As we continue to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of the United States of America, there is growing interest in family and local history. Most of us recall needing to visit the library to do research. However, more and more primary sources are available and accessible online every day. Here is how to discover some of those resources:

HathiTrust was founded in 2008 as a not-for-profit collaborative of academic and research libraries preserving 19+ million digitized items in 400+ languages in the HathiTrust Digital Library. (hathitrust.org) Most of the items are not easily accessible in a local library. Henry Onderdonk, Jr. (1804-1886) authored books from 1846 to 1886 about the local and church history of Western Long Island, with several important works focusing on Queens County.

Are you curious about what happened during the American Revolution and the seven-year British Occupation? When the full view of Documents and Letters Intended to Illustrate the Revolutionary Incidents of Queens County is opened, a text search option is available in the left column. From the search summary, you can click through to the page with the information you are looking for. There are other publications available across many genres and centuries. A general search for Maspeth might help an entomologist find 25 insects identified here in 1925. Revolutionary Incidents of Queens County is a compilation of local primary sources relating to the American Revolution.

FamilySearch (familysearch.org) is one of the best free resources for family history research. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has libraries and volunteers all across the country, expanding access to primary sources every minute. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being used to transcribe and index handwritten documents. Thousands of volunteers help proofread and edit the transcripts online every day to make them easier to search.

Find a Grave ® (findagrave.com) is a virtual cemetery for the entire world. On this site, you can find information about cemeteries and memorials for people. The memorials are created by volunteers who are adding more info every day. Not all graves have memorials yet and the memorials do not all include tombstone photos. Our local cemeteries are huge, and some restrict volunteers from photographing tombstones. With all the cemeteries we have in Queens and all the famous and historic people buried here, this site serves as a growing index. You might not realize just how many famous organized crime figures, politicians, artists, and sports heroes are buried in St. John’s Cemetery in Middle Village. James John “Chief” Roseman played for the New York Metropolitans.

The NYC Department of Records and Information Services provides online access to vital records from all five boroughs. (a860-historicalvitalrecords.nyc.gov) They are continually digitizing more birth, death, and marriage records. There are currently various records available from 1855-1948. Below is Chief Roseman’s Death Certificate.

Naturalization records for Queens and the Bronx from 1795 to 1952 are available at nynaturalizations.com. As mentioned above, there are many organized crime figures in St. John’s Cemetery, including Vito Genovese. His family came from Naples, Italy to Woodhaven in 1913.

Local history doesn’t get more local than the newspaper. Queens Newspapers from 1821-1909 are available online at NYS Historic Newspapers (nyshistoricnewspapers.org).

Newspapers from New York City are available from the Library of Congress’s Chronicling America Collection (loc.gov/collections/chronicling-america).

The websites for our local libraries have vast resources.
The Queens Public Library website has a section dedicated to local history (queenslibrary.org/research/local-history).

QPL’s Digital Archives (queenslibrary.org/research/local-history/digital-archives) includes sources dating from 1655 to recent times. Your New York Public Library card gives access to extensive resources on their website (nypl.org/research).

If you would like to learn more about online genealogy research, there will be an in-person workshop in April.

How to Research Your Ancestors: A Genealogy Workshop presented by the Increase Carpenter Chapter, National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution
Location: Bowne House Historical Society 37-01 Bowne Street, Flushing, NY 11354
Date: Saturday, April 18th
Time: 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm

Learn how to search for your American ancestors and family history during this interactive workshop. Certified genealogists from the DAR will introduce you to techniques and online research tools to start your journey into the past.

This workshop is perfect for anyone curious about their roots and eager to explore their unique ancestry. Participants are encouraged to bring a laptop. Beginners welcome! Recommended for Ages 16+. Space is limited. For more information and to register go to bownehouse.org/events.