Quite a lot of my career has been spent working in libraries, so knowing and finding the right reference tool for the job has been an important aspect of my work.
As a genealogist, I’ve recognised a similar need to identify publications and websites to support my research.
In this article I recommend some websites from my virtual “reference shelf ” that I find indispensable. Try them next time you’re stuck for information; genealogists are constantly having to look things up, whether it be dates for historical context, or the meaning of obsolete words and phrases. This list isn’t exhaustive, of course, so when you’re really stuck despite trying these, don’t forget that your search engine is your friend!
Family History Reference
FamilySearch Wiki https:// www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/ Main_Page
This is a real miscellany of useful genealogical resources.
You can learn about different types of records, find out what’s available for a specific country and where, or download forms and worksheets, to name just a few of its features.
GENUKI https://www.genuki. org.uk/
The must-have in your toolkit for UK and Ireland research. It breaks the UK up into each of its constituent parts (not forgetting the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands), and each country into counties, with location and contact information
