities of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). This area provides many of the finding aids, guides, and research tools that can prepare you for a visit to one of their facilities or for requesting records from NARA. They offer the public a comprehensive program of genealogical workshops and courses. Topics include an introduction to genealogy and research into records such as census schedules, military service and pension records, and passenger lists. For information about workshops and courses in Washington, DC, researchers should consult the Calendar of Events. Separate genealogy programs are conducted by 13 regional records services facilities.
The Library of Congress
The Library of Congress has one of the world's premier collections of U.S. and foreign genealogical and local historical publications. The Library's genealogy collection began as early as 1815 when Thomas Jefferson's library was purchased. Today, the library contains many publications and records that are valuable for genealogical research, including: American and foreign genealogies, city directories and telephone directories, maps and atlases, newspapers, manuscript collections, and histories of localities in the US and other countries. Click here for a street map of the Library of Congress buildings.
The Local History and Genealogy (LH&G) Reading Room is located on the ground floor of the Thomas Jefferson Building, Room LJ G42. The entrance is on 2nd Street, S.E. between East Capitol Street and Independence Avenue, S.E. This reading room houses both card catalogs and computerized catalogs of indexes of family names, surnames, and US geographical locations. You will find many local history books in the open stacks in this room. Other materials are kept in stacks that are closed to the public. You may request these materials, and have them delivered to your research area. Be sure to bring a photo id with you, as all patrons of the public reading rooms of the Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress are required to have user cards issued by the Library. The cards are free, and they can be obtained by presenting a valid driver's license, state-issued identification card, or passport at the reader registration station in Room G40 of the Thomas Jefferson Building, 10 First Street S.E.
Newspaper Room, Library of Congress
The Newspaper Room of the Library of Congress is located in Room LM-133 in the James Madison Memorial Building, entrance on Independence Avenue, between First and Second Streets, S.E., Washington, DC 20540-5590. Their collection of newspapers includes approximately 350 domestic and 1070 foreign titles are retained on a permanent basis. The collection includes loose papers, microfilm, microprint, and bound volumes. You can read the local newspapers for the time and places where your ancestors lived.
Search the Library of Congress Catalogs
The Library provides four different methods for searching its catalogs. You can search the catalogs by Word Search, Browse Search, Command Search, and their Experimental Search System (ESS), currently located in the LC WEB research and development area. I like to do my card catalog searching before I visit the library, so that I will have more time for researching my ancestors when I get there.
Historical Society of Washington, D.C.
The collections in the Research Library of the Historical Society of Washington, D.C., offer insights into the history of the city as both federal capital and local urban community. Collected to document the local history of Washington, the collections help promote understanding of
Washington's past, present, and future in tangible and personal ways. Their general reference section collections include 14,000 books, 2,000 pamphlets, 15 linear feet of ephemera, and topical vertical files on the politics, art, architecture, and social history of the District. The Society also collects oral history tapes and transcripts. Artifacts held by the library include the bullet that killed President Garfield, sculpture by D.C. artists, and advertising signs from local businesses.The Historical Society of Washington, D.C. is located at 1307 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, just a block from the DuPont Circle metro station.
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This site is not affiliated with the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution.
Susan R. Howe
Last update: November 2009
For additional information, please contact Susan Howe.
The information and web hyperlinks are provided for your information only.