By Sheila Benedict
Contributing Writer
Happy 2019, everyone, and my best wishes for wonderful genealogical finds in the coming months.
This month I would like to mention a special place to do research, the Family History Library (FHL) in Salt Lake City, Utah. As I was the archivist at Mission Santa Inés for many years, I fully understand the importance of old records and can recommend using those that the FHL has in their collection, which included resources from U.S. and worldwide census schedules, all types of religious records, family histories, vital record copies, legal record copies, and so much more.
There are three large research centers in California — San Diego, Los Angeles, and Sacramento — and smaller ones statewide as part of their vast library system. Their collection covers perhaps hundreds of thousands of filmed and digitized records worldwide, and my personal opinion is that not using the collection can leave a void in a research plan.
In past columns, I mentioned how important it is to go where your ancestors were and, in addition, making the trip to the main library at least once a year is included in my plans. The main floor is the Discovery Center. The two floors below ground are B1, an international floor that has everything except the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and the British collections in South Africa and India. Those are on the B2 floor. The second and third floors are for the U.S./Canada microfilm and book collection.
When entering the ground floor, there is a list posted near the elevators that tells what is located on each floor. In addition, there are people working there who can assist the researcher and some able to translate documents. There is no charge to go but of course, if you make copies, there is a small charge for that. The collection is something and some place that, if you are doing your family history, you should visit. If that is not possible, take advantage of the alternatives: local family history centers, and online at FamilySearch.org, which is a free site where you sign up with a user name and password.
For us locally, there are centers in Santa Maria, Santa Barbara, Ventura, San Luis Obispo and, yes, in Solvang. However, the Solvang center has very limited hours and one needs to check their website for what is available there. The other centers also have limited hours but most are usually open at least twice a week. The people working at the centers are friendly and very willing to assist you. For information: www.familysearch.org/locations.
Do not forget local libraries, historical societies and genealogical societies. There are a variety of all of them in Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, Buellton and Solvang. They are not genealogy libraries, but in many cases there are books and resources for genealogists to use, especially if you need to review histories of places in your ancestral background.
Good luck!
Local resident Sheila Benedict is a professional genealogist.
