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Jewish Genealogy Research Outline |
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Using This Outline
Jewish Search Strategies
Step 1. Identify What You Know About Your Family
Step 2. Decide What You Want To Learn
Step 3. Select A Record To Search
Step 4. Use The Internet
Step 5. Find And Search The Record
Step 6. Use The Information
Finding Jewish Records In The Family History Library Catalog
Subject Search
Locality Search Or Place Search
Keyword Search
Archives And Libraries
Yivo Institute
Leo Baeck Institute
Holocaust Memorial Museums
Other Libraries And Archives
Historical And Genealogical Societies
Inventories, Registers, Catalogs
Biography
Individual Biographies
Compiled Biographies
Jewish Biographies
Business Records And Commerce
Cemeteries
Records At The Family History Library
Funeral Home Records
Census
Census Indexes
Searching Census Records
Census Records At The Family History Library
Chronology
Church Records
Finding Church Records
Civil Registration
General Historical Background
Information Recorded In Civil Registers
Births
Marriages
Deaths
Locating Civil Registration Records
Records At The Family History Library
Obtaining Civil Registration Records Not At The Family History Library
Concentration Camps
Court Records
Directories
Divorce Records
Emigration And Immigration
Encyclopedias And Dictionaries
Gazetteers
General Gazetteers
Country-specific Gazetteers
Jewish Gazetteers
Genealogy
Major Collections And Databases
Family Histories
Genealogical Collections
Genealogical Indexes
Research Coordination
Holocaust, Jewish (1939–1945)
Inquisition
Jewish History
Local Histories
Jewish Records
An Austrian Example
Locating Jewish Records
Language And Languages
Hebrew Alphabet
Language Aids
Maps
Using Maps
Finding The Specific Place On The Map
Finding Maps And Atlases
Military Records
Austrian Military Records
Minorities
Names, Personal
Surnames
Sephardic Surnames
Ashkenazic Surnames
Given Names
Other Records
For Further Reading
Comments And Suggestions
Appendix A - Glossary
The key to finding Jewish records in the Family History Library’s collection is the Family History Library Catalog. The catalog describes each of the library’s records and provides its call number. The catalog is available on compact disc (both DOS and Windows versions) as part of the FamilySearch computer program, on microfiche, and on the Internet at:
Because there are several different versions of the catalog, including the one that is available on the Internet, there are several different ways to search. Be creative when using the catalog.
The DOS version of the Family History Library Catalog has five types of searches:
The Windows version of the Family History Library Catalog has eight types of searches:
The Family History Library Catalog on microfiche is divided into four major searches:
The Family History Library Catalog on the Internet currently has five types of searches:
One of the most effective ways to locate Jewish records in the fiche catalog is by Subject Search. Many Jewish records are found under the subject headings Jewish History and Jewish Records. Other subject headings that should be searched include: Church Records, Civil Registration, Concentration Camps, Genealogy, Holocaust, Inquisition, and Minorities. All these records have geographical tracings, which enables you to choose the record by place that is appropriate to your research.
The Windows CD version of the Family History Library also contains a Subject Search option.
Another effective way to locate Jewish records is by the Locality Search. The Locality Search or Place Search lists records according to geographical area. The records are listed by the name of government jurisdictions from the largest to the smallest reference. Different countries refer to these levels by different names; however three levels are generally used in the Family History Library Catalog:
For example, in the Locality Search look for:
•The place where an ancestor lived, such as:
The Keyword Search, found only in the Windows version of the catalog, is an easy and effective way to search for Jewish records. This powerful tool allows you to search for records using keywords.
For example, you may type in “Jews census” or “Census of Jews” to locate census records that are unique to the Jews. Circumcision records can be found using the keywords “Jewish records” or “circumcision.” The key words “Church records Jews” locate synagogue records of Jews in Quebec, Canada, that were turned in as part of civil registration.
You can also do a wildcard search using “Jew*.” This search brings up all the records in the Library that have this word (including Jewish and Jews) in the title, in catalog notes, or in a catalog reference citation.
Use several different keywords or combination of keywords in looking for specific record sources. The way they are listed or described in the catalog affects how you find them by Keyword Search.
Gray area shows the western area of the Russian Empire in which Jews were legally allowed to live. This ruling began with the first partition of Poland in 1772 and ended after World War 1.
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FINDING JEWISH RECORDS IN THE FAMILY HISTORY LIBRARY CATALOG
http://www.familysearch.org/
Click on Custom Search on the home page, then click on Family History Library Catalog.
Both the fiche and CD catalogs are available at the Family History Library, Family History Centers, and some other libraries and archives. You can also buy the Windows version at the Distribution Center (see “Introduction” for the address).
Subject Search
Locality Search or Place Search
Largest: Continents, regions, or countries
Middle: Countries divided into administration areas such as states, provinces, counties, and departments
Smallest: Each administrative area divided into local areas such as parishes, municipalities, townships, towns, and cities
An exception to this system is the United States and Canada, where the state or province is listed on the largest level, the county on the middle level, and the town or township on the smallest level.
EUROPE
(by continent)
GERMANY
(by country)
AUSTRALIA, NEW SOUTH WALES
(by country, state)
FRANCE, BAS-RHIN, ROSENWILLER
(by country, department, parish)
POLAND, GDANSK, GDANSK
(by country, county, city)
CHILE, TALCA, MOLINA
(by country, province, municipality)
JEWISH RECORDS
CEMETERIES
CIVIL REGISTRATION or VITAL RECORDS
For example:
EUROPE – EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION – INDEXES
This search by continent lists the Württemberg emigration index
GREAT BRITAIN – JEWISH RECORDS
This search by region lists the Isabel Mordy collection of Jewish pedigrees
UNITED STATES – CENSUS – 1890
This search by country lists the surviving 1890 census or population schedules
GERMANY, BADEN – CENSUS
This search by country and state lists the 1939 non-Germanic minority census for that state
ILLINOIS, COOK, CHICAGO – JEWISH RECORDS
This search by state (United States), county, and city lists synagogue and other Jewish records in Chicago
Keyword Search
[FamilySearchTM: Research Guidance
Version of Data: 6/21/2001]