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Genealogy & Local History
Genealogy Resources
Discover specialized resources for genealogy and local history research here. Use most resources inside the library or from home with your Niles-Maine District Library card.
| Name | Description | Use At Home? |
|---|---|---|
America's Newspapers Chicagoland Edition |
Full-text Chicago Sun-Times, Niles Bugle, Niles Herald-Spectator, Niles Journal, and other Illinois newspapers. |
Yes |
Ancestry (Library Edition) |
U.S. census records, military records, vital records, naturalization documents, personal histories, and more. |
Yes |
Chicago Sun-Times |
Full page coverage from 1986-present. |
Yes |
Chicago Tribune |
Full-text coverage from 1985 - present. |
Yes |
|
Chicago Tribune Historical Archive |
Full-text coverage from 1849 - 1987. |
Yes |
Daily Herald |
Full-text coverage from 1997 - present. |
Yes |
Fold3 Library Edition  |
Military records including stories, photos, and personal documents. Includes the Fold3 Holocaust Archives. |
Yes |
Heritage Quest |
U.S. census records, military records, vital records, naturalization documents, personal histories, and more. |
Yes |
New York Times |
Full-text coverage from 1923 - present. |
Yes |
New York Times Historical |
Full-text coverage from 1857 - 1922. |
Yes |
Niles Bugle |
Full-text coverage from 1957 - 2007. |
Yes |
Niles Herald-Spectator |
Full-text coverage from 2008 - 2018. |
Yes |
Obituaries and Death Notices |
From newspapers across the U.S. Note: Chicago Tribune obituaries are in ProQuest U.S. Newstream. |
Yes |
| Wall Street Journal |
Full-text coverage from 1984 - present. |
Yes |
| Wall Street Journal Historical |
Full-text coverage from 1889 - 2001. |
Yes |
Genealogy Websites
Castle Garden Provides access to the passenger lists for the 11 million arrivals in New York, 1820 through 1892.
Chicago Ancestors Created by the Newberry Library’s Department of Local and Family History.
Cook County Genealogy Find more than 8 million vital records back to 1872.
Cyndi’s List of Genealogy Sites Introduces more than 327,00 links! Categorized & cross-referenced, in over 200 categories.
Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter A “daily newsletter for genealogy consumers, packed with straight talk.”
FamilySearch Discover family history at this vast website maintained by the Church of Latter Day Saints. Explore the world's largest collection of free family trees, genealogy records and tutorials.
Genealogical Research, Illinois State Archives Research Illinois Birth, census death, land sale and veteran's records.
National Archives Access to Archival Databases Search electronic records in NARA custody, including military personnel records, and other historic data files, from 1800 to the present.
Rootsweb Helps searchers to make connections with others working on their family tree.
Social Security Death Index Now available through Ancestry.com.
Statue of Liberty Ellis Island Foundation Here you can search the passenger lists for 22 million immigrants who arrived at Ellis Island from 1892 to 1954.
Stevemorse.org A wonderful "one-step portal for on-line genealogy” with the invaluable Unified 1940 Census ED finder.
US GenWeb Project Organizes sites by county and state.
A-Guide-to-Genealogy Great article to get you started on your geneology search