Looking for Previous Research

After you have looked for previous research at FamilySearch.org there are many other places to search. I will attach some links to many of the great places to visit.

First a look at the Library of Congress online catalog found at: catalog.loc.gov. Do a basic search and include the surname and "family" or a location. If a book has been published in the United States about your family and you have found a copy of it at the Library of Congress you may borrow this book through Inter-Library Loan. Inter-Library Loan service is available through many public and university libraries. In order to borrow the book you will need to give the librarian a complete copy of the book information you found at the Library of Congress.

Another great site to search for books is Google Books found at: books.google.com. Google books is a collection of digitized books. You might be surprised to find the book you want in pdf format and available for download.

The Family History Archive at BYU is another large collection of digitized books. The collection can be searched at: Family History Archive. This collection contains over 27,600 digital books and family histories and continues to grow.

Heritage Quest Online has a collection of 24, 000 digitized family and local histories that are searchable through their site. To search the books select the "Books" catagory and enter a surname. Heritage Quest also has an index called Periodical Source Index (PERSI). This is an index of 2.1 million genealogical and local history publications housed at the Allen County Public Library in Indiana. If you get results searching this index instructions are provided on how to order the article where your surname is mentioned. Heritage Quest Online is available through Family History Centers and is also available through many public libraries free of charge.