The following archives, libraries, and societies have collections or services helpful for genealogical research.

• California State Archives

1020 “O” Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
Telephone: 916-653-7715
Fax: 916-653-7363

• National Archives—Pacific Region (Laguna Niguel)

24000 Avila Road
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
Telephone: 714-360-2641
Fax: 714-360-2644

• National Archives—Pacific Region (San Bruno)

1000 Commodore Drive
San Bruno, CA 94066
Telephone: 415-876-9009
Fax: 415-876-9233

• California Genealogical Society

1611 Telegraph Ave., Suite 100
Oakland, CA 94612-2154
Telephone: 510-663-1358

• California State Library

914 Capitol Mall
Sacramento, CA 95814
Telephone: 916-654-0261
Fax: 916-654-0241

A helpful guide to the California State Library is Gary E. Strong and Gary F. Kurutz, eds., Local History and Genealogical Resources of the California State Library and Its Sutro Branch (Sacramento: California State Library Foundation, 1983; FHL book 979.4 A1 No. 96).

• Society of California Pioneers

1 Hawthorne Street
San Francisco, CA 94119-1850
Telephone: 415-957-9858
Fax: 415-957-1849

Mailing address:
P.O. Box 1850
San Francisco, CA 94119-1850

inventories

Historical Records Survey

Two helpful guides to California archives and repositories are:

Coy, Owen C. Guide to the County Archives of California. Sacramento: California Printing Office, 1919. (FHL film 962744.)

Directory of Archival and Manuscript Repositories in California. Redlands, Calif.: Beacon Printery, 1975. (FHL book 979.4 J54d; film 1036038 item 3.)

Computer Networks and Bulletin Boards

Computers with modems can be useful tools for obtaining information from selected archives and libraries. In a way, computer networks themselves serve as a library. The Internet, certain computer bulletin boards, and commercial on-line services help family history researchers:

• Locate other researchers
• Post queries
• Send and receive e-mail
• Search large databases
• Search computer libraries
• Join in computer chat and lecture sessions
  

You can find computerized research tips and information about ancestors from California in a variety of sources at local, state, national, and international levels. The list of sources is growing rapidly. Most of the information is available at no cost.

Addresses on the Internet change frequently. As of April 1997, the following sites are important gateways linking you to many more network and bulletin board sites:

• USGenWeb

http://www.usgenweb.com/
A cooperative effort by many volunteers to list genealogical databases, libraries, bulletin boards, and other resources available on the Internet for each county, state, and country.

• Roots-L

http://www.rootsweb.com/roots-l/usa/
A useful list of sites and resources. Includes a large, regularly updated research coordination list.

For further details about using computer networks, bulletin boards, and news groups for family history research, see the United States Research Outline, 2nd ed., "Archives and Libraries" section.

FamilySearch™

The Family History Library and some Family History Centers have computers with FamilySearch™. FamilySearch is a collection of computer files containing several million names. FamilySearch is a good place to begin your research. Some of the records come from compiled sources; some have been automated from original sources.

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