Are you looking to uncover your family's history? Libraries and archives are a great place to start your genealogical research. From the Library of Congress to the Middle Continent Public Library, there are many resources available to help you trace your family tree. The Library of Congress is home to one of the world's most important collections of local and American and foreign genealogical and historical publications. The library's genealogy collection began as early as 1815 with the purchase of Thomas Jefferson's library.
To access the collection, search the library catalog for words such as special collections, historic, digitized, and rare books. You can also ask a librarian for assistance. Free wireless access is available in the main reading room. The National Archives and Records Administration also has a wealth of resources for genealogists.
Archival databases containing information on the famine, Irish immigrants, military records, and more are available online. Additionally, many of the key records essential to genealogical research were created by local county or city governments. The National Archives' collections span a thousand years, with more than 5 miles of archival documents (in dozens of languages and alphabetical systems) and more than 500,000 books, including family and community stories, memoirs, newspapers, photographs and records from various community, cultural, political and professional organizations. The Middle Continent Public Library is another great resource for genealogists.
The library offers a Genealogy from the Heartland collection which is free of charge throughout the country. The catalog of the library's extensive collections is online, as is the new national index of the Committee on Genealogical Records. Finally, the Daughters of the American Revolution Genealogical Research Library is another great resource for those looking to uncover their family history. The library has an extensive collection of records that can help you trace your family tree.