American Ancestors

American Ancestors American Ancestors is a National Center for Family History, Heritage & Culture.

American Ancestors provides expert family history services through our staff, original scholarship, data-rich website, educational opportunities, and research center to help family historians of all levels explore their past and understand their families’ unique place in history. We are a member-based nonprofit corporation dedicated to advancing the study of family history in America and beyond, by educating, inspiring, and connecting people through our scholarship, collections, and expertise. We offer the most comprehensive resources in the country for researching family history:

An Expert Staff: Our professional genealogists are among the most respected and advanced in the profession. With research specialties including early American, New England, New York, Irish, English, Italian, Scottish, Atlantic and French Canadian, African American, Native American, Chinese, and Jewish genealogy, our expert staff can assist family historians by providing research advice in-person, over the phone, or in writing. Our expert staff can also conduct research on behalf of family historians, providing authoritative, documented research reports and family tree charts. Original Scholarship: To support the research of family historians around the world, we produce the most significant original research and important publications in genealogy, including, since 1847, the longest continually published academic journal in the field, The Register. In addition to the quarterly journal, we publish a quarterly magazine, ten to twenty books per year, and a weekly electronic newsletter. As the leader in genealogical scholarship, we also produce important study projects such as The Great Migration Study Project, covering those who arrived in New England between 1620 and 1640; The Early New England Study Project, 1641–1700; Families of Western Massachusetts in 1790, capturing families heading west at the time of the 1790 census, and the newEarly Vermont Settlers to 1784 which covers families that settled Vermont, the last frontier of New England. Website: 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. Education: Designed to benefit family history researchers of all levels, we provide exclusive, in-depth learning opportunities through lectures, seminars, intensive research programs, tours to libraries and archives, online courses and webinars, and special events . Research Center: Named by USA Today as a top 10 world destination for family history, the public, members and visitors are invited to visit our eight-story library and archive where we offer the largest collection of original family history research materials in the country. Our collection, which continues to grow through acquisition and preservation activities, dates from the fourteenth century to the present and spans North America, Europe, and beyond. It includes more than 28 million diaries, letters, photographs, and other manuscripts, and more than 200,000 books and microforms.

Come explore American Ancestors and the Family Heritage Experience for free during our spring open house! https://hubs.l...
04/10/2026

Come explore American Ancestors and the Family Heritage Experience for free during our spring open house!
https://hubs.ly/Q04bpHWl0
Some of our activities include:
- self-guided tours of the Family Heritage Experience
- family history themed activities for kids and adults
- twenty-minute, one-on-one consultations with a genealogist (sign up on site)

04/09/2026

We don't know what most Revolutionary War soldiers looked like.

For our Patriots of Color exhibition, Boston-based artist Kenn Crestwell used silhouettes to reimagine two Black soldiers who fought in the war: Quarke Matrick and Prince Freeman. Featured as the exhibition's signature image, her work is a reminder that these soldiers were individuals who lived full, complex lives.

See her artwork at The Family Heritage Experience at American Ancestors on 97 Newbury Street starting April 23.

Land records are an important, but sometimes overlooked, resource for many family historians. They can include critical ...
04/08/2026

Land records are an important, but sometimes overlooked, resource for many family historians. They can include critical clues to identifying extended family members, the location of ancestral homesteads, and family relationships. In this lecture, learn how you can locate, read, and apply the information contained in land records to your own family history. https://hubs.ly/Q04b1rDH0

The art and architecture of the ancient classical world were reborn in the 18th century, with the emergence of the Neocl...
04/07/2026

The art and architecture of the ancient classical world were reborn in the 18th century, with the emergence of the Neoclassical style in England and France. In the first of a two-part webinar, Curt DiCamillo will take us on a grand tour of Britain’s most glorious classical style houses and their luscious interiors. https://hubs.ly/Q049J1mG0

It's estimated that upwards of 50% of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War were Irish immigrants. ...
04/07/2026

It's estimated that upwards of 50% of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War were Irish immigrants. Many Irish also served in the British Army. Torn between loyalty to the British Crown, economic stability, and opportunity, the Irish made a lasting impact during the war and post-war settlement in the American colonies. Join Senior Genealogist Melanie McComb to learn about the incentives offered to the Irish from both sides of the conflict, how to research their military service, pensions, bounty land, and identify their origins in Ireland. https://hubs.ly/Q041wgXv0

After emancipation, Moses McKissack used the carpentry skills he inherited from his father to start a construction compa...
04/06/2026

After emancipation, Moses McKissack used the carpentry skills he inherited from his father to start a construction company named for their enslavers, McKissack. Since then, from Reconstruction to contemporary times, the “Black McKissacks” have left their mark across the United States, particularly in such building projects as the John F. Kennedy International Airport, the Barclays Center NYC Transit subway connection, and Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field. In The Black Family Who Built America, descendant Cheryl McKissack Daniel, CEO and president of McKissack & McKissack, reveals the full, fascinating story of her family. https://hubs.ly/Q0475j_Z0

American Ancestors magazine is seeking a caption for its next cartoon! Please post your entry in the comments below. The...
04/06/2026

American Ancestors magazine is seeking a caption for its next cartoon! Please post your entry in the comments below. The winning entry will be published in our spring issue. We look forward to reading your captions!

04/06/2026

Thousands of people of color fought in the American Revolution—many in pursuit of their freedom. Yet their stories are often left out of how we tell the nation’s founding. Our new Patriots of Color exhibition brings these histories forward, highlighting 26 individuals whose service, labor, and resistance shaped the Revolution.

See it at The Family Heritage Experience at American Ancestors starting April 23.

Shown silhouettes by Kenn Crestwell and students at the Community Art Center

Learn more: https://fhe.americanancestors.org/revolution-lives-american-ancestors-spotlights-patriots-color-boston-marks-250-years-0

Is your closet bursting with boxes of old family photographs, letters, scrapbooks, and other documents from your family ...
04/05/2026

Is your closet bursting with boxes of old family photographs, letters, scrapbooks, and other documents from your family history research? In this hands-on workshop, you’ll learn the best practices for digitizing your family treasures. https://hubs.ly/Q0485FVb0

The art and architecture of the ancient classical world were reborn in the 18th century, with the emergence of the Neocl...
04/04/2026

The art and architecture of the ancient classical world were reborn in the 18th century, with the emergence of the Neoclassical style in England and France. In the first of a two-part webinar, Curt DiCamillo will take us on a grand tour of Britain’s most glorious classical style houses and their luscious interiors. https://hubs.ly/Q0485JCr0

Learning about your female ancestors and their families is dependent on knowing their maiden names. Unfortunately, all t...
04/03/2026

Learning about your female ancestors and their families is dependent on knowing their maiden names. Unfortunately, all too often we find women listed by their married names only, or that their maiden name is simply not recorded. In this online lecture, learn what records are most likely to provide this information and gain important strategies for finding that elusive maiden name. https://hubs.ly/Q0475d1q0

We're proud to see our research on Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson featured in this article in the New York Times, and to ...
04/02/2026

We're proud to see our research on Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson featured in this article in the New York Times, and to have contributed to fact-checking for the family histories of all the justices featured. This piece traces the family trees of each Supreme Court justice and highlights how immigration law has shaped generations of American families. Read more below!

As the justices prepare to hear a landmark case about birthright citizenship, their family stories are a reminder that the law has shaped who can be an American.

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Our Story

American Ancestors and New England Historic Genealogical Society 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. We provide expert family history services through our staff, original scholarship, data-rich website, educational opportunities, and research center to help family historians of all levels explore their past and understand their families’ unique place in history. We are a member-based nonprofit corporation dedicated to advancing the study of family history in America and beyond, by educating, inspiring, and connecting people through our scholarship, collections, and expertise. We offer the most comprehensive resources in the country for researching family history: An Expert Staff: Our professional genealogists are among the most respected and advanced in the profession. With research specialties including early American, New England, New York, Irish, English, Italian, Scottish, Atlantic and French Canadian, African American, Native American, Chinese, and Jewish genealogy, our expert staff can assist family historians by providing research advice in-person, over the phone, or in writing. Our expert staff can also conduct research on behalf of family historians, providing authoritative, documented research reports and family tree charts. Original Scholarship: To support the research of family historians around the world, we produce the most significant original research and important publications in genealogy, including, since 1847, the longest continually published academic journal in the field, The Register. In addition to the quarterly journal, we publish a quarterly magazine, ten to twenty books per year, and a weekly electronic newsletter. As the leader in genealogical scholarship, we also produce important study projects such as The Great Migration Study Project, covering those who arrived in New England between 1620 and 1640; The Early New England Study Project, 1641–1700; Families of Western Massachusetts in 1790, capturing families heading west at the time of the 1790 census, and the new Early Vermont Settlers to 1784 which covers families that settled Vermont, the last frontier of New England. Website: 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. Education: Designed to benefit family history researchers of all levels, we provide exclusive, in-depth learning opportunities through lectures, seminars, intensive research programs, tours to libraries and archives, online courses and webinars, and special events . Research Center: Named by USA Today as a top 10 world destination for family history, the public, members and visitors are invited to visit our eight-story library and archive where we offer the largest collection of original family history research materials in the country. Our collection, which continues to grow through acquisition and preservation activities, dates from the fourteenth century to the present and spans North America, Europe, and beyond. It includes more than 28 million diaries, letters, photographs, and other manuscripts, and more than 200,000 books and microforms.