FamilySearch

wfamilysearch.org

Run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the

Mormons), FamilySearch really is the mothership of free websites. And its vast global collection of records is growing at an extraordinary rate. For example, did you know that you can now search Welsh parish registers and see the images for free? If typing a name into the website’s global search engine offers too many results, try limiting your search to specific collections. Here are four reasons why you should add FamilySearch to your bookmarks.

1 Global Records

Many of our past relatives went overseas to improve their fortunes. Whether you know you are looking for someone abroad or you have come to a dead end with UK records, FamilySearch is an excellent way to tap into foreign records. The site’s Caribbean collection in particular makes it the primary resource for researching the area.

2 Search Images

There are millions of records transcribed and indexed on FamilySearch. However, there are also millions of photographed records that are not. From the homepage, select ‘Search’ and then ‘Images’ and type in the name of a place of interest. Here you can find manorial court rolls, Poor Law records and much more.

3 Information Resource

The FamilySearch Wiki has always been an amazing repository of knowledge, but it was getting a bit unwieldy. Now redesigned with a more logical structure, it clearly spells out what’s available where and should be your first port of call for overseas research. Beginners should choose the ‘Guided Research’ option.

4 Shared Family Research

The FamilySearch community is busy building a giant shared family tree. It’s worth adding or ‘following’ people you are actively researching, because you can then find out if your fellow family historians have added ‘memories’ (usually photographs) or other details that you may not be able to track down by other means.