Greenwood South Carolina FamilySearch Center



The Greenwood South Carolina FamilySearch Center services patrons researching their genealogy who live in Greenwood, Abbeville, McCormick, Newberry and other surrounding counties.Patrons with ancestry from the area who live in any part of the country can receive help via e-mail or Facebook.On 2 March 1897, Greenwood County was created from Abbeville and Edgefield Counties. Prior to 1785, the area was part of Ninety-Six District.

Center Contacts and Hours
Location and Map:

Location Map

Address:


 * 1417 Cokesbury Rd Greenwood SC 29648 United States


 * Language:English

Phone:


 * (864) 223-0937 Main number to building. If not answer, call (864) 389-1555

Please set an appointment because staff is limited at this site, and we want to be able to provide ample time for assistance and make sure you do not come when there is a closure.'''

Facebook group: Greenwood South Carolina Family History Center

E-mail: SC_Greenwood@familyhistorymail.org

Blog: Greenwood South Carolina FamilySearch Center Blog

Brochure:





'''A family history consultation is provided for each patron to identify useful resources and helpful training. Also, the center is run by volunteer staff and is subject to closures.'''

'''Please make an appointment to ensure someone is available to assist you: (864) 223-0937 Main number to building. If no answer, please call (864) 389-1555'''

'''A family history consultation is provided for each patron to identify useful resources and helpful training. Also, the center is run by volunteer staff and is subject to closures.'''

Closures:

Holiday Schedule:

Closed all major holidays: Closed the weeks of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years (also other holidays)

Purpose
As of September 2014, there are more than 4,700 FSCs in 134 countries. There is no cost to visit a FamilySearch Center or FamilySearch Library. They are open to anyone with an interest in genealogical research. They are operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Find a FamilySearch center near you.

The Greenwood South Carolina FamilySearch Center is a branch of FamilySearch and the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City, Utah (United States). Our goal is to provide resources to assist you in the research and study of your genealogy and family history by:


 * Giving personal one-on-one assistance to patrons to help all patrons readily identify and link their ancestors
 * Providing access to genealogical records through the Internet
 * Offering free classes on how to use FamilySearch.org and other websites, research, and preserve your family's memories.
 * Providing discovery and fun experiences for family members of all ages.

Guidelines for Visiting the Center
Bring as much information as you have about the ancestor you wish to research, including available birth, marriage and death information. Start entering what you know on a Family Group Record. Staff can help you enter that information on Family Tree at FamilySearch.org, and staff can help you find identify and locate information that you are missing.

Member patrons

Patrons who are members of the Church are encouraged to follow the "Find, Take, Teach" goal for this year. Part of this objective is to fill out the online version of the My Family Booklet. At the center, we are encouraging you to complete a printed copy and keep it with you. It is a great way to invite family members and friends to begin doing their family history. Please stop by the center on Sunday to learn more.

Basic Rules


 * Please keep cell phones in silent mode while in the center. Please step outside of the center to take calls.
 * Church Account or FamilySearch Account Registration: Register for one prior to your visit. This can be done by going here.
 * Personal Family History Information: Please bring as much family information as possible. If you feel comfortable, you can start building your family tree before your first visit. See Getting Started.
 * Specific Goal or Objective to Accomplish: Have an idea or goal, before you arrive of what you would like to accomplish during the visit to the Center.

Upcoming Events
Discover Freedmen: (See DiscoverFreedmen.org)

The Freedmen’s Bureau Project is helping African Americans reconnect with their Civil War­-era ancestors. Join us in restoring thousands of records, and begin building your own family tree.



Class Schedule

 * Learning Center - Take a free Learning Center course from the comfort of your home. Browse hundreds of online genealogy courses to help you discover your family history.
 * Getting Started - Get started with your family history.
 * Please contact the center to request topics for a class. E-mail: SC_Greenwood@familyhistorymail.org.

Temple and Family History Consultants
For training please see the classes offered and the online training at Temple and Family History Consultant training.

Discovery and Fun for the Whole Family


You never need to worry about what your family will do at home when you come to the FamilySearch center. Bring everyone with you! Schedule special time for your entire family to have fun together with the activities that we have for all ages.


 * Pre-school children can play games, color family history worksheets or paint with the assistance of parents, grandparents, or older cousins or siblings.
 * Youth can index, build their Family Tree, interview a family member, search for ancestors, or build a blog.
 * Parents can digitize scrapbooks, research online, create a fan chart, or collect ideas for family activities at home.

There are too many possibilities to list here. You can stop by to pick the activities that your family want to do, or contact the center to schedule family time.

Collections



 * FamilySearch Catalog: Many historical records are going online, but not everything can be found there yet. FamilySearch Center staff can also help you search the FamilySearch Catalog, or you can search it yourself before visiting the center. The FamilySearch Catalog is a catalog of the holdings of the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City, the central library of FamilySearch which has been gathering genealogical records for over 115 years. Most of those records were recorded onto microfilm and microfiche, but are currently being uploaded online and can be accessed through the FamilySearch Catalog.
 * Greenwood County Probate Index 1895-1946
 * Greenwood County Newspaper Obituaries - Contact the center to locate an obituary in the Index-Journal.
 * Early Greenwood County Marriages from 1911 - Contact the center to document Greenwood County marriages.
 * Greenwood County Cemeteries - Contact the center for assistance in documenting an ancestor in a local cemetery.




 * FamilySearch Center Portal This center has access to the FamilySearch Center Portal page which gives free access in the center to premium family history software and websites that generally charge for subscriptions. Please reserve a center computer for one hour usage to ensure availability.

Premium sites available for free at the center:


 * 19th Century British Newspapers
 * Access Newspaper Archives
 * Alexander Street Press (American Civil War Collections)
 * Ancestry.com(FamilySearch Library Edition)
 * ArkivDigital Online
 * Create your Who Do You Think You Are? Story, for free
 * Findmypast- Institutional version
 * Fold3.com
 * Historic Map Works (Library Edition)
 * Legacy Stories
 * MyHeritage- Library Edition
 * Origins.net
 * Paper Trail, A Guide to Overland Pioneer Names and Documents
 * ProQuest Obituary Listings
 * Puzilla.org - Premium Services

Software that is free to use in the center:


 * Ancestral Quest 12
 * RootsMagic
 * Legacy Family Tree Deluxe
 * Personal Historian

Hardware and Equipment

 * Please free to bring your own laptop or mobile device when you visit the center. You may use the center's wifi.
 * Desktop computers. You can access the Wifi at the center using your laptop or other mobile device.
 * Laser printer.
 * Laser printer.

Family Tree Training

 * Family Tree Training- Family Tree is a free service at FamilySearch.org that helps you to discover, organize, and record your genealogy online. Family Tree provides free tools you can use to preserve and share your family’s story.

Scanning Services
Bring your photos and documents to the center, and scan them directly to your Family Tree on FamilySearch.org. You will need to enter your FamilySearch.org username and password to do this using our Lexmark MFP. Be sure to make an appointment.

One-on-one Assistance with Your Family History Research
Whatever your challenge is with family history, we will sit down with you one-on-one and guide you to finding resources to documenting an ancestor, or we will assist you in learning how to use today's family history technology.

Local Resources

 * Request a Courthouse Record Overview - Were your ancestors from Greenwood County? Call the center to request an on site overview of marriages, probate, and land records at the Greenwood County Courthouse.  Apply the information you learn there to researching in other courthouses.




 * Request a Greenwood County Library Genealogy Resource Overview - The Lawrence Genealogy and Local History Room at the Greenwood County Library has several resources that may be useful to you in documenting ancestors who lived in Greenwood County. The center staff would be happy to assist with putting you in touch with genealogy room volunteers at the library where you can learn about the resources available there such as: newspapers, WPA histories, cemetery books, 1869 SC State Census, surname files, vertical files, local history books, and the city directories pictured below:



Please see Greenwood County Genealogy to learn more about other genealogy resources in Greenwood.

Staff Research Specialties
FamilySearch center volunteer staff can assist in several areas:


 * Family history consultations to determine needed research resources
 * Getting started with researching your family history
 * Overview of family history online databases and software
 * Researching naturalization and immigration
 * Researching at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History
 * Using manuscript collections in your research
 * Military records
 * Vital records
 * Land records
 * Wills and probate records
 * Using archives and libraries
 * Courthouse research
 * Oral history interviewing
 * Photo editing
 * Newspaper research

Resources in the Local Area

 * Abbeville County Library System Headquarters Branch 1407 N. Main Street Abbeville, SC 29620 Phone: 864-459-4009 Fax: 864-459-0891 One-on-one help with genealogy research is provided by Dr. Constance McNeill at the Abbeville Library on Tuesday afternoons from 1:00-4:00 pm. Contact the library for more information about this service.


 * Greenwood County Library 600 South Main Street Greenwood, SC 29646 Phone: 864-941-4650 Fax 864-941-4651 Lawrence Genealogy and Local History Room Please call for hours before you come to be sure that the room is open to the public. For hours, please call 864-941-4655.


 * Abbeville County Historical Society P.O. Box 12 Abbeville, SC 29620 Phone: 864-278-2884 or 864-378-0772 Email: abvcohs@gmail.com


 * Larry A. Jackson Library (Lander University) Phone: 864-388-8365 Fax: 864-388-8816 Public Access


 * McCain Library Erskine College and Seminary P.O. Box 188 1 Depot Street Due West, SC 29639 Phone: 864-379-8784 (reference) Phone: 877-876-4348 (toll free) Email: library@erskine.edu

Genealogy Links
Online Genealogy Records by Location
 * Using the FamilySearch Research Wiki: A comprehensive video presentation explaining the Wiki, navigating it, and some especially useful pages. Case studies demonstrate using the Wiki for genealogical research. Editing and adding articles to the Wiki are covered.


 * Abbeville County - Government resources
 * Abbeville County - GenWeb
 * Abbeville County, S. C. Archived Abbeville County Probate Court Wills ~1782 to ~2006
 * Abbeville RootsWeb Query Board
 * Black Upstate Heritage
 * Greenwood County Courthouse
 * Greenwood County- FamilySearch Catalog
 * Greenwood County Genealogy - FamilySearch Wiki
 * Greenwood County Historical Society Facebook page
 * Greenwood County Summary Guide - South Carolina Department of Archives and History
 * Index-Journal
 * Maps Tracing County Formations in South Carolina - South Carolina Department of Archives and History
 * Searching Around South Carolina
 * South Carolina Cemetery Mapping Projects
 * South Carolina Genealogy - FamilySearch Wiki
 * South Carolina GenWeb Project
 * SC GenWeb Tombstone Project

Volunteer at the Center
Looking for volunteers who are knowledgeable about conducting research online and in repositories.