West Valley Genealogical Society

United States Arizona  Archives and Libraries  West Valley Genealogical Society

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Contact Information
E-mail: [mailto:info@azwvgs.org info@azwvgs.org].

Address:


 * 12222 N. 111th Ave
 * Youngstown, AZ 85363

Telephone: 623-933-4945

Hours:


 * Tues, Thurs - Sat 9:00am - 4:00pm
 * Sun 12:30pm - 4:00pm
 * Tues Evening 6:00 - 9:00pm
 * Last Saturday of the month 9:00am - 6:00pm

Map, directions, and public transportation:


 * Map: Google map: West Valley Genealogical Society


 * Directions:
 * From the north side of Phoenix on I-17 (N Black Canyon Hwy): Merge onto I-17 S/Black Canyon Fwy S toward Phoenix. Take the AZ-101 Loop W exit, EXIT 214C, 1.2 mi. Merge onto AZ-101 W, 10.5 mi. Merge onto N 91st Ave via EXIT 11 toward US-60/Grand Ave, 1.0 mi. Turn right onto W Grand Ave/US-60 W, 2.7 mi. Turn left onto N 111th Ave, 0.6 mi. The WVGS Library is on the right at 12222 N 111TH AVE, just past and across the street (W California Ave) from Dave's Auto Repair.
 * From the southeast side of Phoenix on US-60 (Superstition Fwy): Turn onto E US Highway 60/US-60 W toward Phoenix. Merge onto I-10 W/Pearl Harbor Memorial Highway toward I-10 W/Phoenix, 21.3 mi. Take the AZ-101 Loop N exit, EXIT 133B, 0.8 mi. Merge onto AZ-101 N/Loop 101 N/Agua Fria Fwy N, 8.8. mi. Take the US-60/Grand Ave exit, EXIT 11, 0.3 mi. Turn left onto US-60 W/W Grand Ave, 2.4 mi. Turn left onto N 111th Ave, 0.6 mi. The WVGS Library is on the right at 12222 N 111TH AVE, just past and across the street (W California Ave) from Dave's Auto Repair.
 * From west of Phoenix on I-10 (Papago Hwy): Merge onto I-10 E/Pearl Harbor Memorial Highway/Papago Fwy E toward Phoenix. Take the AZ-101 Loop N exit, EXIT 133B, 1.1 mi. Merge onto AZ-101 N/Loop 101 N/Agua Fria Fwy N, 8.8 mi. Take the US-60/Grand Ave exit, EXIT 11, 0.3 mi. Turn left onto US-60 W/W Grand Ave, 2.4 mi. Turn left onto N 111th Ave, 0.6 mi. The WVGS Library is on the right at 12222 N 111TH AVE, just past and across the street (W California Ave) from Dave's Auto Repair.
 * From northwest of Phoenix on US-60 (Phoenix-Wickenburg Hwy/Grand Ave): Take US-60 E/Grand Ave southeast toward Phoenix, passing the Agua Fria River into Youngstown. Turn right onto N 111th Ave, 0.6 mi. The WVGS Library is on the right at 12222 N 111TH AVE, just past and across the street (W California Ave) from Dave's Auto Repair.


 * Public transportation:  Valley Metro Bus
 * Bus Route 106 - Peoria/Cactus  stops on 111th Ave near Alabama Ave about 300 yards south of the WVGS Library.

Internet sites and databases:


 * West Valley Genealogical Society calendar, events, membership, resources, store, about us, hours, subscriber databases, how-to classes, special interest groups, and research nights.
 * WVGS Catalog online by keyword, author, title, or description.
 * Obituary Search 50,000 entries, 1963-now, primarily from northwestern Maricopa County, AZ cities.

Collection Description
The West Valley Genealogical Society, formerly the Sun City Genealogical Society, is an active society with a good little library. It probably represents outside Arizona better because of retirees who contribute genealogies from all around the U.S. The WVGS library is a non-circulating research library with 4,000 square feet of 12,000 books, 1,000 CDs, 1,500 periodicals, maps, 1,100 microfilms, and Internet access to sources from all 50 states and many nations. Databases include New England Historic Society, Ancestry.com, World Vital Records, and Fold3. They offer how-to classes, special interest groups focusing on specific places of origin, once-a-month research nights, and annual trips to Salt Lake City and Washington, DC.

Tips
Please call 623-933-4945 to make your reservation for the next Special Library Research Evening 5-9 p.m. on the 3rd Thursday of each month.

Alternate Repositories
If you cannot visit or find a source at the , a similar source may be available at one of the following.

Overlapping Collections


 * National Archives—Pacific Region (Riverside), CA. Federal court records and federal agencies in Arizona.
 * State Library, Phoenix, has a large book/periodical collection including immigration, vital records, courts, wills, county histories, and Internet sites. The  starting place for AZ family history research.
 * State Archives, Phoenix, marriages, wills and probates, civil and criminal records, brands, taxes, coroner records, voting registers, prisoners, state agencies, maps, newspapers, photos.
 * Bancroft Library, Univ. Calif. Berkeley Early settlers, migration trails, stagecoaches, miners, and histories. They probably have more Arizona historical material than any repository in Arizona.
 * Southwest Museum Braun Research Library, Los Angeles, CA. Includes the Monk Library of Arizoniana, California and Arizona history, and records of southwest American Indians.
 * Family History Library, Salt Lake City, has many Arizona cemeteries, census, church, court, histories, immigration, land, military, and naturalization records on microfilm.

Similar Collections


 * Maricopa Historical Society, Wickenburg, exhibits and publications.
 * Arizona Jewish Historical Society, Phoenix, exhibits and genealogical classes.

Neighboring Collections


 * Mesa FamilySearch Library, Mesa, 81,000 microfilms including AZ censuses, 40,000 books (many local histories), 129 public computers, and over 90 classes and workshops per month.
 * Arizona State University Library, Tempe, a good place to look for early Arizona families.
 * Phoenix Public Library, Burton Barr Central Library The Arizona history collection is a good place for genealogy research.
 * Maricopa County Office of Vital Registration births 1950-present; and deaths.
 * Maricopa County Superior Court Clerk marriages, criminal, civil, divorces, probate and tax court cases.
 * Maricopa County Recorder's Office land and mortgage records 1871-present.
 * U.S. District Court civil, criminal, appellate, and bankruptcy cases.
 * Repositories in surrounding counties: Gila, La Paz, Pima, Pinal, Yavapai, and Yuma.
 * Arizona Historical Society, Tucson Library and Archives, has a Mexican and an early Arizona collection, Colorado River topics, manuscripts 1860-present, oral histories, maps, and photos.
 * University of Arizona Special Collections, Tucson, materials on Arizona, Southwest American history, and the U.S./Mexico Borderlands, including rare books, manuscripts, and photographs.
 * Northern Arizona University Cline Library, Flagstaff, includes Arizona history, Arizona photographs, archives, and oral histories.
 * Pima County Public Library, Joel D. Valdez Main Library, Tucson, the Arizona collection, and the Southern Arizona Genealogical Society collection are housed here.
 * Repositories in surrounding states (or nations): California, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah; in Mexico: Baja California, Sonora, and Mexico.
 * California State Archives, Sacramento, has county records of the state, such as court records, prison records, wills, deeds, as well as military records, state census records, and school records.
 * Nevada State Library and Archives, Carson City, births, marriages, deaths, censuses, military.
 * New Mexico State Records Center and Archives, Santa Fe, government records since 1621, manuscripts, Catholic church records, census, wills, family histories, letters, diaries, maps, photos.
 * Utah State Archives, Salt Lake City, newspaper, death, land, court, history, naturalization, military, directories, criminals.
 * Archivo General de la Nación, Mexico City, church, civil, census, court, history, military, migration, land.