Manchester City Library

What is genealogy?   It is the process of continuously tracing the line of descent from your parents, grandparents, great grandparents, great –great grandparents and so on.  How many greats or generations can you go back?  Depending on what material you reading, a generation can be somewhere between twenty and thirty years; thus for every one hundred years you can have about four generations.

Have you thought about taking a journey to discover what events in history played a part in your ancestors’ travels which resulted in being who you are today?  Do you know when and where your ancestors came to the United States or did they come before this land was the United States?

The library has two subscription databases that can help follow that legacy path backwards, like a time machine, to your earlier ancestors.  The databases are Ancestry.com (library edition) and Heritage Quest.  On October 18^th, from 2:00 – 4:00 PM, there will be a demonstration on the workings on the two databases and a general discussion on the basics of searching for your ancestors.  Watch out the search can become addictive.  You need to register with the library, to participate in this demonstration. You can register by using the events calendar on the library’s home page, www.manchester.lib.nh.us , or by calling the Information Desk at 624-6550 ext. 3320.  If you have questions about the demonstration, please contact Eileen Reddy at 624-6550 ext. 3320 (Information Desk).

Here are some of the books that the library owns which can help you understand the methods used in genealogy. You can find more on display in the library rotunda.

The Guide to Do-It-Yourself Genealogy (4^th edition) by W. Daniel Quillen

Genealogy : DNA and the Family Tree (2^nd edition) by James Mayflower

Organize Your Genealogy : Strategies and Solutions for Every Researcher by Drew Smith

Unofficial Guide to FamilySearch.org by Dana McCullough

The library’s New Hampshire Room has some resources which might be able to help with your search.  Check the schedule to see when the room is open for research or make an appointment.  Resources include family histories, NH town histories which can include genealogies, records from some Manchester churches, older Manchester NH vital records, etc.