Downloadable Research Checklist/Log (fillable PDF)
Free Online Instruction and Support
o Ancestry.com’s Ancestry Academy offers a wide variety of research and support videos in both short and longer lengths under their ‘Help’ tab.
o ConferenceKeeper is a single site to search for genealogy events, blogs, YouTube channels, etc. Some events are free, others aren’t.
o Family History Guide is a free site that offers video instruction for using FamilySearch, Ancestry, and more to help you get started.
o Family History Library at Brigham Young University offers free classes via YouTube and Webinars, as well as many other searchable databases.
o Family Tree Magazine offers access to 10 free articles per month and free forms, but they will spam you with many emails!
o FamilySearch provides free 20-minute consultations on your family tree and genealogy research to help you get started or break through a brick wall.
o Check the FamilySearch Research Wiki for help starting your research or finding genealogy information.
o Genealogy Gems podcasts by Lisa Louise Cooke’s provides visual instruction on a wide variety of genealogy topics, as well as a podcast for listening.
o Genealogy Research Guides, Tips and Online Records gives the basics of online genealogy research and provides links to vital record and other genealogy resources.
o Genealogy.com is another great resource for tips as you grow your skills.
o History Hub answers questions and provides advice through crowdsourcing.
o Use a podcast app such as iHeartRadio and search for ‘genealogy’ to listen to genealogy research tips while you drive, jog, or clean the house.
o Legacy Family Tree Webinars has a small portion of free webinars and an annual event with a week of free webinars in April.
o MyHeritage Knowledge Base offers an ‘Intro to Genealogy course’ as well as a variety of research articles, webinars, and how-to videos to grow your skills.
o RootsTech is an annual online free conference hosted by FamilySearch in February with a bank of past presentations to view.
o If you are not confident in your computer skills for online genealogy, try this free computer class from Udemy.
o Search YouTube for ‘genealogy’ or the names of any of the big genealogy websites or programs for tips on getting started and support for using the sites.
Free Genealogy and Research Sites
AccessGenealogy
Allen County Public Library
AncientFaces
Badgerlink (at library)
BillionGraves.com
Bureau of Land Management
Chronicling America (newspapers)
Classmates.com (yearbooks)
Daughters of the American Revolution
David Rumsey Map Collection
Digital Public Library of America
Facebook
FamilySearch
FindAGrave
Fold3 (military)
Freedmen’s Bureau
Genealogy.com
GenealogyTrails
GenGophers
Geni
Google
Google Books
Statue of Liberty – Ellis Island Foundation (passenger search)
HeritageQuestOnline (at library)
Legacy (obituaries)
Library of Congress
Linkpendium
Wisconsin Statewide Parcel Map
National Archives & Records Administration
ObitCity
OldMapsOnline
Guide of One-Name Studies
One-Step Webpages
Periodical Source Index (PERSI)
ReclaimTheRecords
RecollectionWisconsin
Genealogy Research Guides, Tips and Records – USA
TribalPages
USGenWeb
UW Libraries Search
Internet Archive Wayback Machine
Wisconsin Circuit Court Access
WeRelate
WikiTree
Subscription-based Genealogy Sites
AmericanAncestors
Ancestry
Archives.com
FindMyPast
GenealogyBank (newspapers)
MyHeritage
Newspapers.com
State Websites to check
Alabama Department of Archives & History
Alaska State Archives
Arizona Memory Project
Arkansas Digital Heritage
Online Archive of California
Denver Public Library Digital Collections (CO)
Connecticut Digital Archive
Delaware Public Archives
Dig DC
Florida Memory
Georgia Archives
Hawai’i State Archives
Idaho State Historical Society
Illinois Digital Archives
Indiana State Library
Iowa Digital Library
Kansas Memory
Kentucky Historical Society
Louisiana Digital Library
Maine Genealogy
Maryland State Archives
Digital Commonwealth Massachusetts Collections Online
Michiganology
Iron Range Research Center (MN)
Mississippi Digital Library
State Historical Society of Missouri
Montana History Portal
History Nebraska
Nevada Genealogy
New Hampshire Genealogy & History at Searchroots
New Jersey State Archives
New Mexico’s Digital Collections
New York Heritage Collections
Digital NC
Digital Horizons Online (ND)
Ohio Memory
Oklahoma Digital Prairie
Oregon Digital
State Library of Pennsylvania Genealogy and Local History
Rhode Island Historical Cemeteries
South Carolina Department of Archives and History
South Dakota State Historical Society
Tennessee Virtual Archive
Portal to Texas History
Utah Department of Government Operations
Vermont History
Library of Virginia
Washington State Digital Archives
West Virginia Archives and History
Wisconsin Historical Society
Wyoming Digital Newspaper Collection