Presented by Stephen Young
90-Minute Enhanced Presentation (Beginner)
FamilySearch is an international, nonprofit organization and website dedicated to helping all people discover their family story. It offers access to genealogical records, education, and software. Funded by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), it is the largest genealogical organization in the world. Its resources and services are freely available on the Internet and it does require account registration to provide security for users.
This presentation will provide new users with a short background history of FamilySearch and the services its website offers. The balance of the session will introduce how to access digital records from around the world, including books and the global FamilySearch Family Tree, the Family History Library catalogue, genealogies, and the Research Wiki. Every person on our tree deserves to be remembered, so additional attention will focus on creating and linking memories (photos, documentation, and oral stories) to validate facts for ancestral lives (vital records, census records, etc.). Time will also be taken to demonstrate the tools on this free website which allow research collaboration and interesting activities to uncover details about such things as national heritage, surname origins, inter-relationships with famous relatives, and family traditions, as well as how anyone can get involved in helping to improve search functions so others can find their own families.
