Free U.S. Genealogy Resources

This page lists several of the major free genealogy web sites. We're not attempting to recreate Cyndi's list, but rather highlight a few of the most useful sites. If you have any suggestions, please let us know.

Google Name Search

This feature is specially designed for finding names in a Google Search

General Resources

Family Search/Family History Library
USGenWeb (includes links to each state GenWeb site)
Roots Web (sponsored by Ancestry.com)
Lisa Louise Cooke’s Genealogy Gems features the free Genealogy Gems Podcast, Elevenses with Lisa YouTube show, and blog articles. Visit www.GenealogyGems.com

Catalog of Online Records

Copies of original historical vital records and newspapers are now online for many states. To find out where to access them, see the List of Online Records.

Ordering Birth, Marriage, and Death Certificates by Mail

For details about where records are held and who to order them from, Ancestry's Red Book (click here) is available free online. A printed copy is in the AVGS library.

Major Vital Records Indexes

Social Security Death Index
California Birth Index
California Death Index
Illinois State Archives
Kentucky Vital Records Indexes
Maryland State Archives Vital Records Index
Massachusetts Archives
Ohio Death Certificate Index
Oregon Historical Records Index
South Carolina Death Indexes
South Dakota Birth Records over 100 years old
Tennessee State Library and Archives

Religious Records

Click here for an extensive list of U.S. religious archives compiled by Charlotte Brocage.

Family History Photo Sharing

Ancient Faces
Dead Fred

Memorials, Cemetery Inscriptions, and Headstone Photos

Find-A-Grave
Billion Graves
Interment.net

Land Records

BLM General Land Office records, including searchable index and online images of Federal land patents.

Library Resources

County of Los Angeles Library Heritage Quest (requires L.A. County library card)

City of Los Angeles Public Library Search the L.A. Times back to 1880 and use Access Newspaper Archives with an L.A. City library card. At the Central Library in Downtown Los Angeles an entire floor is dedicated to genealogy and history.

Southern California Genealogical Society" Large genealogical library in Burbank (see SCGS Web Site. Members have access to some genealogical databases from home.

LDS Family History Centers have a number of genealogical database subscriptions (requires in-person visit, see familysearch.org)