Chattanooga Tennessee FamilySearch Center

Welcome!
Whether you are just beginning to trace your roots or need additional resources to complete your search, the Chattanooga Family History Center offers access to the extensive resources available through the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. The center is open to the public and admission is free of charge. Everyone is welcome!

How to Find Us
Our center is housed in a brick church building -- the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Stake Center on Ooltewah Ringgold Road. The FHC is inside the rear entrance to the building, first room on the left. 

3067 Ooltewah Ringgold Road, Ooltewah, TN 

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 Phone: 423.892.7632

E-mail: [mailto:tn_chattanooga@ldsmail.net tn_chattanooga@ldsmail.net] 

Open Hours: Tues./Thurs./Sat. 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.,  Wed. 7 - 9 p.m. Closed:
'''The Center follows the Hamilton County Schools Inclement Weather closing schedule. Please call or check this page for the current schedule. If you're traveling a long distance, telephone ahead to make sure we'll be open. '''

Planning a Visit
Our FHC is staffed by local volunteers who understand the basic principles of family history research. They can guide you in using FHC resources and equipment. If you're planning a visit to our center to begin your genealogy, write down what you know about the family you wish to research -- names, dates, and places -- and choose a research goal. This will help our volunteers to best assist you.

If you're an experienced family history researcher, you may want to search the online Family History Library Catalog (see link below) to see what records are available for your research before you visit us. Feel free to call ahead to determine what we have in-center or whether there is the need to order materials from Salt Lake. There is a nominal fee for film orders, copies and other materials.

Collections

 * Family History Library Catalog: This center has the ability to order any of the films and fiche available through the Family History Library Catalog.
 * Leonardo Andrea Collection -- We have 90 microfilm comprising folders of genealogical work on about 900 families collected by the late Leonardo Andrea, a famous South Carolinian genealogist. We also have other films containing all of his other books and works.
 * McCubbins' Collection -- 76 microfilm of original and typescript holdings on the Rowan County, NC Public Library @ Salisbury. The first three films index the rest of the collection.
 * Guion Miller Records -- This is a rather unique collection for our center -- relating to the enrollment of Eastern Cherokee, 1908 to 1910. This collection contains almost 400 rolls of microfilm. We have most of these films and continue to add to the collection.
 * Patrons' Microfiche Collection -- a collection of fiche ordered by our patrons, assorted titles. Contain family histories, vital records, and other types of information. These are indexed in the blue binders in the bookcase.
 * Indefinite Film Collection -- a collection of films on a variety of subjects, to include vital records, county records, court records, etc. They are indexed by state and then by county in the "state binders" in the bookcase.

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, including Ancestry.com, Heritage Quest, etc. Come enter your ancestor's name on Ancestry.com and watch for that "shaking leaf" which indicates that there are records or hints from other family trees out there with information about your ancestor!

Ancestral Quest -- Offers all of the basic features of other top genealogy programs -- multiple views, source documentation, a wide variety of reports and charts, web page creation, multimedia scrapbook features, merge capabilities and organization tools.

Generation Maps -- A program that will take the info from your family tree program (PAF, GED, Legacy, Ancestral Quest, Rootsmagic, New.FamilySearch.com, etc) and put everyone on a big chart, where you can see them and begin to fit all the families together.

Get My Ancestors -- Download multiple generations your family tree from the FamilySearch family tree. This file will include basic events such as birth, Christening, Death, Burial and Marriage. Find a specific person and download his or her family tree and sync with your current file. Save a file as a Personal Ancestral File (PAF) database. Files created work with Personal Ancestral File 5 and FamilyInsight. Works with both Mac and Windows machines. This is a free utility courtesy of Ohana Software. Map My Family Tree -- A Genealogy mapping product that presents your ancestors' lives on a map. Reads your genealogy file and automatically plots all ancestral life events on customizable color maps. Allows you to see where your ancestors were born, married, and died. Track family migrations using the world and country maps. Zoom into any part of the world to see detailed events in that particular location. Choose from 15 different map styles. Print your maps.

Family Insight by Ohana Software • a PAF or other database "clean-up" tool • Replaces and includes the product called PAF Insight: o Family Insight searches New.FamilySearch.org • Synchronize your PAF data with New Family Search  Ordinance Tracker by Ohana Software -- An ordinance organization and tracking tool. Works directly with new.familysearch.org and can be used along side any database program.

Hardware and Equipment
The center has 4 desktop computers with FamilySearch internet access and dedicated printers, several microfiche readers, 5 overhead microfilm readers, 1 Canon microfilm/fiche scanner with printer connection, 1 copy/scan/fax machine.

Links
Hamilton County Bicentennial Library: www.lib.chattanooga.gov/localHist/guide.html

Hamilton County Genealogical Society: www.hctgs.org/

Chattanooga Area Historical Association: www.chattahistoricalassoc.org/index.htm

Tennessee Vital Records Office: health.state.tn.us/vr/

Tennessee Electronic Library (TEL): http://www.tntel.tnsos.org/

Volunteer at the Center
To volunteer, contact the FHC directors at the telephone or e-mail listed above.