Websites new to our list for 2024 are indicated by an asterisk (*). Sites marked with a dollar sign ($) require a subscription or other payment to fully take advantage of their content; otherwise free sites that have some sort of premium tier or paid add-on have this noted in the write-ups.
All summaries written by David Fryxell
Membership in the New England Historic Genealogical Society ($99.95 per year) has several privileges—notably access to the more than 1.4 billion records here. The NEHGS collection is of course strongest on New England, but not limited to Yankee ancestors. Highlights include the largest searchable collection of published genealogical research journals and magazines, Boston Catholic records, and the American AncesTREES feature.
From Anegada to Virgin Gorda, tour the Caribbean in this gorgeous site packed with resources, historical photos and videos, and links to cultural institutions and social media.
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Brush off your high school French (or Google Translate) and explore this stunning provincial library and archives site, which has early vital records, notarial records, and published materials.
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The Family History Research Center at this Houston library boasts one of the nation’s best genealogy collections. Online archives here include Houston death certificates, books, photos and correspondence.
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Don’t be put off by this site’s Chicago focus—families from all over the Midwest were naturalized in Cook County. The searchable database includes more than 500,000 naturalization petitions covering 1871 to 1929; most are declarations of intention, which may be the only public record of an individual immigrant.
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This classic volunteer site continues to turn ship records into transcripts—more than 30,000 manifests to date.
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Explore the nation’s immigration saga in this Harvard collection of more than 400,000 pages from 2,200 books, pamphlets and serials; 9,600 pages from manuscript and archival collections; and 7,800 photographs.
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Now boasting the 1931 Canadian census, this site makes it easy to research Canadian kin. You can search 26 collections at once or drill down into censuses and related documents (from 1640), vital records, immigration and passenger records, land transactions (from 1763), military service (from 1759) and more.
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Old photos, Sanborn insurance maps, Americana and more make this a must. Don’t overlook the exhaustive online catalog, where you can find that elusive tome about your ancestors or simply see if one even exists.
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The updated catalog and image tools make it easier than ever to explore the 1950 census, order veterans’ records, research WWII enlistments, find immigrants’ arrivals, and delve into historic maps and photos. Check out our complete guide.
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With 10.1 million birth, death and marriage records from the mid-1800s to the mid-1900s, this site (which is also on our list of the 75 Best State Genealogy Websites) is well on its way to its goal of digitizing 13.3 million records.
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Immigrants and other arrivals through the Port of New York are just a few clicks away in the 65 million records at this essential site.
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Quebec and French Canada records here go all the way back to 1621, and include all Catholic baptisms and burials as well as all Quebec marriages to 1861. Searching is free, with results accessible starting at about $15 USD for 100 hits.
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Using public-access laws, this site has “liberated” more than 60 million government records, now accessible here or via links. Successes in 2023 include a “motherlode” of Maryland vital records and 5.5 million Connecticut records.
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Discover more than 913,000 searchable marriage records from 12 Western states, with Arizona, Idaho and Nevada best represented.
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With pages for every state and most counties—more than 3,000 linked sites in all—this volunteer site remains a key destination for US research. Special projects include censuses, cemeteries, pensions and obituaries.
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Don’t miss this unique entry point into the treasures of USGenWeb’s volunteer efforts, with links to thousands of volunteer-created files. Each state has a table of contents, with counties broken out within.
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