CANADA
1831 Census for Lower Canada (free) – search engine on Library and Archives Canada
1851, 1901, 1906 and 1911 Canadian Censuses – free
British Columbia – The Bill Silver Digital Newspaper Archive
Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21
Canadiana – Historical archive with 40 million pages
Global Genealogy – lots of New Brunswick, Canada links
Lakehead University’s List of Federal and Provincial Archives in Canada
New Brunswick Genealogy Records on Line
Provincial Archives of New Brunswick
Nova Scotia Historical Vital Statistics
Nova Scotia Genealogy Records on Line
Quebec Genealogy Records on Line
The Canadian County Atlas Digital Program
TONI (The Ontario Name Index) – Ontario Genealogical Society
United Empire Loyalists’ Association of Canada
CHINA
For those with Chinese ancestry, here are some online resources:
1. China GenWeb
2. FamilySearch China Genealogy – Log into your account to search
3. Philadelphia, PA Case Files of Chinese Immigrants, 1900-1923
4. Chinese Historical Society of America
5. National Archives and Records Administration, Pacific Region
6. Chinese Railroad Workers in North America Project
7. The Chinese in California 1850-1925
Usually, I only list resources with digitized links. Because Chinese resources are so sparse and this collection is so large, I am including it:
8. FamilySearch, Collection of Genealogies 1239-2013 – These are microfilms which must be ordered from the Family History Library in Salt Lake City and read at your local Family History Center.
There are not many resources out there, but there are some that look very promising, especially if you can read Mandarin or one of the other dialects.
I also recommend looking for ethnic organizations in the towns where your family settled.
EUROPEAN COUNTRIES
European History Primary Sources – resources in 8 languages; links to collections that may enhance your genealogical research abroad.
Europeana – Free website sharing the cultural heritage of Europe
World Digital Library – a growing site highlighting the history of culture of countries around the world.
GERMANY
Note that most German record access is only available by subscription or as a member of the LDS Church with an account on FamilySearch.
FamilySearch – German church registers have been digitized, but as I found out at the Family History Library during RootsTech, those digital images are only accessible through an LDS member account. They can’t even be viewed in the FHL without one. I was told that is why they keep the microfilms of those records.
FamilySearch Wiki for Germany – Log into your account to search.
Matricula-Online – There is a collection of central European church registers. It appears to be free, but read the terms of use (Google translate), as they are restrictive in terms of sharing/publishing images.
Ancestry – requires a world subscription, but it can be accessed at local family history centers and many public libraries.
Compgen – free website to locate villages with Ortsfamilienbucher (family books) in German
Compgen Wiki – in German, but Google Translate is your friend!
Archion – subscription site, about 180 euros per year (US $200)
GERMAN PALATINES TO AMERICA
German Genealogy Society – Membership offered, but there are free links on the home page.
Palatine German Genealogy and Ships Passenger Lists – From The Olive Tree Genealogy
The Palatines – Compiled by the United Empire Loyalist Association of Canada, this PDF file contacts historical information as well as links to research sources.
HISTORIC EUROPEAN NEWSPAPERS ONLINE
Here are a baker’s dozen plus 1 of resources for locating historic newspapers online – some lead to pay links, but many are free.
NewspaperMap – an interactive map to 10,000 newspapers worldwide.
- Europeana Newspapers – This website has links to about 25 participating libraries. NOTE: Use the box at the top right to EXPLORE the newspapers. The prototype browser offered in the box allows search terms to be entered.
- BGSU University Libraries – This library has links to worldwide newspaper collections. The European tab lists the newspapers by name under countries and also includes the time period of publication.
- The Ancestor Hunt by Kenneth R. Marks has a 2016 post about European newspaper links, some free and some by subscription.
- Wikipedia: List of Online Newspapers
- Xooxle Answers: European Newspaper Archives – Some of these newspapers go back to the 1600s.
- University of Illinois – Find Newspapers – Scroll down past the mainly U.S. links to Europe.
- Elephind – Another site that includes historical newspapers worldwide, not just European
- Google News Archive – more links to worldwide newspapers, but they are in ABC order by title, not grouped by country
- Compact Memory – A collection of Jewish newspapers published in German speaking countries
- Duke University Libraries: Russian and East European Historical Newspapers
- The University of Western Australia – The library has links to worldwide historical newspapers.
- University of Toronto Libraries – You’ll find links to modern newspapers, but scroll down to find the list of historical newspaper links.
POLAND
Poland is a country whose borders and rulers have changed many times. Almost 9,000,000 Americans claim Polish roots. Yet, because of the many political shifts in Polish history, vital records can be difficult to locate. Here is a list of Polish resources to check if your family hailed from the area that today is Poland.
If your Polish roots are also Jewish, there is a separate page in the Resource Toolbox to help you.
1. AGAD – Ukrainian, Russian and Lithuanian records from areas that once were in Poland, but are not currently. This archive is housed in Warsaw.
2. Ancestry.com – Although most records on Ancestry are available only by subscription, it does have a number of Polish databases that are available to search for free. Use this link to access the list.
3. FamilySearch – Log into your account to search.
Poland Indexed Historical Records
Poland Wiki
4. FEEFHS (Foundation of Eastern European Family History Societies – This site has lots of gazetteer information, digital maps on line and links to many Polish genealogical societies
5. Geneteka
Donna Pointkouski’s blog post on how to best navigate the site
7. Pomeranian Genealogical Association – If your Polish kin was from West Prussia, check this website. There is also a relatively new website called ManyRoads that has Prussian data.
8. Poznan Project – If you have relatives who married in Poznan, this is for you – a marriage database
9. The Polish Genealogy Project – It’s hard to tell when this site was last updated and the first link in the Databases section is broken, but there are many other good working links.
10. Genealogy Indexer – This website has a focus on Central and Eastern European records with 1.8 million pages of historical records.
11. Museum of the History of Polish Jews
12. Polish Genealogical Society of America
SCANDINAVIA
Denmark
Afdode.dk – Obituaries from the 1900s and 2000s
Alsnissen: Index of Sonderborg County records
Arkivalieronline(Danish State Archives)
Bornholmske Church Books – indexed records of Bornholm Island
Copenhagen Street and Parish Index – Log into your account to search.
Copenhagen Police Census 1890-1923 – If your family lived in Copenhagen during this time period, you can search for them here.
Danish Record Collections at FamilySearch.org
DigDag – Interactive historical maps
DIS-Danmark – this interactive map will display every Danish parish from 1793 to 1970
Google Translate – If you don’t speak Danish (like me), this will give you a rough idea of what you are trying to read.
Otto Kalkar: Ordbog til det aeldre danske sprog (1300-1700) – Translations for archaic words
Research by Aurelia Clemons – index for some areas of Denmark (free)
Scandinavian Feast Day Calendar
Scandinavian Handwriting – Log into your account to search.
Sweden
There is a positive and a negative side to researching Swedish family. Swedish records, which include the usual births/baptisms, marriages and burials also include frequent Household Examinations by the parish vicar, population registers which are actual tax registers, detailed probate records and various other records kept mostly at the local level either by the parish priest or the city military or courts.
The negative side is that the most complete records are only available on one subscription site – ArkivDigital.
First, here are some free resources:
FamilySearch has a browsable collection of Swedish records, a few of which are indexed and appear as abstracted data when a name is entered in the search box. To view the full browsable collection, one must visit a local family history center. Here is more information on what is in the collection and how to access items.
Demographic Database of Southern Sweden – This is a site that has begun to abstract records from parishes in the old Malmohus, Kristianstad and Blekinge counties in southern Sweden. The link is to the English page.
Scandinavia Feast Day Calendar – Many old baptismal records are written as “1st Sunday after Epiphany.” This will help you determine what the calendar day and month were.
Slakdata – This is also a database of parish records that have been abstracted. It is in Swedish, so click on registerlista and then click on the first letter of your parish name (forsamling) to see if your parish of interest is listed. This website is more of a complement to the DDSS listed above because I find that many of my parishes of interest in southern Sweden haven’t yet been added to Slakdata.org.
SVAR – Swedish National Archives
The Swedish Genealogy Guide – A blog, videos, dictionary and links will help acclimate you to Swedish records and research.
Swedish National Archives – Unlike Denmark and Norway, Swedish records are not free, but the link is included here if you would like to find out what types of records they hold and how to obtain them.
As mentioned before, the most complete records are accessible only through subscription and the most comprehensive record sets with the best images are found on ArkivDigital.
ArkivDigital, a relatively new company, scanned all new images of the records it offers on line. Newer technology equals better quality its images are top quality. ArkivDigital offers multiple subscription tiers: one week, one month, three months, six months, one year, or two years.
Disclaimer: The information in this post is my own opinion. I receive no benefits, recompense or payments of any kind from ArkivDigital.
SLOVAKIA
The Carpathian Connection – for those with Passaic, NJ Slovak family
Slovakia Census 1869 – on FamilySearch.og
Slovakia Church and Synogogue Records – on FamilySearch.org
Genealogy Indexer – This website has a focus on Central and Eastern European records with 1.8 million pages of historical records.
UNITED KINGDOM & IRELAND
Be sure to peruse the entire list, as a few entries cover, say, England and Wales, but I’ve listed them under England, the first country in the title.
Geograph – Their goal is to “photograph every square kilometer of Great Britain and Ireland.”
The Federation of Family History Societies – subscription membership, but there are almost 200 local family history societies that belong to FFHS. If you know the ancestral home of your family, membership in a society might provide access to local records.
GENUKI – a virtual reference library of genealogical information of particular relevance to the UK and Ireland
UK GenWeb – managed by volunteers so some sites might be chock full of information, while others have little, but well worth checking
The Genealogist – membership website, but you can search for free.
International Society for British Genealogy and Family History – based in the US
Wales, Ireland, Scotland, England Family History Society
Forces War Records – search military records for free, but fee to access
Catholic Family History Society – covers England, Wales and Scotland, but not Ireland
Home Children, 1869-1932 – British Home Children in Canada
British Home Children in Canada
British Home Child Group International
Deceased Online – search British burial records for free, but fee to access
British Postal Museum and Archive
Army Museums Ogilby Trust – Regimental museums in the U.K.
Borthwick Institute for Archives – U.K. repository of regional and national archives
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The Gazette – UK government notices on a variety of topics
FreeCEN – Search U.K. Censuses
Gazetteer of British Place Names
University Research Libraries – catalogs of 24 of the largest UK and Ireland research libraries
Western Front Association – remembering those who served in The Great War (WWI)
UKBMD Project – local society initiatives to publish local records online
Be aware that for colonial American ties to Britain, many early parish registers have been indexed and are available on FamilySearch. However, for more recent vital records, there are indexes available online, but birth, marriage and death records must be purchased.
England
Apprenticeship Books of Great Britain – on FamilySearch beginning in 1711
Apprenticeship Records – FindMyPast is a subscription site, but it includes an excellent collection of British apprenticeship records:
City of London, Haberdashers, Apprentices and Freemen 1526-1933
City of London, Ironmongers, Apprentices and Freemen 1511-1939
City of York Apprentices and Freemen 1272-1930
Country Apprentices 1710-1808
Devon, Plymouth & West Devon Apprentices 1570-1910
Electrical Engineering Apprentices and Trainees 1902-1934
Gloucester Apprentices 1595-1700
Lincolnshire Parish Apprentice Index 1618-1925
London Apprenticeship Abstracts 1442-1850
Manchester Apprentices 1700-1849
Parish Apprentices for Dorset
Parish Apprentices for Somerset
Surrey, Southwark, Newington Apprentice Register 1891
The Records of London’s Livery Companies Online (ROLLCO)
FreeBMD – Civil registration began in 1837 and records are indexed.
General Register Office – Certificates can be ordered here.
FreeReg – Parish registers can be searched here. Be aware that not all parishes are included, nor are all date ranges.
Prerogative Court of Canterbury – Probate records (wills) can be downloaded directly from the website, but it is a pay site.
Old Bailey – criminal trial records from 1674-1913
Historical Directories of England and Wales – digital directories from 1750-1919
Post-1858 Wills for England and Wales – searchable index
Northern Ireland
North of Ireland Family History Society
General Register Office of Northern Ireland
Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI)
Republic of Ireland
American Ancestors – Subscription site, but if you have New England Irish immigrant ancestors, NEHGS has a number of holdings, including newspapers ads looking for Missing Friends.
The Irish Great War Dead Archive
Scotland
Dictionary of the Scots Language
FamilySearch – Scotland wiki
Scottish Association of Family History Societies
ScotlandsPeople – This is the government website to use for Scottish records. However, it is a pay site.
National Records of Scotland: Besides access to ScotlandsPeople, this site has many other databases.
The Scottish Register of Tartans
Wales
FamilySearch Wiki – Wales Genealogy, lots of links
Archives Network Wales – Includes collections from 21 archives in Wales
FreeBMD – Civil registration began in 1837 and records are indexed.
General Register Office – Certificates can be ordered here.
Historical Directories of England and Wales – digital directories from 1750-1919
A Topographical Dictionary of Wales
FamilySearch Wales Probate Abstracts, 1544-1858 – As of December 2017, patrons must sign up for a free account to log in and access collections on FamilySearch