Genealogy Resources

The library has an abundance of genealogy resources for anyone interested in tracing their family history.  You’ll find yearbooks, city directories, obituaries, cemetery records, and several new books about how to organize and archive your research materials.  We also have two new books of historical maps in the Genealogy Reference section.  Genealogy resources can be found on the upper level of the library.

Family Photo Detective by Maureen Taylor (2013)- 929.1072 TA –is an update of two previous books about dating photographs: Uncovering your History Through Family Photographs  – 929.1 TA and More Dating Old Photographs – 929.1 MO, also written by Taylor a.k.a. The Photo Detective.  Photo identification relies on period dress and hairstyles going back to 1840, as well as furniture props used in studio portraits and other investigative tips.  These books include worksheet templates for listing who is pictured in a photo and when it was taken. 

How to Archive Family Photos (2015) by Denise May Levenick – 771.46 MA - consists of step-by-step instructions for organizing photos and storing them digitally.  Levenick, a.k.a. The Family Curator, lists easy methods to organize and back up your digital photos, using up-to-date photo software to safely store your materials. She also shares 25 creative project ideas to preserve and display family photos. 

Organize your Genealogy: Strategies and Solutions for Every Researcher by Drew Smith (2016) – 929.1 SM – is very comprehensive, including setting up physical and online workspaces, using the best tools for organizing your ancestry materials, and easy-to-use checklists to enhance research.  Smith encourages genealogists to be organized and efficient by using online tools such as calendars, bookmarks, and blogs, while also promoting field trips to collect documents from local facilities.  His previous publication, Social Networking for Genealogists  (2009) – 929.1028 - highlighted the use of blogs, RSS feeds, and wikis to collaborate with other genealogy researchers.

The Family Tree Historical Maps Book by Allison Dolan (2014) – R912.73 DO – is a state by state atlas of U.S. history from 1790 to 1900 with full-color historical maps of all 50 states in alphabetical order.  It also includes panoramic maps of key cities from the nineteenth century.  These maps will put your research into geographical context by identifying the changing names and shifting borders of each state over a period of time.  Many of the maps are from the David Rumsey Historical Map Collection and the Library of Congress Geography and Map Division, which can both be referenced online.

The Family Tree Historical Maps Book Europe by Allison Dolan (2015) – R912.4 DO -  traces the borders of European countries through wars that change borders from the 1700’s to the 1900’s.  The countries are grouped by region, and rotate from Great Britain to mainland Europe to Scandinavia and back again.  These maps should help genealogists find ancestors in a particular country at a particular time.  There’s also a listing of states, regions, provinces, and municipalities of each country in the back of the book.

--Lynette Suckow, Reference Desk