Genealogy

Genealogy with Debbi Young 12:00 to 1:00 pm on Saturday, August 11, 2018.

Ancestor Hunt at the Mechanicsburg Public Library

In celebration of the Mechanicsburg Public Library obtaining three new premium databases from the Ohio Information Network (OPLIN) the library is presenting ‘Ancestor Hunt: How to Find Family and Learn to Love Them.’ This is a program for those wanting to start tracing their family or to get a preview of the databases now available at Mechanicsburg Public Library. The program is Saturday, August 11 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. in the Mechanicsburg Public Library meeting room. You can bring your laptop or electronic device and do research at the end of the program. Public computers will be available also. Help will be available for those who need help. Due to space limitations register to attend the program by stopping in at the Mechanicsburg Public Library or calling 937-834-2004.

                OPLIN provides free of charge to libraries premium databases for a wide range of topics and for doing research. The genealogy databases that OPLIN provides are: Ancestry Library Edition, Heritage Quest, Fold3, ProQuest African American Heritage, and the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps. All of these databases are available through the Mechanicsburg Public Library’s website for use at home except Ancestry Library Edition.

                Ancestry Library Edition is the free in library use only database that is similar to the paid Ancestry.com. The information contained on them is similar but you are restricted in some areas of the database. The following databases are usable at home through the Mechanicsburg Public Library’s website. Heritage Quest is a database that contains some of the same information available on Ancestry Library Edition. There are census records, online books and other information that will help you find your ancestors.  Fold3  contains military records unique to this site. These are pension records, service records and much more. They stretch from the Revolutionary War to the Viet Nam War. ProQuest African American Heritage has early records of slaves and former slaves, helps in tracing your African American ancestor and social networking for those who are having a hard time locating ancestors. The Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps database has maps of Ohio towns and villages from 1882-1962. These maps show buildings, what kind of heating and lighting the building had and what businesses were where along with water supplies available. The maps show the changes that towns experienced over the years and can show where ancestors lived and worked.

                The Mechanicsburg Public Library’s website has more databases available that you can used to find your ancestors, do research or just to see what is out there.