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5 Genealogy Centers Make it Easy to Research Family History on Vacation

Centers provide access to documents and genealogists for one-on-one assistance

Documents at genealogy centers can provide answers to lingering questions about your family history.
Documents at genealogy centers can provide answers to lingering questions about your family history.
Whitney Lawson/Gallery Stock
By

Cheryl Maguire,

 
AARP
Published October 18, 2024

While on a camping trip with her husband to Salt Lake City, Lori Erickson decided to visit the famous genealogy center called FamilySearch Library. “That first ignited my interest in my Scandinavian roots,” she says. After her mom died in 2020, Erickson at 59 wanted to learn more about her relatives. “I had a sense for wanting to pass down a record to my kids.”

She decided to write a book about her Norwegian ancestry, The Soul of the Family Tree: Ancestors, Stories, and the Spirits We Inherit. While researching her heritage, she visited the Norwegian American Genealogical Center & Naeseth Library in Madison, Wisconsin.

Even though her book was published, she still had a lingering question about her great-grandfather’s daughter who remained in Norway (for unknown reasons) when he went to America. She attempted to research this mystery during a group trip for travel writers at the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Now 63 and living in Iowa City, Iowa, Erickson says her research experience at three different genealogy centers has helped her to feel grateful. “I got a deep sense of the fact that life was usually very hard, even for the wealthy,” she says. She also gained a new appreciation for cultural traditions and a better understanding about her ethnic background.

Learning about your ancestry is popular because of DNA testing kits, and according to a 2022 Ancestry.com survey, 66 percent of respondents say they want to know more about their family history. An Ipsos poll found that people who are considered Gen X (ages 44-59) and boomers (age 60-plus) are more interested in ancestry than younger generations.

One way to combine this popular hobby with travel is to visit destinations with large genealogy centers that are free or inexpensive to use. Consider the following locations to help round out your family history.

FamilySearch Library
FamilySearch Library has more than 1 million rolls of microfilmed genealogical records.
Alamy Stock Photo

FamilySearch Library

Location: Salt Lake City

Admission: Free

Appointment needed: No

Offerings: As one of the largest genealogy centers in the world you can search more than 1 million rolls of microfilmed genealogical records. You also can access records of more than 8 billion people from over 100 countries. If you have a question, you can ask the expert research consultants for assistance.

Historic family fun activities: “The Great Salt Lake and Antelope Island Tour explores the history and ecology of the Great Salt Lake,” says Ryan Mack, vice president of communications at Visit Salt Lake. Some other historical sites are This is the Place Heritage Park and Historic Temple Square.

Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center
An appointment isn’t necessary at Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center, but making one allows a genealogist to do preliminary research before your arrival.
Courtesy Visit Fort Wayne

Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center

Location: Fort Wayne, Indiana

Admission: Free

Appointment needed: No, but suggested

Offerings: The nation’s second largest genealogy collection offers more than 1 million physical items. In person you can consult with a genealogist for free and if you did a DNA test they can help research your results. “Our staff is relatively well versed on how to interpret DNA results,” says Curt B. Witcher, the Genealogy Center manager. Before your visit use The Visit Fort Wayne workbook guide to get the most out of your experience. Even though an appointment isn’t necessary making one can help speed up the process by allowing the genealogist to do preliminary research before the visit. “We want genealogists and family historians to be successful,” Witcher says.

Historic family fun activities: “We always recommend the historic sites pass on our website,” says Jessa Campbell, the director of destination development and communications at Visit Fort Wayne. The Allen County Historic Sites free pass highlights 93 landmarks and locations on a self-guided audio walking tour. You can also visit a replica of the fort from 1815 called the Old Fort for which the city is named. “Fort Wayne does have a fort,” Campbell says. “They have reenactments there as well.”

Midwest Genealogy Center’s Memory Lab
The Midwest Genealogy Center’s Memory Lab allows patrons to digitize old recordings, such as home videos for free.
Associated Press

Midwest Genealogy Center (branch of Mid-Continent Public Library)

Location: Independence, Missouri

Admission: Free

Appointment needed: No

Offerings: “The Midwest Genealogy Center offers a robust collection of on-site genealogical records and resources, including city directories, plat maps [which show how tracts of land are divided in a county], periodicals, various records on microform, and much more,” says Emily Becker, the community relations manager at Mid-Continent Public Library. She says visitors can use digital resources such as Ancestry.com through the library’s computers and can attend free educational seminars. You can book a free appointment with center reference staff to discuss genealogy research questions. One unique offering is its Memory Lab which allows patrons to digitize old recordings, such as home videos for free. “For those with [a Mid-Continent Public Library] card, we also lend Tell Me a Story oral history kits to preserve historical narratives for future generations,” Becker says.

Historic family fun activities: You can visit the home where President Harry S. Truman grew up. Then you can visit one of the oldest structures in Jackson County, Missouri — the 1859 Jail Museum which was a former residence with a hidden jail that incarcerated Frank James, the brother of Jesse James.

The American Ancestors Research Center

Location: Boston

Admission: Free for members. $20 day pass for nonmembers.

Appointment needed: No

Offerings: This center is the oldest genealogical society and considered one of the top 10 world destinations for family history. “We’ve been collecting since 1845,” says Lindsay Fulton, the chief research officer at the American Ancestors Research Center. “It’s an eight-story library that is full of books, periodicals, manuscripts and rare books.” Originally the collections were mostly focused on the New England area but it has since expanded to all regions. The center, previously known as the New England Historic Genealogical Society, is currently closed for renovations but is expected to open later this year.

Historic family fun activities: A popular activity is the Freedom Trail where you can do a self-guided tour or a fee-based guided tour of 16 significant locations to U.S. history. There is also a free guided tour or a self-guided tour of the Black Heritage Trail featuring significant sites of the African American community.

Center for Family History at the International African American Museum
The Center for Family History at the International African American Museum provides an interactive experience for visitors.
Courtesy Center for Family History at the International African American Museum

Center for Family History at the International African American Museum

Location: Charleston, South Carolina

Admission: Free for members or included with admission to museum for $22

Appointment needed: No

Offerings: This center offers an interactive experience where you can use large-screen kiosks to access FamilySearch and an additional 400 million records. “I have actually done it before with my younger girls, where we discovered additional details about family members,” says Malika Pryor, the chief learning and engagement officer at the International African American Museum. Even though there is a focus on African American families at the center she says, “Every single service that I’ve mentioned is available to any and everyone.” She explains, “Our goal is to break down the barriers to access [records].”

Historic family fun activities: Charleston’s Museum Mile offers six museums and five historic houses within 1 mile. There’s also a variety of walking tours such as Charleston’s African-American History and Heritage Walking Tour or Fort Sumter Tours.

Cheryl Maguire is a freelance writer whose work has been published in The New York Times, National Geographic, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, Parents Magazine, Healthline and many other publications. She is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors. 

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