At the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, we help people preserve, document, and share their family history 365 days a year - for us, every month is Family History Month!
In many places, October is designated Family History Month. Whether you're a seasoned researcher with a well-cited family tree, or you're just beginning to cultivate the desire to learn more about your past, this month presents a great opportunity to consider how you can improve your research skills and discover more ancestors.
All throughout this month, we'll be creating videos, blog posts, and other online content that will help you develop the most crucial skills you need to learn more about your ancestors. Although our focus is on families in New York State, you can still benefit even if you aren't researching in any of New York's 62 counties - the core methods and research skills remain the same no matter where your family has lived.
Make sure to sign up for our email newsletter, or follow us on Facebook to keep up with all that we're producing during Family History Month.
This blog post will contain links to some of our favorite free articles and resources from our website, as well as links to our newly published material. Make sure to check back frequently, or sign up above and you'll receive all of our latest posts and news via email.
Our Family History Month Recommendations
since 1869 - 2019 will be the society's 150th
anniversary year!
Our website is full of many resources - members of the NYG&B have access to absolutely everything, but we have plenty of free resources and articles that are open to the general public.
This list will be updated throughout the month as new material is published.
Here are some of our in-depth subject guides that are great for beginner, intermediate, or even advanced genealogists:
Getting Started on Your Family History: This month is a fantastic month to begin researching. It's not difficult to get started and make progress, and the whole endeavor will bring you closer to your living relatives as well as your ancestors.
New York State Vital Records Guide: Finding birth, marriage, and death certificates in New York State can be challenging, but it can be done as long as you know the correct place to look. This comprehensive guide will get you going in the right direction.
New York Newspapers Available Online: Newspapers are a fantastic resource for learning about the world of our ancestors. There are many historical newspaper collections online - this guide will help you find ones relevant to the locations where your ancestors lived - you may even find some articles about them.
A Selection of Major Cemeteries in New York State: Visiting cemeteries to learn about your ancestors who are interred there is another fun and physically active aspect of genealogy research. In many places, October is cool, but not too chilly - a good month for a trip! You may also want to read our recent article 6 quick tips to prepare for a genealogy cemetery trip.
The NYG&B blog also regularly published helpful and interesting articles about all aspects of genealogy research. Here are some of our recommended articles:
- General Methods
- Birth, Marriage, and Death Records
- Subject Specific Articles
- New York Catholic records online: What you need to know
- Essential resources for African American research on the NYG&B website
- Free Revolutionary War resources from the Daughters of the American Revolution
- Reformed Dutch and German churches of Manhattan and the Bronx
- Researching Irish ancestors in New York State
- Surprising facts about immigration to New York
We have many more articles available on our blog, and will be updating this list as new articles are published this month - we encourage you to explore!
October Special: Join as a new member and get a free book!
NYG&B annual membership dues provide crucial support for our non-profit genealogy society - we couldn't do all that we do without the support of our fantastic members!
If you're interested in learning more about what we do, read about our mission or several exciting ongoing projects we just announced.
NYG&B members also receive some fantastic benefits for their support - all members get full access to our website and other member benefits.
In honor of October, which is Family History Month and concludes with Halloween, new members who join this month have the option to receive a free hard copy of some of our spookiest volumes: New York City Coroners' Reports - just tell us which volume you would like when filling out your membership form, and we'll send it out at no cost to you.
About the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society
a registered 501(c)(3) organization devoted to
preserving, documenting, and sharing the history of
New York State families. Read more about our mission.
Since 1869, our mission has been to help our thousands of worldwide members discover their family's New York story, and there has never been a better time to join.
The cost of an Individual Annual Membership is less than six dollars a month, and includes the following benefits:
- Access to over 50 exclusive digital record sets covering the entire state of New York, including the fully searchable archives of The Record.
- A complimentary subscription to all of Findmypast's North American records, as well as U.K. and Irish Census records.
- Access to hundreds of expert-authored Knowledge Base articles and webinars to help you navigate the tricky New York research landscape.
- Exclusive discounts and advanced access to conferences, seminars, workshops and lectures to learn more about researching people and places across New York State.
To learn more or join us, please visit our member benefits page.