Arizona Vital Records Online

Arizona Office of Vital Records has digital images of birth certificates as late as 1938 (starting potentially in 1855) and death certificates as late as 1963 (starting potentially in 1870).

Nebraska Homestead--First Name Only Searches at BLM and Not Ancestry.com

Ancestry.com recently released their database of completed homestead applications for Nebraska. Ancestry.com allows searchers to search only by first name--a last name is not required. The Bureau of Land Management has included the patents for Nebraska homesteads on their site-but a last name is required. If you're really having trouble finding a Nebraska homestead on the BLM site, you might want to try Ancestry.com's database of completed homesteads--or have a friend search it for you only using the first name.

Illinois 1929 Roll of Honor

The 1929 publication, Roll of Honor, contains the locations of the burial places of soldiers, sailors, marines, and army nurses who served in any of the wars of the United States and are buried in Illinois. The database contains more than 72,000 names.

US Genweb Archives Project--Map Collection and Links

Links to maps for the entire United States, individual states, and, in many cases, individual counties can be found on the United States Digital Map Library through the US Genweb Archives Project.

Atlas of Historical County Boundaries

This interactive website at the Newberry Library has historical county boundaries for counties in the United States.

Organizing Genealogy Information-3 Week Class

By popular demand, we're offering a new section of my "organizing genealogical information" class. Details are here. Don't wait, registration is limited.

Hamilton County, Ohio Military Discharges 1859-1946

FamilySearch's update recently indicated they had recorded copies of military discharges for Hamilton County, Ohio between 1859 and 1946. How complete they are is not known, but this may be helpful for those with relatives in the Cincinnati, Ohio, area.

Initials?

When thinking of all those variants, diminutives, and nicknames for that first name, don't forget that an individual can be listed with just his initials. William may not only be "Will" or "Bill," it may also be "W."

Illinois State Statutes

Links to 155 years of Illinois state statutes on The Advancing Genealogist website.

Your Ancestor's Military Unit at Amazon.com

Have you searched for your ancestor's military unit on  Amazon.com? It's been a while since I did and a recent search there located a book I was unaware of on the 78th Illinois Infantry that I was able to purchase for under $10.

Join Michael at Salt Lake's Family History Library in 2015

We've set the dates for our 2015 research trip to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Visit our informational page and reserve your spot!