From the mid-19th through the early 20th century waves of European immigrants arrived on American shores seeking new opportunities. Unfortunately, this period also ushered in antisemitic and prejudiced attitudes toward these immigrants, which culminated in the passing of the Immigration Act of 1924. The act introduced an immigrant quota system and other policies that would cause immigration to plummet in the following years. In this lecture, our expert will discuss the historical context of the Immigration Act of 1924, how the act shaped immigration records, and how the “closing of the golden doors” impacted the lives of your ancestors.

More than 400 years ago, the Mayflower landed on the shores of Massachusetts with 102 passengers aboard. Today, there are an estimated 35 million Mayflower descendants worldwide. In this lecture, our expert will discuss the foundations of researching your Mayflower ancestors, including key resources, verifying and documenting your line, applying to the General Society of Mayflower Descendants, and more.

Many Americans and Canadians have Scottish ancestry. Determining exactly where in Scotland your ancestors came from, however, can be the hardest part of researching them. By understanding the history of Scotland and the many waves of emigration, you can start to narrow down possible origins. This first lecture reviews the many waves of Scottish immigration and the push-pull factors that led them to making their way to America.

Researching civil registrations and church records of births/baptisms, marriages, and deaths is often the first thing that family historians do when they learn they have ancestry in Scotland. In this lecture, our expert reviews what information is provided in each record type and how to locate and access these resources.
 

Scottish census and census substitutes can provide important details about the immediate family of your ancestors. This lecture reviews what censuses exist, what information they provide, and where to access both transcriptions and digitized images.

German immigrants first arrived to American shores in large numbers in the late 17th century, and today nearly 45 million Americans have German heritage. Published resources are an essential tool for researching your German-American ancestors. There are treasure troves of published resources including general guides, dictionaries (both for words and surnames), books on paleography, and published records including immigration, census, and military records. Join our expert as they share go-to published resources for German family history research in America.

Irish immigrants were one of the largest groups that headed west. Explore the history and key resources to research your Irish pioneers. This lecture will cover the California Gold Rush, Oregon Donation Land Claims, Homesteading, Railroad Workers, as well as online resources. 

Many loyalists fled to areas firmly under British control including New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, and Quebec. Still others crossed the Atlantic to the Mother Country, England. Some would stay for the duration of the war and eventually return to the U.S.; others would put down roots and stay for generations. This lecture will discuss the many resources available for learning about your ancestor’s lives in Canada, England, and other areas of the British Empire.

Canadian baptisms, burials, and marriage records date back to the early 17th century for some parishes, though there is no central repository for these records making it difficult to know where to look. This lecture will help you understand where to find these church records as well as civil vital records which have been recorded since the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Substitutes for these church and vital records, such as newspaper records, will also be discussed.
 

There are a variety of records available that can help you research land ownership of your Atlantic Canadian ancestors, including land board records, land grants, land petitions, land patents from the Indian and Inuit Affairs Program, maps, and more. This lecture will help you understand how to navigate the many record sets available and how to apply them to your research.