USA/America Sources

Nature of Source

Records generated from those leaving the UK for the United States. The majority of people who migrated did so either voluntarily or were forced against their will because of religious persecution or for economic reasons. Others were encouraged/assisted to move from their country of origin.

The first English colony was established by the Virginia Company of London in Jamestown Virginia in 1607. During the 17th and early 18th centuries, thirteen colonies were established under British control. These thirteen colonies rejected the authority of the British Crown and declared their independence in 1776. This unilateral decision triggered the War of Independence otherwise known as the American Revolution which lasted until 1782. Most of the population of the newly independent states originated from Britain with others from Germany, France, Netherlands and slaves from Africa. Much of the administrative work from colonial times are recorded in State Papers held at The National Archives in Kew.

Those that migrated did so for a variety of reasons. Some colonists took advantage of the business opportunities especially farming and tobacco production. Some 50,000 criminals were transported as an alternative to execution until American independence in 1776. After this date Australia became the main destination for convict resettlement. As many as 300,000 people were sent as bonded or indentured servants. Their passage was paid for as was their maintenance. In return the servant was bound to serve for a fixed period of time usually between three and seven years after which time the person’s freedom was granted. Some nonconformists such as Quakers, Methodists and Presbyterians fled to the New World to escape religious persecution at home.

In 1892 Ellis Island opened as an immigration station for those entering into New York State, before closing in 1954. During its time in operation, the centre processed some twelve million immigrants (including over 4 million from Ireland) entering the United States. By the turn of the century legislation was enacted that curtailed the numbers of immigrants allowed to enter the US with heavy restrictions placed on some countries. Before the opening of the Ellis Island centre, immigrants were first processed at Castle Garden, now known as Castle Clinton, from 1855 to 1890 and briefly at Barge Island before Ellis Island opened. Unfortunately in 1897, a fire destroyed many of the Ellis Island buildings and with it the loss of most of the immigration records dating back to 1855.

During British rule the records of births/baptisms, marriages and deaths/burials were kept by the church and these may still be in the custody of the church or have been lodged with the local state archives. There is no central repository of vital records (birth, marriage and death registers). Instead the registers are held in the Office of Vital Statistics or Office of Vital Records in each individual state. Individual states operate their own policy on the level of public access to vital records as well as what information is recorded on the certificates. Marriage registration is administered at county level and therefore the records might be found at county level. Links to each state’s Vital Records Office and Archives can be found here. The start date of civil registration in each date varies but date from about 1850 onwards.

A possible option of finding a death, if the person was of retirement age, is to access the centralised index called the Social Security Death Index. The Social Security Administration was established in 1935 and paid benefits only to those with a Social Security Number and who had been receiving benefits. However most of those entered into the index died after 1962. The database is available at www.ancestry.co.uk and for free at www.familysearch.org.The website Online Searchable Death Indexes & Records contains a directory of links to websites with online death indexes, listed by state and county as well local indexes for obituaries, cemeteries and probate.

Probate developed differently in each colony and state. Therefore wills were proved at different levels and can be found in county courthouses, local probate offices or at state level. Some early colonialists had their wills proved in England at the Prerogative Court of Canterbury and are available at TNA Online Collections. Alternatively they have been indexed in Coldham’s ‘American Wills and Administrations in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, 1610-1857’ and ‘American Wills Proved in London, 1611-1775’.

Censuses have been held decennially since 1790 and are the responsibility of the federal authorities. Until 1840, only names of heads of households are recorded, but from 1850 all persons were named. Some pre-1790 colonial population surveys are available which are kept at The National Archives in Kew. Those for the colony of Virginia are available at Virtual Jamestown. Almost the entire 1890 census was destroyed by fire but census substitutes have been compiled from other sources.

Immigration records and passenger lists are a major source for US research. Most ports began formal recording of immigrants from 1820 following federal government instructions for the creation of passenger lists. Two systems of land grants operated in the US. Public land states were grants made by the Federal Government and available online covering 1820 to 1908 and State-land states which were grants made by the state or colony.

Also See
Emigration Records (Including Scotland)
Emigration Records (Ireland)
Maps & Gazetteers
Passenger Lists
Transported Convicts

Where Found

Library of Congress (The library has one of the leading genealogical collections in the country including more than 50,000 genealogies and 100,000 local histories as well as collections of manuscripts, microfilms, newspapers, photographs, maps, and published material, The LC Catalog is the main access point for the Library’s collections containing 18 million catalog records for books, serials, manuscripts, maps, music, recordings, images, and electronic resources in the Library of Congress collections. The catalog includes items from the Prints and Photographs Online Catalog. Also see the research guide Genealogical Research at the Library of Congress)

National Archives and Records Administration (Post-independence federal records including census returns. The Resources for Genealogists section includes genealogy related articles, research tips and many other resources. View online lectures for genealogists and family historians at the US National Archives YouTube channel)

State Archives

The National Archives, Kew (Holdings include State Papers and the records of the Board of Trade, Colonial Office, Home Office and Treasury and include passenger lists, 1890-1960, medical journals from emigrant ships State Papers and Colonial Office archives)

Society of Genealogists (Printed sources including the ‘Passenger and Immigration Lists Index’ compiled by P. William Filby; register transcripts; census indexes; directories and others)

Merseyside Maritime Museum (Maritime Archives and Library: Liverpool was one of the main gateways for emigration from the UK to Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, USA and Canada during the 19th and 20th centuries. The library hold a number of sources for emigrant research including passenger tickets, correspondence and other ephemera, ship registers, diaries and letters and sailing information. A series of detailed information sheets dealing with emigration are available at the web site)

Period Covered

1607 – Onwards

Genealogical Value

Names, addresses, occupations.

Birth Certificates
Includes date of birth, birthplace of child’s parents

Marriage Certificates
Includes date of marriage, bride and groom place of birth, names and places of birth of bride and groom’s parents, mother’s maiden names

Death Certificates
Includes date of death, names and places of birth of parents

Further References

• Andrews, Charles McLean. Guide to the Materials for American History, to 1783, in the Public Record Office of Great Britain: Carnegie Institution, 1965 (1912) (Available at the Internet Archive)
• Brown, Kevin. Passage to the World: The Emigrant Experience 1807-1940: Seaforth Publishing, 2013
• Buggy, Joseph. Finding Your Irish Ancestors in New York City: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2014
• Coldham, Peter Wilson. The Complete Book of Emigrants in Bondage, 1614-1775: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1988 (Listings of transported criminals)
• Coldham, Peter Wilson. The Complete Book of Emigrants: 1607-1776, 4 vols: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1987
• Darrow, Carol Cook & Winchester, Susan. The Genealogist’s Guide to Researching Tax Records: Heritage Books, 2009
• Davies, Kenneth Gordon. The Calendar of State Papers, Colonial: North America and the West Indies 1574-1739: HMSO, 1994
• Dollarhide, William. New York State Censuses & Substitutes: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2010
• Foy, Karen. Ancestors On The Move: A History of Overseas Travel: The History Press, 2014
• Foy, Karen. Family History For Beginners: The History Press, 2011
• Goodwin, Aaron. New York City Municipal Archives: An Authorized Guide for Family Historians. New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, 2016
• Greenwood, Val D. The Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, 4th Ed: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2017
• Hait, Michael. Online State Resources: Hait Family History Research Services, 2012
• Hotten, John. Original Lists of Persons of Quality Emigrating to America, 1600-1700: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2007 (Available online here and here)
• Kershaw, Roger. Migration Records: A Guide for Family Historians: The National Archives, 2009
• Kershaw, Roger & Pearsall, Mark. Family History on the Move: Where Your Ancestors Went and Why: The National Archives, 2006
• Levitt, Ellen. The Lost Synagogues of Manhattan: Avotaynu, 2013
• Levitt, Ellen. The Lost Synagogues of Brooklyn: Avotaynu, 2009
• Levitt, Ellen. The Lost Synagogues of The Bronx and Queens: Avotaynu, 2011
• New York Family History Research Guide and Gazetteer: New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, 2015
• Quillen, Daniel. Mastering Immigration & Naturalization Records: Cold Spring Press, 2011
• Raimo, John. A Guide to Manuscripts Relating to America in Great Britain and Ireland: A Revision of the Guide Edited in 1961 by B. R. Crick and Miriam Alman: Meckler Books, 1979
• Szucs, Loretto Denis & Luebking, Sandra Hargreaves (eds). The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy: Ancestry Publishing, 2006
• Thorndale, William & Dollarhide, William. Map Guide to the U.S. Federal Censuses, 1790-1920: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1987
• The New York Annual Register (Editions available online at Google Books and the Internet Archive)

TNA Research Guides:
American and West Indian colonies before 1782
American Revolution
Births, marriages and deaths of British nationals at sea or abroad
Colonies and dependencies: further research
Criminal transportees: further research
Empire and Commonwealth records held in the UK and overseas
Looking for records of a criminal transportee
Looking for records of British colonies and dependencies
Maps and plans of lands abroad

Websites

Vital Records
www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w.htm (Where to write for vital records, birth, marriage and death)
https://vitalrec.com/guidelines.html (Guidelines for Ordering Vital Records in the United States)
www.vitalrecordsus.com (Vital Records in the United States)
www.deathindexes.com (Online Searchable Death Indexes & Records: Directory of links to websites with online death indexes, listed by state and county)

Census Returns
www.researchguides.net/census/records.htm (U.S. Census Records-The Basics, including links to free online census indexes)
https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/Free-Research-Guides (Ancestry.com: Research Guides: 10 Census Tips. Looking for answers in census records?; Follow your family using census records)
https://familyhistorydaily.com/genealogy-help-and-how-to/us-census-records-genealogy (Family History Daily: The Ultimate Quick Reference Guide to the U.S. Census for Genealogy. Beginner and intermediate guide to using the census for genealogy research and with detailed summaries of the information found in each census year)
https://familyhistorydaily.com/free-genealogy-resources/state-census (Family History Daily: The Complete Guide to U.S. State Census Records by Year. For each state the article lists the years when a census is available, as well as the locations online where you can find those records)
www.genealogyblog.com/?p=24480 (Common Census Questions, by William Dollarhide)
www.cyndislist.com/census.htm (Cyndi’s List guide and links to online census returns)

Emigration/Immigration and Naturalization
www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/your-family-tree-series (Public Record Office of Northern Ireland Information Leaflet: Emigration Records. The information leaflet gives an overview of emigration records covering emigration to U.S.A., Canada, Australia and New Zealand)
https://blog.myheritage.com/2021/12/ellis-island-how-to-research-ancestors-who-passed-through-the-gateway-to-freedom (MyHeritage Blog: Ellis Island: How to Research Ancestors Who Passed Through the Gateway to Freedom. The article explores the history of the island and highlights MyHeritage’s Ellis Island records)
www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/archive/listGuides.aspx (Liverpool Maritime Archives and Library Guide: Emigration to USA and Canada)
https://bloodandfrogs.com/naturalization (B&F: Naturalization: Guide and lists of all the naturalization record holdings from States and Cities that can be ordered online from the National Archives)
www.migration.amdigital.co.uk (Migration to New Worlds. The site explores the movement of peoples from Great Britain, Ireland, mainland Europe and Asia to the New World and Australasia. The site uses unique primary source material from 26 archives, libraries and museums)
https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/Free-Research-Guides (Ancestry.com: Research Guides: Finding Your Immigrant Ancestors on Ancestry; 10 Things to Know about Passenger Lists; Major U.S. Immigration Ports)
Joe Beine
New York Passenger Lists Quick Guide 1820-1962. This webpage lists links to research material for locating New York, New York passenger arrival records from 1820-1962, including online databases and indexes. This time period includes immigrants who were processed at Castle Garden, the Barge Office and Ellis Island.
American Ancestors
The Great Migration Study Project. The aim of the Great Migration Study Project is to compile comprehensive genealogical and biographical accounts of every person who settled in New England from 1620 to 1643. The project has produced several key publications such as ‘The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633’ and ‘The Great Migration: Immigrants to New England, 1634-1635’.
www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2013/fall-winter/west-indies.pdf (National Archives Publications: Ancestors from the West Indies: A Historical and Genealogical Overview of Afro-Caribbean Immigration, 1900-1930s, by Damani Davis)
www.archives.gov/research/immigration/passenger-arrival.html (U.S. National Archives National Archives: Immigration Records Ship Passenger Arrival Records and Land Border Entries)
www.redstarline.be/en (Red Star Line Museum. The museum tells the story of the historic transatlantic migration of millions of Europeans from Europe to North America on the shipping company Red Star Line and the transit port of Antwerp)
www.germanroots.com/naturalization.html (Links to Online Searchable Naturalization Indexes & Records)

Land and Property
www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/U.S._Land_Records_Class_Handout (FamilySearch Research Wiki: U.S. Land Records Class Handout. Guide to land and property records as a genealogical source for researching ancestors. Courtesy of Jill Shoemaker)
www.lhaasdav.com/land/index.html (Taking The Mystery Out of Land Records by Linda Haas Davenport)
https://genealogy.about.com/od/land_records/Land_Property_Records.htm (Land & Property Records)
www.arphax.com (Arphax Publishing: Publisher of the Family Maps series of Land Patent Books and the Texas Land Survey Maps series)
www.placenames.com (Place Names. A gazetteer of cities, towns, villages, mountains, hills, rivers, and other place names with their location, latitude, longitude and elevation)

Other
www.fgs.org (Federation of Genealogical Societies: The society represents members of hundreds of genealogical societies across the United States and other nations)
https://goo.gl/n8ByID (Ancestry.com Learning Center: Free State Research Guides. The state research guide series includes historical background, a chronology, helpful information on census and vital record availability, highlighted collection for that place on Ancestry.com, and links to important resources beyond Ancestry.com)
www.archives.gov/publications (National Archives Publications. Access to online general information leaflets, guides, brochures & pamphlets and research papers)
www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/United_States_Genealogy (United States Genealogy: Guide to United States genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records)
https://stevemorse.org (One-step Web pages for enhanced searching of online US sources)
www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/genealogy-notes.html (US research guides from the U.S. National Archives)
www.archives.gov/research/genealogy/topics/index.html (U.S. National Archives Research Topics of Genealogical Interest)
www.archives.gov/research/genealogy/index.html (U.S. National Archives Resources for Genealogists)
www.ancestry.com/wiki (Ancestry.com Family History Wiki. The Wiki was developed to help genealogists find information they need by record type, but also contribute, by editing and adding information. The Wiki includes: The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy and the Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources)
www.loc.gov/rr/genealogy (Library of Congress: Local History & Genealogy Reading Room. The library has one of the leading genealogical collections in the country including more than 50,000 genealogies and 100,000 local histories as well as collections of manuscripts, microfilms, newspapers, photographs, maps, and published material)
www.loc.gov/coll/nucmc (National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections. The catalogue describes archival and manuscript collections held by eligible repositories located throughout the United States and its territories)
https://dp.la (Digital Public Library of America. The portal provides innovative ways to search and scan through the united collection of millions of items from libraries, archives, and museums throughout the US)
https://libguides.lib.msu.edu/newspaperguide (Michigan State University: Guide to Historical Newspaper Databases)
www.virtualjamestown.org (The Virtual Jamestown Archive: History of the Jamestown settlement, the first settled colony)
https://mygenealogyhound.com (Free site to view thousands of family biographies from early and rare history and genealogy references, browsable by state and county or by family surname)
www.westegg.com/inflation (Inflation Calculator: Convert a U.S. dollar amount for any year from 1800 to 2007 into the equivalent amount, adjusted for inflation)
www.aier.org/research/worksheets-and-tools/cost-of-living-calculator (Cost-of-Living Calculator)
https://sites.google.com/site/onlinedirectorysite (Online Historical Directories Website: Links to online city directories covering Canada, Ireland, United Kingdom and the United States)
https://www1.nyc.gov/nyc-resources/nyc-maps.page (NYCityMap: New York City’s online map portal including online property, building, statistics, and census information. Other resources include current and historical tax maps and their changes and aerial photography of NYC from as early as 1924)
www.nypl.org/blog/2014/03/28/open-access-maps (New York Public Library: The Lionel Pincus & Princess Firyal Map Division. Online access to more than 20,000 cartographic works as high resolution downloads, mostly covering the US, but also historical Europe)
www.governmentinfopro.com/PublicRecordsGuide.pdf (Public Records Resources Online: How to Find Everything There Is to Know About “Mr. X”)

Online Databases

Census Research
www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1401638 (United States Census, 1850. Searchable data and browse are available for all states and territories)
https://1950census.archives.gov (1950 Census: Official 1950 Census Website: National Archives and Records Administration. The site provides full access to the 1950 census images, including population schedules, enumeration district maps, and enumeration district descriptions. The name index will not be 100 per cent accurate because it is based on optical character recognition and artificial intelligence/machine learning)
www.myheritage.com (1950 United States Federal Census. The searchable index with images currently contains records of 150 million Americans living in the United States and its territories)
www.ancestry.co.uk (1950 United States Federal Census. Search the 1950 census indexed and transcribed by Ancestry’s own proprietary handwriting recognition technology. For best results, view the census image. Users can also explore the maps in the 1950 Census district finder experience)
https://1940census.archives.gov (National Archives and Records Administration in partnership with Archives.com: Digitized 1940 federal census records. A name index does not exist for the 1940 census. People can be located by identifying the enumeration district in which they lived in 1940 and then browsing the census population schedules for that enumeration district)
www.ancestry.co.uk (U.S. Federal Census Collection. The collection includes federal census returns covering 1790-1940 as well as a number of specialist and local censuses. Please note that only frgments survive for the 1890 federal census. For a guide to the U.S. census and and search tips see the Ancestry article U.S. Census Facts)
www.ancestry.co.uk (New York, New York, Voter List, 1924. This collection contains a list of all individuals who were registered to vote in the 1924 election in New York City, New York)
www.ancestry.co.uk (New York Census & Voter Lists. Datasets include New York state census covering 1855, 1865, 1875, 1892, 1905, 1915 and 1925)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Fully-indexed images and transcriptions of the entire United States Census. Datasets include: US Census 1790, 1800, 1810, 1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1890 [fragments only], 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940; Michigan, State Census 1884; Northern Territory Census)
www.myheritage.com (MyHeritage U.S. Federal Censuses: Full set of USA census records from 1790 to 1930 with free of charge access to the 1940 census)
www.censusrecords.com (censusrecords.com: Transcriptions and images from the US censuses, 1790-1930)
www.archives.com/census (U.S. Federal Population Census indexes from 1790 to 1930 with images for some years. Other datasets include New York state censuses for the years 1892, 1915 and 1925)
www.archive.org/details/1930_census (Unindexed microfilm copy of the United States 1930 census organised by Enumeration District. If the address is known use the Stephen Morse’s ‘Obtaining EDs for the Census in One Step‘ to establish the correct Enumeration District)

Newspapers
https://fultonhistory.com/Fulton.html (Old New York State Historical Newspaper Search: Online data base of old newspapers, historical photos, post cards and genealogy information concerning the Upstate Ny, Fulton NY area)
www.myheritage.com (Newspaper Name Index, USA and Canada. MyHeritage. Search a collection of 982 million names extracted from U.S. and Canadian historical newspaper collections. Records will typically include a person’s name, a snippet of text mentioning them in the newspaper, the newspaper publication title, date, and place of publication)
www.myheritage.com (Newspapers. Search the historical newspaper and periodicals collection covering the U.S. Find obituaries, and announcements about births, engagements and marriages and read accounts of local sports, school, and community events)
https://news.google.com/newspapers (Digitised newspaper archive search from the U.S. and Canada for the period 1880 to about 2005. To refine a search, from the search results page that appears, go to Search tools below the search box)
www.newspapers.com (Newspapers.com: Owned by Ancestry.com the site offers more than 800 U.S. digitised and searchable newspapers dating from the late 1700s into the early 2000s ranging from the New York Times to small town and local newspapers throughout the United States)
www.findmypast.com (US & World Newspaper Collection. Online access to nearly 120 million pages from newspapers published in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Panama and the Virgin Islands. Titles include a variety of local papers, as well as national publications, including the New York Times and the Washington Post)
https://blogs.bl.uk/thenewsroom/british-newspaper-archive (British Library Newspaper Collections Catalogue: Whereabouts of US publications held by the Newspaper Library)
https://search.findmypast.co.uk/search/world-records (US & World newspaper Collection. Online access to nearly 120 million pages from newspapers published in all 50 states. Titles include a variety of local papers, as well as national publications including the New York Times and the Washington Post)
www.veridiansoftware.com/collections (Veridian Newspaper Digital Collections: Links to online digitised newspaper collections held by a number of US universities)
www.archives.com (Access to 110 million newspaper pages in partnership with the Newspaper Archive dating back to 1753 with indexed names)
www.nytimes.com/ref/membercenter/nytarchive.html (New York Times Article Archive)
https://digitalcollections.library.cmu.edu/portal/collections/pjn/index.jsp (Carnegie Mellon University Libraries: Pittsburgh Jewish Newspaper Project: Online access to searchable and digitised editions of Jewish newspapers published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania composed of the Jewish Criterion, 1895-1962; the American Jewish Outlook, 1934-1962; the Jewish Chronicle, 1962-present; and the Y-JCC series, 1926-1975)
www.fold3.com/documents (Fold3 [formerly Footnote.com]: Listing of resources including digitised access to US newspapers)
www.genealogybank.com/gbnk/newspapers (GenealogyBank: US Historical Newspapers 1690-1980)
https://geneseo.advantage-preservation.com (Old Geneseo newspapers: A public archive of scanned, old newspapers from Geneseo, Illinois between 1856 and 1977)
www.cyndislist.com/newspapers (Cyndi’s List links to online newspaper resources)
www.theancestorhunt.com/newspaper-research-links.html (The Ancestor Hunt: Newspaper Research Links: Free historical newspaper links to help you find historical newspaper articles about your ancestors by state and county)
www.theancestorhunt.com/newspapers.html (The Ancestor Hunt: Newspapers: Free links, tips, about 50 tutorials, and lots of other information and resources to guide and help you search old newspapers)
www.accessible.com/accessible (Accessible Archives: Digitised US newspapers)
https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov (Chronicling America. The site provides access to America’s historic newspaper pages from 1789 to 1963 and the U.S. Newspaper Directory to find information about American newspapers published between 1690 to the present. The site is a partnership between the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Library of Congress)
www.newspaperarchive.com (Searchable access to historic newspapers from the U.S. and the world)
www.smalltownpapers.com (SmallTownPapers: Browse and search scanned newspaper archive from 1865 up to the current edition)
www.ancestry.com (Historical Newspaper Collection)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Associated Press Collections. The collection includes the Associated Press, Name Card Index to AP Stories, 1905-1990; Associated Press, Service Bulletin, 1904-1927; Associated Press, Stories and Newsfeatures, 1937-1985; Associated Press, Subject Card Index to AP Stories, 1937-1985; Associated Press, The AP World, 1943-2001)
https://nyshistoricnewspapers.org (Northern New York Library Network: NYS Historic Newspapers: Searchable full-text and page images of over 400 historic New York newspapers for every county in the state, dating from 1795-2014. Search the entire collection or click on a county to search or browse geographically)

Immigration and Passenger Lists
Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island
Ellis Island Passenger Search. Search 65 million records of passengers arriving to the Port of New York from 1820 to 1957. The records cover Castle Garden, 1820-1891; Ellis Island, 1892-1924; New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1925-1957 and New York airports. New legislation in the 1920s reduced immigration and Ellis Island shut in 1954. Users can view detailed information extracted from historical ship passenger manifests, which may include the passenger’s name, age, nationality, and port of departure.
Ancestry
Immigration & Travel: Passenger Lists. Datasets include:

• New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957. This database is an index to the passenger lists of ships arriving from foreign ports at the port of New York from 1820-1957.
• U.S. and Canada, Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s. This dataset contains listings of approximately 4,712,000 individuals who arrived in United States and Canadian ports from the 1500s through the 1900s.
• New York State, Passenger and Crew Lists, 1917-1967.
• Florida, U.S., Arriving and Departing Passenger and Crew Lists, 1898-1963.
• Pennsylvania, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists, 1798-1962.
• Massachusetts, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists, 1820-1963.
• Baltimore, Maryland, U.S., Passenger Lists, 1820-1964.
• California, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists, 1882-1959.

MyHeritage
Passenger Lists. Early passenger lists typically include the name of the ship, the names of passengers, ages, ports of arrival and departure, date, country of origin, and occupation. Datasets include:

• Ellis Island and Other New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957.
• New York, Passenger List Book Indexes 1906-1942.
• New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1957.
• New York, Index to Passengers Lists of Vessels, 1897-1902.
• Germans to America Index, 1850-1897
• Italians to America Index, 1855-1900
• Russians to America Index, 1834-1897
• Passenger and Immigration Lists, 1500-1900.
• Boston, Massachusetts Passenger Lists, 1891-1943.
• California Passenger Lists, 1893-1957.
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Passenger Lists, 1883-1945.

Findmypast
United States, Passenger and Crew Lists. Search millions of passenger and crew lists from across America of people who arrived in American by ship or by plane. The records include ship manifests kept by shipmasters, crew lists, flight manifests and passenger arrival lists. Collections include:

• New York Passenger Lists & Arrivals.
• California, San Francisco Passenger Lists, 1893-1953.
• Boston passenger lists 1846-1851.
• Baltimore passenger lists 1846-1851.
• Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Passenger Lists, 1800-1948.
• Washington, Seattle Passenger Lists, 1890-1957.
• Maryland, Baltimore Passenger Lists, 1820-1891.

FamilySearch
US Immigration Records. Find your immigrant ancestor in United States records. Search millions of passenger lists, border crossings, naturalizations and other records. Collections include:

• New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1920. Passenger lists for over 13 million immigrants arriving in New York City.
• New York Book Indexes to Passenger Lists, 1906-1942.
• New York Passenger Arrival Lists (Ellis Island), 1892-1924.
• New York Passenger Lists (Castle Garden), 1820-1891.
• New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1957.
• Texas, Webb, Laredo, Arrival Manifests, 1903-1955.
• Germans to America Index, 1850-1897.
• Italians to America Index, 1855-1900.
• Russians to America Index, 1834-1897.

Findmypast
United States, Transatlantic Migration Indexes. Learn about your migrating ancestors from England, Scotland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany, and France. Discover details about their migration to Canada and the United States. The data is extracted from a number of publications and covers the 1500s to the early 1900s.
National Archives and Records Administration
Access to Archival Databases. The site offers access to various digitised historic records and documents including passenger lists and alien registration forms including passenger list records from the Castle Garden Immigration Center and records of Passengers from Ireland and the United Kingdom.
Steve Morse
One-Step Webpages. This site offers a variety of tools for finding immigration records, census records, vital records and more. The site offers tools for searching Ney York Ellis Island and Castle Garden passenger lists as well as from other ports such Baltimore, Boston, Galveston, New Orleans, Philadelphia and San Francisco. In addition the site includes tools for searching ship arrivals.
Immigrant Servants Database
Price Genealogy. The database aims to create a reconstructed passenger arrival list for people who came to Colonial America as indentured servants, redemptioners (a person who worked as a servant to pay for the cost of the voyage) and transported convicts between 1607 and 1820. Expect to find the name, date of birth, address and occupation of servant; the colony and date of servitude; the port of departure, place of arrival, year of immigration, name of ship and length of indenture.
Massachusetts Archives
Index to Passenger Manifests, 1848-1891. Search an alphabetical card index of over one million immigrants who came through the Port of Boston during this time period.
www.ancestry.co.uk (U.S., Naturalization Records, 1840-1957. This database contains images of original naturalization records, primarily Declarations and Petitions, from U.S. District and Circuit courts)
www.ancestry.co.uk (U.S. Naturalization Records Indexes, 1794-1995. This database contains indexes to naturalization records, primarily Declarations and Petitions, for various courts)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991. This database consists of searchable and indexed naturalization records for Illinois from U.S. District Courts)
www.findmypast.co.uk (United States Naturalization Petitions, 1905-1950. United States Naturalization Petitions contains more than 7.8 million records spanning the years 1905 to 1950. The collection currently covers four states: Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Pennsylvania)
www.ancestry.co.uk (New York Immigration & Emigration. Datasets include: New York, Alien Depositions of Intent to Become U.S. Citizens, 1825-1871; New York Alien Residents, 1825-1848; New York, State and Federal Naturalization Records, 1794-1943; New York, Naturalization Records, 1882-1944; Early New York Naturalizations)
www.thegenealogist.co.uk (Passenger Lists. Search over 5 million passenger records featuring people that migrated to the U.S.A. between 1834 and 1900)
http://immigrants.byu.edu (BYU Center for Family History and Genealogy: Immigrant Ancestors Project. Search a database of millions of immigrants to America and Canada based on registers from repositories across Europe of immigrants which is not found in the port registers and naturalization documents in the destination countries)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Irish Emigrants in North America, 1775-1825. Search David Dobson’s Irish Emigrants in North America [1775-1825], published by the Genealogical Publishing Co., 1998)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Naturalizations datasets include: New England Naturalizations, 1791-1906 including Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; Minnesota Naturalizations 1930-1988)
www.findmypast.co.uk (United States, Canadian Border Crossings, 1895-1954. The collection is made up of four collections from the National Archives and Records Administration including both indexes and passenger manifests of entries from Canada into the United States through St Albans, Vermont, between 1895 and 1954)
www.findmypast.co.uk (United States Passport Applications. Did your ancestor apply for a United States passport? You may be able to discover when, where, and why your ancestor was traveling. An application may also include your ancestor’s occupation, residence, naturalization details, and date and place of birth. This collection has been compiled from the National Archives and Records Administration collections M1372 and M1490)
www.welshsaints.byu.edu (BYU Center for Family History and Genealogy: The Welsh Saints Project. The project shares information about Welsh converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who immigrated to the United States in the 19th century. Each immigrant is documented through the available records of the time as well as linking journals, biographies, and photos to each immigrant. The birthplace of the converts includes counties outside of Wales)
https://archive.org/details/genealogy (Internet Archive Genealogy: Free online access to digitised resources including: Passenger and Crew Vessel Lists for New York, NY 1897-1957; Passenger Lists of Vessels for Baltimore and Philadelphia Passengers arriving in the St. Albans, VT District)
www.archives.com (Immigration records including passenger lists)
https://aad.archives.gov/aad/series-list.jsp?cat=GP44 (Passenger Lists Including Records for Passengers Who Arrived at the Port of New York During the Irish Famine, 1846-1851)
www.virtualjamestown.org (Registers of Servants sent to Foreign Plantations, 1654-1686: Databases covering Bristol and London and extracted from various printed sources)

Vital Records
www.ancestry.co.uk (Vital Records: Birth, Marriage & Death Collection: Datasets include: Michigan death records, 1897-1920; Ohio 20th century Vital Records and divorce records; Virginia births and deaths, 1912-onwards; Virginia marriages, 1936-onwards; Virginia divorces, 1918-onwards)
www.ancestry.co.uk (New York Birth, Marriage & Death: Datasets include: New York Birth Index, 1910-1965; New York State Birth Index, 1881-1942; New York Marriage Index, 1600-1784; New York State Marriage Index, 1881-1967; New York Death Index, 1852-1956; New York State, Death Index, 1957-1968; New York Times Obituaries & Marriage Notices, 1889; New York Times Death and Marriage Index, 1890)
www.ancestry.co.uk (U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-Current. The collection contains recent obituaries from hundreds of newspapers)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Newspapers.com Obituary Index, 1800s-current. This database consists of indexes only extracted from obituaries found on Newspapers.com dating from the early 1800’s to current)
www.ancestry.co.uk (U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current. This database consists of facts extracted from marriages found on Newspapers.com dating from the early 1800s to current)
www.ancestry.co.uk (U.S., Cemetery and Funeral Home Collection, 1847-Current. The collection contains records from hundreds of cemetery and funeral homes)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Vital records covering Arizona deaths & burials, 1881-1917; Arizona Deaths; Arizona births & christenings 1909-1917; Connecticut; District of Columbia Deaths & Burials 1840-1964; District of Columbia Marriages 1830-1921; District of Columbia Births & Baptisms 1830-1955; Idaho Births and Baptisms, 1856-1965; Iowa deaths and burials 1850-1990; Kentucky; Massachusetts; Montana; New Jersey Vital Records; New York City Death Notices, 1835-1880; New York City Marriage Notices 1835-1880; New York State Religious Records 1716-1914 of baptisms, marriages, and deaths from dozens of New York State churches of various denominations; New York State Death Index, 1880-1955; Ohio; Ohio Obituary Index, 1814-2013; Oregon births and baptisms 1868-1929; Pennsylvania Births & Baptisms, Deaths & Burials, Marriages and Congregational Records, Cemetery & Burial 1700-1950; Rhode Island Births & Baptisms and Deaths and Burials, 1600-1935; Texas; Utah marriages, 1854-1935; Utah Deaths & Burials 1848-1960)
www.findmypast.co.uk (United States Marriages. This collection contains all the United States marriage records that are currently on Findmypast including: applications, licenses, certificates, intentions to marry, registers, bonds, and affidavits. The records date from the 17th century to the 20th century. Records will continue to be added to this collection as they are obtained)
www.findmypast.co.uk (The Catholic Heritage Collection. Online collection of up to 100 million records Roman Catholic records for Britain, Ireland and North America. Expect to find baptisms, marriages, deaths and burials and congregational records and more. Datasets include: Baltimore Roman Catholic Parish Baptisms, Marriages, Burials and Congregational Records; Chicago Roman Catholic Parish Baptisms, Marriages, Burials and Congregational Records; Cincinnati and Dayton Roman Catholic Parish Baptisms, marriages, burials and Congregational Records; New York Roman Catholic Parish Baptisms and Marriages; Ohio, Diocese Of Toledo Catholic Parish Records; Philadelphia Roman Catholic Parish Baptisms and Marriages)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Pennsylvania Cemetery & Burial 1700-1950 Browse. Search cemetery records from Abington, Goshenhoppen, Mckeesport, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and more Pennsylvania locations)
www.reclaimtherecords.org (ReclaimThe Records. The not-for-profit organisation uses Freedom of Information requests to release vital records to the general public. Datasets include. Index to New York City Marriage Applications, Affidavits, and Licenses, 1908-1929; The NYC Marriage Index, 1950-2017 [see below]; New Jersey Marriage Index, 1901-2016)
www.nycmarriageindex.com (The NYC Marriage Index. Searchable database of the 4,757,588 marriage licenses filed in New York City between 1950-2017. It’s free, public, open data)
https://ok2explore.health.ok.gov (Ok2Explore: Oklahoma State Vital Records Index. Free searchable index of births and deaths that occurred in the state of Oklahoma. Included is limited information on births occurring more than 20 years ago and deaths occurring more than 5 years ago)
www.findmypast.co.uk (United States Obituary Notices. Search indexes of obituary notices showing your ancestor’s name, birth and death years and obituary text. The record collection extends across all fifty states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. This collection has been obtained from the tributes.com and currentobituary.com websites)
www.findmypast.co.uk (New York City Marriage Announcements, 1833-1836. Search marriage announcements from New York City newspapers, The Sun and the New York Transcript)
https://italiangen.org (Italian Genealogical Group. This database contains an index to selected years of the Bronx, Kings, Manhattan, Richmond, and Queens County bride’s marriage records. The index covers the years from 1866 to 1937 and is not complete)
https://italiangen.org (Italian Genealogical Group. This database contains the indexes to over 1,825,000 marriages recorded by the New York City Health department for the 5 Boroughs of New York City, from 1908 to 1936, and the period 1895 to 1897 for the boroughs of Brooklyn and Manhattan. The marriage is listed only by the name of the groom)
www.rbhayes.org/main/ohio-obituary-index (Hayes Presidential Library’s Obituary Index: An index to over 3,500,000 obituaries, death and marriage notices and other sources from Ohio from the 1810s to the present day)
www.archives.com (Online access to 40 Million Vital Records)
www.archives.com (Online access to 300,000 indexed burial/cemetery records in partnership with Names In Stone)
www.familysearch.org/search/collection/list (Historical Record Collections: Datasets include Catholic Parish Records, Individual State birth/baptism, marriage and death/burial registers. Datasets include: New York City Births, Marriages and Deaths, 1795-1949)
www.usgwarchives.net/pa/allegheny/death-index.htm (Pennsylvania USGenWeb Archives: Marriage, deaths, and divorce indexes extracted from Pittsburgh area newspapers, 1806-1987)
www.usgwtombstones.org (The Tombstone Transcription Project: Monumental Inscription transcriptions across the US)
www1.nyc.gov/site/doc/about/hart-island.page (New York City Department of Correction: Hart Island searchable database: Search Hart Island burial records dating back to 1977. The database holds transcripts for unknown or indigent people who were unable to provide for their own burial)
www.ancestry.co.uk (U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current. This database contains an index to cemetery and burial details posted on Find a Grave)
https://billiongraves.com (BillionGraves: Family history database for records and images from the world’s cemeteries. Members of the public can collect photos of headstones in a local cemetery with iOS, Android and Windows mobile apps and then upload the photo and headstone transcription. BillionGraves records are also available to search at FamilySearch)
www.findmypast.co.uk (United States Billion Graves Index. Are your ancestors buried in the United States? Have you been unable to locate precisely where they were buried? Search this extensive record set to find the exact location of their burial as well as their birth and death dates)

Military
www.familysearch.org (Historical Record Collections: Collections include Probate & Court records [including New York Probate Records, 1629-1971], military records, naturalization records, passenger lists)
www.findmypast.co.uk (Military Service Records. Datasets include: WWII Enlistment Records. This collection includes more than 8.7 million records of men and women who enlisted to serve in the United States Army during World War II; U.S. Civil War Medal of Honor, 1861-1865; U.S. Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1865; U.S. World War I Draft Registration Cards,1917-1918; US Civil War Pension Files Index 1861-1934; United States Army Enlistments, 1798-1914; Muster Rolls Of The Marine Corps)
www.ancestry.co.uk (Military Records. Datasets include: U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946; U.S. WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947; U.S. Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1865 U.S. Veterans Gravesites, ca.1775-2006)
https://aad.archives.gov/aad (U.S. National Archives and Records Administration: Access to Archival Databases. Databases include: World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946; Records of World War II Prisoners of War, 1942-1947)
www.ancestry.co.uk (U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942. This database is an indexed collection of the draft cards from the Fourth Registration for men between the ages of 45 and 64)
www.archives.com (Military Personnel Records)
www.amervets.com (The American War Library Military/Veteran/Military Family Member Database: Over 72 million Military Listings from Pre-Revolutionary War to the Present)
www.familyrelatives.com (US Civil War Roll of Honor 1861-1865)

Land and Property
www.glorecords.blm.gov (The Official Federal Land Records Site: Federal land title records issued between 1820 and 1908)
www.findmypast.co.uk (United States General Land Office Records, 1796-2013. Search land sale documents [patents] and discover the original title and exact parcel of land purchased from the U.S. Federal Government)
www.historygeo.com (HistoryGeo.com: First Landowners Project: Interactive map containing over 12.3 million landowners among 30 states including all 29 of the public land states in the Continental U.S., plus Texas. The Antique Maps Collection contains hundreds of thousands of indexed landowners from a constantly expanding collection of nearly 4000 maps from various sources and time periods)

Directories
https://cdm.bostonathenaeum.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/p16057coll32 (Boston Athenæum: Digital Collections: The Boston Directory, 1789 to 1900)
www.myheritage.com (U.S. City Directories, 1860-1960. Searchable collection of 25,000 historical public U.S. city directories across the United States)
www.findmypast.co.uk (United States Directories & Almanacs. Explore dozens of directories from across the United States. Discover your ancestor’s address and occupation or explore the history of your home address. The directories stretch across the 1700s to the 1900s)
https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/collections/new-york-city-directories (New York Public Library: New York City Directories, 1786-1934. Search digitised New York City directories for names and addresses of city residents, businesses, churches, schools, police stations, courts, and other government offices. The collection also features maps and illustrations)
www.bklynlibrary.org/brooklyncollection/collections (Brooklyn Collection: Brooklyn Public Library: Digitized City Directories, 1856-1908; Digitized City Directories, 1909-1967. The collection includes Brooklyn city and business directories and New York City Classified Telephone Directories)
www.digitalnc.org/collections/north-carolina-city-directories (North Carolina City Directories, 1860-1963. Online access to more than 900 city directories from different cities and towns across North Carolina counties)
www.myheritage.com/research/collection-90100/compilation-of-published-sources (MyHeritage: Compilation of Published Sources. This collection includes a compilation of thousands of published books ranging from family, local and military histories, city and county directories, school, university and hospital reports, church and congregational minutes and much more. All records include images of the book’s pages)
www.thegenealogist.co.uk (Trade, Residential & Telephone Collection: Search a variety of U.S. trade directories covering New York, 1786 and other towns and cities)

Maps and Photos
www.oldnyc.org (OldNYC: Mapping historical photos from the New York Public Library: This site provides an alternative way of browsing the NYPL’s Photographic Views of New York City, 1870s-1970s collection)
https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/maps/TopoView (U.S. Geological Survey: Historical Topographic Map Collection: Digital repository of 1:250,000 scale and larger maps printed between 1884  and 2006. Currently, there are more than 178,000 maps in the HTMC)
https://nycma.lunaimaging.com/luna/ (New York City Department of Records & Information Services Digital Online Gallery. Online access to over 1.6 million images selected from the historical collections of the Archives including photographs, maps, documents, motion picture and audio recordings. The collection includes Tax Photographs taken between 1939 and 1941, and again in the mid-1980s of every house and building in the five boroughs)
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/americas (The National Archives: Americas Through a Lens: Colonial Office Photographic Collection: View hundreds of Americas photos from the CO 1069 collection)
https://dsl.richmond.edu/historicalatlas (Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States: Digital access to Charles O. Paullin’s Atlas of the Historical Geography of the United States, first published in 1932. The atlas contains nearly 700 maps covering seemingly every facet of the country’s social, economic and political life including presidential voting, population demographics and crop production)
https://publications.newberry.org/ahcbp (Scholl Center for American History and Culture: Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Atlas presents in maps and text complete data about the creation and all subsequent in the size, shape, name and location of every county in the fifty United States and the District of Columbia)
www.loc.gov/collections/sanborn-maps/about-this-collection (Library of Congress: Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps Online: Searchable database with access to digital images from 3000 cities of the fire insurance maps published by the Sanborn Map Company housed in the collections of the Geography and Map Division. The collection can be searched using the search box at the top of the page)
www.nypl.org/collections/nypl-recommendations/guides/fire-topo-property-maps (New York Public Library: NYC Fire Insurance, Topographic and Property Maps. Access to nearly 9,000 digitized pages from 162 atlases documenting New York City’s changing geography and built environment. The majority of these maps are fire insurance)
https://opensfhistory.org (OpenSFHistory. The site offers an online archive of over 100,000 historical images of San Francisco and the Bay Area from the 1960s to the early 2000s)
www.eastman.org/collections-online (Online searchable access to more than a quarter of a million objects from the photography, technology and George Eastman Legacy collections. The photography collection encompasses all major photographic processes from daguerreotype to digital and includes work by more than eight thousand photographers)
www.historicaerials.com (Historic Aerials. Home of the most comprehensive database of historic aerial photos of the United States. Search historical aerial images and topographic maps of the United States)

Other
www.familysearch.org/search/collection/list (Historical Record Collections: Collections include Probate & Court records [including New York Probate Records, 1629-1971], military records, naturalization records, passenger lists)
https://about.proquest.com/products-services/Colonial_State_Paper.html (ProQuest: Colonial State Papers. Digitised handwritten documents and bibliographic records between the 16th and 18th centuries giving an insight into British trade, history and overseas expansion. The papers consists of bibliographic entries along with transcriptions, extracts and abstracts. Produced in collaboration with The National Archives, UK)
www.british-history.ac.uk/catalogue.aspx?type=3&gid=123 (Transcribed and searchable entries from the Calendar of State Papers Colonial, America and West Indies)
www.judyrecords.com (Judyrecords. Search over 393 million United States state and county level court cases. Many of the records deal with issues such as marriage, divorces, probate and estates, name changes and adoption records)
www.reclaimtherecords.org (Reclaim the Records. List of Registered Voters in New York City, 1924)
www.ancestry.co.uk (New York, Discharges of Convicts, 1882-1915; New York, Executive Orders for Commutations, Pardons, Restorations and Respites, 1845-1931; New York, Governor’s Registers of Commitments to Prisons, 1842-1908; New York, Prisoners Received at Newgate State Prison, 1797-1810)
www.ancestry.co.uk (U.S. Wills and Probates. The dataset contains more than 170 million pages from the largest collection of wills and probate records in the United States from all 50 states covering the years from 1668 to 2005)
www.usgenweb.org (USGenWeb Project: Free genealogy websites for genealogical research in every county and every state of the United States)
www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Jewish_Genealogy_Research (FamilySearch Research Wiki: Jewish Genealogy Research. Guides and information on the Jewish resources available at FamilySearch. Resources include information on beginning Jewish research, guides to original records, available compiled sources and finding aids. Included in the resources is the Knowles Collection which contains information on more than 300,000 Jews from the Americas, British Isles, Caribbean, Europe, the Orient and Africa originally compiled by the late Isobel Mordy)
www.familysearch.org/search/family-trees (FamilySearch Genealogies: Community Trees: Search pedigrees and family names extracted from a variety of sources)
www.archives.gov/digitization (Digitization at the National Archives: Project to digitize selected records from the National Archives. A list of all the documents that have been digitized and placed online by commercial partners, Ancestry.com and Fold3.com [formerly Footnote.com] is available at www.archives.gov/digitization/digitized-by-partners.html)

CD Roms

S & N Genealogy Supplies (Hotten’s Original Lists of Persons of Quality Emigrating to America, 1600-1700)
Genealogical Publishing Company
Immigration/Passenger Lists/Naturalizations. Various titles including The Complete Book of Emigrants by Peter Wilson Coldham and The Collected Works of David Dobson.
Internet Archive Genealogy
Free online access to various digitised resources including: Passenger and Crew Vessel Lists for New York, NY 1897-1957; Passenger Lists of Vessels for Baltimore and Philadelphia Passengers arriving in the St. Albans, VT District.