Genealogy Go-To Records

We begin with the genealogy go-to records that we usually consult in the course of research. We look for the women in these records, but even more importantly, we make sure to pull every possible clue from these records.

A selection of record sets are featured in this guide, but by no means is this list exhaustive. Each category has the potential to provide unique information, as well as point to further records. Imagine your ancestor's circumstances at the time each document was created. What other steps were required? Where else might she have left related paperwork?

Here are just a few of the possibilities to get you brainstorming:

Cemetery records and Tombstones Census records Church records City directories Courthouse records Employment records Personal papers Photographs Genealogical and Historical Society collections	Immigration and Naturalization records Library collections Military records Newspapers Prison records School records State archives Taxes Vital records

Female Ancestors: Images Among the Library of Congress Collections

Gordon Parks, photographer. Four generations of a family: 97-year old great grandmother Mary Machado, grandmother Isabell Lopez, mothers Irene and Dorothy, grandchildren Dorothy and Francis. 1943. Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division.

Thomas Askew, photographer. Four African American women seated on steps of building at Atlanta University, Georgia. 1899-1900. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Harris & Ewing, photographer. Woman viewing fingerprints in file. 1923. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Mina Van Winkle, head of the Lecture Bureau of the U.S. Food Administration, explains Victory gardening and food processing to support the war effort. Between 1917 and 1918. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

African American women presenting papers to a clerk, probably WAACs about to begin training. Between 1943 and 1945. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

Female Ancestors: Finding Women in Local History and Genealogy

Local History & Genealogy: Ask a Librarian