LOCAL HISTORY/GENEALOGY
Tracing your ancestry is a popular and rewarding hobby. It can be both fun and challenging to fit the pieces of your genealogy jigsaw puzzle together! Whether you are a new or experienced researcher, the Genealogy and Local History area at Webster Public Library is designed to assist you in discovering your family history.
Located within our Local History/Genealogy area you will find:
- A dedicated computer with untimed access to the Library Edition of Ancestry.com. Search for census, voter, immigration, marriage and birth records and much more. This database is only available inside the library.
- Our collection of local history and genealogy books and reference material
- Forms to document and organize your family search information
- Family Tree Magazine
- Fliers and information about local upcoming events relating to history and genealogy
- Link to digitized Webster high school yearbooks from 1920-1988 on the computer in Genealogy and Local History area. Physical copies of the Webster high school yearbooks from 1920 – the present at the Information Desk for in-library use.
Websites of Interest
Cyndi’s List of Genealogy Sites on the Internet
A comprehensive, categorized and cross-referenced list of links that point to genealogical research sites online.
This free site has the world’s largest collection of genealogical materials. This database is available in the library and remotely.
Gale Custom Newspapers (New York State Newspapers)
Eight full-text newspapers for New York State (from Buffalo, New York City and Syracuse)
This source provides access to U.S. census records, books, periodicals, Revolutionary War service records, and Freedman’s Bank depositor records. This database is also available remotely with your library card.
More than 1,000 newspapers worldwide from 1980 to the present. Search fields by title, headline, date, newspaper section or other assigned fields.
The Local History Division of the Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County owns the region’s largest single collection of materials dealing with the history of Rochester and the Genesee Valley.
Get free online access to a wide range of newspapers chosen to reflect New York’s unique history. (Includes the Webster Herald 1938-2017)
Rochester Genealogical Society
From this site you will be able to access links to digitized church and cemetery records, neighboring genealogical societies, and local publications.
A journal that covers the history of Rochester and western New York, all articles are available online – from 1939 to the present.
Contains over 22,000 historical and contemporary images from Rochester and Monroe County.