This page is maintained by Sonoma County History & Genealogy Library, Katherine J. Rinehart, Manager.
Last reviewed: March 21, 2018.
Getting started with your genealogy and family history
The Sonoma County Genealogical Society
Local genealogical society meets monthly in Santa Rosa. Members can help you with getting started on your research, and the website has links to useful publications and online resources.
There are dozens of free training videos on FamilySearch. You must set up a free account to accesss these videos, which are available in the Learning Center under the Help tab. Courses cover all levels, from basic family history and genealogy research to accreditation and conference videos for professional genealogists.
From the National Archives. Try their Online Public Access to research in many archives at once.
Major search sites
Excellent source for vital records and other resources for genealogical research. Available inside the Library only. More information about Ancestry
HeritageQuest Online (Sonoma County Library library card required for access from home)
Read more information about HeritageQuest.
From the Church of LDS. This site allows you to search the Ancestral file, their family history library catalog. Also available is the International Genealogy Index and the Family Search pedigree resource file.
RootsWeb.com [the website is still offline while Ancestry.com works to restore it but mailing lists are available to use]
This is the oldest free genealogy website. Search a large database by family name, with links to message boards, family trees, and genealogy mailing lists.
USGenWeb Project is a volunteer project working to provide genealogical information for each state and county in the U.S. Resources available in each county are listed.
Genealogy links
Sonoma County Vital Records
For certified or informational copies of local Sonoma County birth, marriage, and death records from 1873 to the present, visit the County Clerk-Recorder's Office. Public access terminals are available for limited vital records research at the County Clerk's Office.
This database contains not only passenger records, historical manifests, and ship images for researching those who came through Ellis Island on their way to settling in the United States.
Genealogy collection on Archive.org
Passenger lists, county records, family genealogies, Indian Census of the United States, and other materials scanned in from the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center and other libraries.
Ninety subject categories of links to genealogy sites on the Internet.
A good portal site for beginning your research. The website has online indexes to the Family Tree Maker CD-ROM products.
The Allen County Library Genealogy Center is a valuable resource for the Northeastern Indiana community and the entire genealogical community at large.
A popular site for searching genealogy databases, with articles about how to trace your family history.
Find public records for the United Kingdom.
DNA Testing
Consumer Affairs guide to DNA testing companies and ancestry websites.
