Aurora Colorado FamilySearch Center

Center Contacts and Hours
Location Map: 


 * Location Map

Address:


 * 950 Laredo St., Aurora CO 80011 United States


 * Language:English

Phone:


 * 1-303-367-0570

E-mail:


 * CO_Aurora@ldsmail.net

FHC Director: Vickie Smejkal

Open Hours:


 * Monday: 9:00 am - 1:00 pm
 * Wednesday: 9:00 am - 8:00 pm
 * Saturday: 9:00 am - 1:00 pm

We strive to staff our center, however, it is best to call ahead, especially during the winter season. We will post closures as soon as possible on this site, FaceBook, and on the center's phone line 1-303-367-0570

Special Event Closure:  October 1, 2016 -- General Conference, a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints semi-annual event

October 3, 2016 -- Building Maintenance Function (Carpet Cleaning of Building)

 

Closed all major holidays: 21 November 2016 through 26 November 2016 and 19 December 2016 through 31 December 2016

Presentation Schedule for 2016 -- FREE
Presentation classes are held every 1st Thursday and 2nd Sunday of the month, except for May, it will be the 3rd Sunday of the month.

September 1 & 11 at 7 p.m. -- Billiongraves.com and Findagrave.com

There are no presentations during the months of October through December 2016 and January through March 2017. Look for 2017 schedule to come out in early 2017.

If you would like to be notified of a scheduled presentation and/or class, please see our Facebook page and click on 'subscribe'. Aurora Family History Center

Upcoming Spring / Summer special  – The Aurora Family History Center will be conducting “Intro to Family History” Classes, each 2nd and 3rd Thursday of the month at 7 p.m., starting in April and ending in September 2016.

September 8th & repeated September 15th – Intro to Family History – Vital Records and the information they provide

Note: Documentation will also be briefly discussed as we go along during each class session. And, no computers involved during these sessions.

Wards and Stakes Family History Meetings
Held every 4th Thursday of the month at 7 p.m.  (There are no meetings for November & December). These meetings are designed for all those responsible for Family History (Fam Hist Consultants, High Priest Group Leaders, & Fam Hist Ctr Staff). It is our hope to keep you up-to-date with the latest changes and to offer bits and pieces of information that will benefit you and those you assist in your callings.

Collections

 * FamilySearch Catalog: This center will assist patrons to order any of the films and fiche available through the FamilySearch Catalog. Patrons will place their orders on any computer with an internet connection using the Online Film Ordering system.  The film ordering Web site is located at Online Film Ordering.  There patrons can create a personal account and select the preferred family history center where the films they order will be sent.  They can make payment using a credit or debit card, or by PayPal.
 * The Aurora Family History Center has a collection of microfilms and microfiche on indefinite loan from the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Databases and Software

 * FHC Portal This center has access to the Family History Center Portal page which gives free access in the center to premium family history software and websites that generally charge for subscriptions. Our Premium Family History Websites portal provides patrons access to the following:

·       19th Century British Library Newspaper Digital Archive – Site provides News Articles, Obits, marriage records, death records, military records, etc. by topic, name, and more.

·       Access Newspaper Archive – Site provides largest online collection of obits, marriage records, death records, news articles, etc. Searching by ‘keyword’ not so good. Searching by name is great. Can browse by state, maps, newspaper, location, and so on.

·       Alexander Street Press - The Civil War – (The following are links within this site): Research Database / Letters and Diaries / Images, Photographs, Posters, and Ephemera / Social and Cultural History (Letters and Diaries Online) / Women and Social Moments in the United States, 1600-2000.

·       Ancestry.Com – If you are an LDS member, you have free access to this site from home. This site provides lots of records, state and federal censuses, news articles, military records, travel records, marriage records, books, and much more. Much like FamilySearch.org, it too offers hints, memories and photos.

American Ancestors – (by New England Historic    Genealogical Society) – “New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS) is     America’s founding genealogical organization and the most respected name in family history. Established in 1845, NEHGS is the nation’s leading comprehensive resource for family history research and the largest Society of its kind in the world.” “AmericanAncestors.org is the most-used genealogical society website in the world. It provides family historians access to more than 1 billion records spanning the U.S. and beyond, including one of the most extensive online collections of early American records, and the largest searchable collection of published genealogical research journals and magazines. Special strengths in our content include English, New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire,    Rhode Island, and Vermont), New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia materials.”

·       Find My Past – This site has British newspapers mostly for the U.K. area. Lots of English, Ireland, New Zealand records, passenger lists, etc. British Army Records; Records back to the year 1200. Site is expanding its US and Canada Records.

·       Fold 3 – This site now owned by Ancestry.com. This site has Military records; Crews Registers (Ship Registers); and Civil War Pension records.

·       Paper Trail – This site lists classes; historical information (stories, data, etc.). Mostly information of the Oregon Trail – Info on things such as: How many people, by ox cart or Calistoga, diseases along the way, etc. More of an informational site than a genealogical site.

·       World Vital Records – This site has censuses; obits, vital records, and photo year books. This site is kind of like Ancestry.com, but smaller. And lately, a new note has been added by this site: “All content has been added to MyHeritage.com (who purchased WVR).”.

·       Kinpoint – Per the site: “Family History, Simplified.”. “Do family history in just a few minutes. Quickly see what to work on and get help finding new information.”. “Less searching, More Finding – with Premium, our kinpoint guide shows problems in your family tree and finds records for missing information.”. “Love To Grow Things? – So did your ancestors. Discover your ancestors occupation with the Explore Summary.”. “Love Mountains? – Maybe its in your blood. See where your ancestors came from with the Explore Summary.”. “Go Back in Time – See photos, stories and the events from a person's life with Memories and Timelines.”. Kinpoint also “makes it easy to see ordinances that are ready or need more imformation to complete.”.

·       MyHeritage – A Family History Research site, easy to use – enter name of person for whom you are searching, location, and even 'keyword' if you like. I hear MyHeritage is the european equivalent of Ancestry.com. MyHeritage will even send you e-mails of 'matches' it may have found.

·       ProQuest Obituary Listings – Per the site: “The Proquest Obituaries collection is a premier resource for genealogical and historical research.”. “You can use the collection to search obituaries and death notices from prominent newspapers, such as The New York Times (dating back to 1851). The collection includes both famous and lesser-known individuals and can be searched by name or by keywords appearing in the body of the article.”. I noticed in the side bar of ProQuest the following newspapers listed: Atlanta Constitution (1868-1922); Boston Globe (1872-1922); Chicago Defender (1921-1975); Chicago Tribune (1852-1984); Los Angeles Times (1851-1994); and Washington Post (1877-1950). I also noticed (I did a test search) that even though an ancestor may have died in one state, such as New Jersey, a listing for them could show up in another state's newspaper, such as New York.

·       Puzzilla.Org –  Wow, has this site changed. The youth may get a kick out of this one. This site offers both “Free and Premium Service” subscription. The site does have a tutorial, which lasts about 15 minutes. I highly advise taking the tutorial. Puzzilla lets you see your line and cousin lines too. The colors found at the tips of the lines indicate if there is a possible duplicate; if a person died before reaching age 16; if a hint exists; and much more. Note: If you use this site from the Family History Center, you will have full use of ALL the color codes, otherwise from home, you will be very limited in the colors; mostly the blue, red, and yellow. (Male, female, died before age 16). To use the free version from home, you'll need to use your FamilySearch Account password.


 * Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints aged 13 and over can join five subscription websites for free: Ancestry.com, Find My Past, My Heritage, Family Me, & American Ancestors.  Follow this link and sign in with your FamilySearch/LDS Account for access to these excellent resources!   Partners  Be sure to open "Partners" and select one or all of the five sites listed.

Hardware and Equipment

 * There are personal computers, printer, microfilm and microfiche readers available in this Center for patron use on a first come, first served basis.
 * Wireless connections are available for personal laptops and tablets.

Staff Research Specialties
(Include sections for any other services your center provides. Add additional sections for those services. See the Bountiful and Chattanooga FHC pages for examples.)

Resources in the Local Area
Denver Public Library, 10 West Fourteenth Ave. Pkwy, Denver, Colorado 80204 -- Western History &amp; Genealogy Dept located on the 5th floor.

National Archives Records Administration, 17101 Huron Street, Broomfield, CO 80023

Links
Denver Public Library

Denver Public Library, Genealogy tools A-Z

Rocky Mountain Regional NARA, 17101 Huron Street, Broomfield, CO 80023

National Archives Records Administration (NARA)

NARA Resources for Genealogists

Colorado Genealogical Society

Foothills Genealogical Society

African American Genealogy

The Freedman's Bureau Project -- Be sure to scroll down to see the whole page

German Research

Germany Genealogy

Native American Research

Mexico Genealogy

Wales, Ireland, Scotland, England (W.I.S.E.)

Volunteer at the Center
''Yes, we are in need of 4-6 volunteers to assist at the Family History Center. If you are familiar with doing family history and/or genealogical research, we would love to have you join us. Not familiar with the FamilySearch Program, not to worry -- we will be happy to introduce you. Who knows, perhaps in the process you will see your own family tree grow.''