United States genealogy

Discover your story. Preserve your legacy.

Practical guidance for U.S. genealogy research - step by step. Find records, build your family tree, and share what you discover.

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Trustworthy guidance. Privacy-respectful. Always.

Archival genealogy scene with family portrait, census records, books, pocket watch, and research notes

Reliable and respectful

Research guidance built around care, source context, and privacy.

U.S. record focused

Beginner paths for census, birth, marriage, military, and newspaper clues.

Built for beginners

Simple next steps before opening another archive search tab.

Your data, your control

Keep sensitive family details private until you choose to share.

The genealogy research journey

A clear path from first steps to family discoveries

Plan

Start with names, places, dates, and the stories already in reach.

Find

Compare public records, family notes, photos, and old documents carefully.

Organize

Keep clues labeled so the next search does not erase the context.

Turn reviewed notes into respectful family stories.

Explore the guide map

Curated paths for everyday family-history decisions.

Choose a lane before opening records: collect stories, organize clues, compare sources, and preserve family context with privacy in mind.

Research basics

Start with names, dates, places, and relationships.

Build a calm first-pass inventory from family notes, photos, stories, and known records before searching larger archives.

Record literacy

Read census and public-record clues in context.

Compare spelling variations, household details, neighbors, dates, and locations before treating one record as the final answer.

Oral history

Ask better questions while respecting boundaries.

Use privacy-aware prompts for interviews, sensitive memories, and stories that need family review before sharing.

Featured guides

Practical tools for the first month of family-history research.

Browse checklists and field guides that help turn scattered notes into a reviewed research path. Paid downloads remain clearly separated from public education.

Census worksheets Family photo notes Name variation logs Oral-history prompts Story preservation guides

Research map

Family-history themes

Genealogy research basics - first steps, family interviews, and starting worksheets
Family history organization - branch-by-branch notes, folders, and reviewed clues
Ancestry record literacy - census, certificates, newspapers, and source context

First records to review

Start with the paper trail

Census schedules and household clues
Birth, marriage, and death certificates
Newspaper mentions and local histories

Organize and share

From loose clues to a family story

Keep one worksheet per branch.
Label uncertain details instead of hiding them.
Share reviewed summaries with relatives first.