Bellevue Washington Family History Center

This oldest Puget Sound family history center offers a unique blend of traditional (book), intermediate (microfilm) and contemporary (computer) resources. Helpful librarians serve patrons more open hours than at any other family history center in the region. We are particularly interested in helping young people learn about their ancestors and learn how to do genealogy.



Center Contacts and Hours
Location Map:


 * Location Map

Address:


 * 10675 NE 20th Street, Bellevue, Washington, United States, behind the Bellevue LDS chapel, which shares the property and provides space for monthly meetings of four Eastside Genealogical Society special interest groups.

Language:


 * English, with limited assistance in Spanish and Chinese.

Phone:


 * +1-425-454-2690

E-mail:


 * [mailto:WA_Bellevue@ldsmail.net WA_Bellevue@ldsmail.net]

Open Hours:


 * Tue-Wed-Thu: 10:00am-9:00pm
 * Fri-Sat: 10:00am-6:00pm

Training classes may be scheduled at other times, especially on midweek nights when youth groups normally meet. Please contact the center to schedule classes.

Holiday Schedule:

Closed in 2017 on Saturday, April 1 (LDS Worldwide Conference); Saturday, October 7 (LDS Worldwide Conference); Tuesday, November 21, to Saturday, November 27 (Thanksgiving); Tuesday, December 19, to Saturday, January 1 (Christmas); and whenever Bellevue Public Schools close for inclement weather.

Upcoming Events

 * Jan 2017 - United States family history month. Historic U.S. flags displayed.
 * Feb 2017 - Scandinavian family history month. Danish, Norwegian, Swedish flags displayed.
 * Mar 2017 - Irish family history month. Irish flag displayed.
 * Apr 2017 - African family history month. African nations recognized.
 * May 2017 - British family history month. United Kingdom, Scottish, Welsh flags displayed.
 * Jun 2017 - Oceanic family history month. Polynesia, Indonesia Melanesia, Micronesia, Australia, New Zealand recognized.
 * Jul 2017 - Germanic family history month. Germany, Austria, Litchenstein, Switzerland recognized.

Class Schedule

 * May 10-13 - 2017 Family History Conference, National Genealogical Society, Raleigh, North Carolina.
 * Aug 16-19 - 2017 Northwest Genealogy Conference, Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society, Arlington, Washington.
 * Highlands - One-on-one family history coaching at 8 pm on the 4th Tuesdays in Highlands Community Center on the Issaquah Plateau. Contact Steve Balkman (425.427.9820).
 * Kirkland - Two classes per month at the Kirkland Family History Center. Contact 425-242-8892 or www.kirklandfhc.org.
 * Union Hill - Family history classes at 7 pm on the 1st Wednesdays at 7115 - 224th Avenue NE (Union Hill at 224th). Contact Keith Brooks (425.868.2898).
 * Sumner - Frequent classes at the Heritage Quest Research Library at 1007 S. Main Street in Sumner. Contact 253-863-1806 or HQRL@gmail.com.
 * No classes in the center itself at this time. Contact the center to request or to schedule classes.

Staff Training Meetings

 * One-on-one training during shift times for now. Quarterly seminars can be prepared if desired.

Collection Links

 * Microfilms &amp; Microfiche:
 * Bellevue Family History Center Films Only
 * Catalog of microforms on permanent loan to the Bellevue FHC; does not include temporary films. 
 * Bellevue Family History Center Donated Films Only
 * Catalog of microforms donated to the Bellevue FHC; not in the main FamilySearch catalog.
 * FamilySearch Films at All Locations

Catalog of all FamilySearch microfilms; can be filtered by any location Books and Journals:
 * Bellevue Family History Center Books Only
 * Catalog of our books, journals and pamphlets on family history methodology, sources and technology; U.S. census, land, migration and military records; ethnic Afro-American, native American and Quaker records; U.S. states, especially New England, Pennsylvania and Washington; and foreign countries, especially Germany, the British Isles and Scandinavia.


 * Salt Lake Family History Library
 * Catalog of all FHL books; can be filtered by author, title, subject and keyword

Databases and Software

 * FHC Portal This center has access to the Family History Center Portal page, which gives free access in the center to premium family history software and websites that generally charge for subscriptions.

Guides and Handouts

 * Family Tree
 * Adding and Attaching Sources to Family Tree
 * Attaching Historical Records to Entire Families
 * Family Tree
 * Fixing a Looping Pedigree in Family Tree
 * Memories: Adding Photos, Stories, Documents and Audio
 * Merging Duplicate Records in Family Tree
 * Reserving Temple Ordinances
 * Search Tools in Family Tree
 * Searching with FamilySearch
 * Sharing Information between Ancestry and FamilySearch
 * Submitting Names for Temple Ordinances


 * Research
 * Census Headings, U.S. 1790-1930
 * Descendancy Research
 * Finding Ancestors Using the FamilySearch Research Wiki
 * FamilySearch Catalog
 * FamilySearch Genealogies and Books
 * Google
 * Great Research Sites
 * Preparation for Trek
 * Research Log - Internet Searches
 * RFSL Research Training Guide
 * Search Tools in Family Tree
 * Searching with FamilySearch
 * Tree Connect from RecordSeek
 * U.S. Census Records
 * U.S. Record Selection Table
 * Websites for England Ancestry
 * Technical
 * Creating Fan or Other Charts with TreeSeek.com
 * Creating a GEDCOM File
 * Using IrfanView
 * Register for or Recover an LDS Account
 * Using Dropbox


 * Partner Sites
 * Ancestry.com Overview
 * findmypast.com Overview
 * MyHeritage.com Overview
 * FamilySearch Indexing

Hardware and Equipment

 * 8 networked desktops and 4 networked laptop locations
 * 1 networked printer/scanner, 2 networked printers and 1 flatbed scanner
 * 1 networked microfilm reader/printer, 4 microfilm readers and 2 microfiche readers

Staff Research Specialties
All staff librarians help patrons search catalogs, locate books, load microfilms and search databases; but some are more experienced than others. Please contact the [mailto:WA_Bellevue@ldsmail.net center] to schedule foreign language or complex research assistance.

Resources in the Local Area
The Eastside Genealogical Society uses our family history center for monthly meetings of its Legacy, English-Welsh, German and Italian special interest groups. Some who lead those SIGs serve on our family history center staff and have unique expertise. We can also call in those with Chinese and Spanish language skills. The Seattle Genealogical Society cooperates with the center and has received donations of excess materials from us.

Key Links

 * Bellevue FHC Books Catalog
 * King County Library System

Volunteer at the Center
The center is looking for librarians who can help patrons search catalogs, locate books, load microfilms and search databases. Librarians work four-hour shifts each week, after becoming trained. Semimonthly or two-hour shifts can be made available, especially for youth who are learning the ropes of family history and genealogy. Please [mailto:WA_Bellevue@ldsmail.net contact us] if you are interested in volunteering.