Aurora Colorado Family History Center

Center Contacts and Hours
Location Map: 


 * Location Map

Address:


 * 950 Laredo St., Aurora CO 80011 United States


 * Language:English

Phone:


 * 1-303-367-0570

E-mail:


 * CO_Aurora@ldsmail.net

FHC Director: Vickie Smejkal; Asst Director: Jo Ellyn Kunz

Open Hours:


 * Monday: 9:30 am - 3:00 pm
 * Wednesday: 9:30 am - 1:30 pm and
 * Wednesday: 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
 * Saturday: 9:00 am - 1:00 pm

We strive to staff our center, however, it is best to call ahead, especially during the winter season. We will post closures as soon as possible on this site, Face Book, and on the center's phone line 1-303-367-0570

Illness and/or weather related closures:

None at this time

Special Event Closure:  We will be closed for General Conference on the 31th of March 2018  and again on the 6th of October 2018.

Closures for the year 2018: 

May 3, 19 & 28;   July 4;   September 3 & 24;   October 6;   November 10 & 21-24;   December 19 - 31;   January 1, 2019

Presentation Schedule for 2018 -- FREE
Presentations are at 7 p.m. every 1st Thursday and repeated 2nd Sunday of the month, unless otherwise noted.

April 5 & 8, 2018, presented by Vickie Smejkal -- Censuses -- Those wacky, unusual, and possibly unheard of types; we're not talking your typical garden variety State or Federal. How about some of those whacky ones we may have never heard of, or perchance did, but don't know where to find them or understand how they work. We will cover 26 varieties of these sometimes unheard of censuses that may be just the ticket for breaking down yet another wall.

May 3 & 20, presented by Anne Ottlinger -- Indexing – Indexing can be entertaining and fun! Learn how you can contribute to making records available on FamilySearch. Index at your own pace, for as long or as little as   you like.

June 7 & 10, 2018, presented Geri Barrus -- Ancestral Quest – Ancestral Quest is a computer program for you to store your Family History; to keep your notes; and, it will search 24 hrs a day through four other genealogical sites for record hints that you would otherwise spend your waking days doing.

July 5 & 8, 2018, presented by Roy Thomas -- Merging – It’s not as scary as it seems. Learn how to merge duplicate family files in FamilySearch. Roy Thomas uses a ‘time line’ as a tool, a tool that can guide you through the process – it is Wonderful!

August 2, 2018 only, presented by -- by Leanna Geist -- FamilySearch Catalog – learn what this feature can do for you as Leanna covers the features of this sometimes overlooked tool.

September 6 & 9, 2018, presented by presented by Vickie Smejkal -- FamilySearch: Memories/Photo Gallery – Come learn how to add photos, documents, and stories to your family tree. It’s as easy as 1,2,3! What a way to share information about your ancestors.

October 5 & 8, 2018, presented by Shauna Mariska -- How to Write an Interesting and Effective Life History – We all have a story to tell. What’s yours?

If you would like to be notified of a scheduled presentation and/or class, please see our Facebook page and click on 'subscribe'. Aurora Family History Center

COMING SOON: Family Discovery Day, 27 April 2018, 9 am to 1 pm -- we hope to once again host classes, have display tables, and provide assistance with your family research. 

Stakes and Wards Temple and Family History Consultant Meetings for 2018
Held every 1st Sunday of the month at 7 p.m., as follows:

February 4;  March 4;   No April;   May 6;   June 3;   July 1;   August 5;   September 2;   No October;   No November;   No December;   January 6, 2019

These meetings are designed for all those responsible for Family History (Temple and Fam Hist Consultants, Elders Group Leaders & Fam Hist Ctr Staff).

It is our hope to keep you up-to-date with the latest changes and to offer bits and pieces of information that will benefit you and those you assist in your callings.

Collections

 * FamilySearch Catalog: This center will assist patrons to locate the films and fiche available through the FamilySearch Catalog.
 * The Aurora Family History Center has a collection of microfilms and microfiche on indefinite loan from the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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. Our Premium Family History Websites portal provides patrons access to the following:

·      19th Century British Library Newspaper Digital Archive – Site provides News Articles, Obits, marriage records, death records, military records, etc. by topic, name, and more.

·       Access Newspaper Archive – Site provides largest online collection of obits, marriage records, death records, news articles, etc. Searching by ‘keyword’ not so good. Searching by name is great. Can browse by        state, maps, newspaper, location, and     so on.

·       Alexander Street Press - The Civil War – (The following are links within this site): Research Database / Letters and Diaries / Images, Photographs, Posters, and Ephemera / Social and Cultural History (Letters and Diaries Online) / Women and Social Moments in the United States, 1600-2000.

·       Ancestry.Com – If you are an LDS member, you have free access to this site from home. This site provides lots of records, state and federal censuses, news articles, military records, travel records, marriage records, books, and much more. Much like FamilySearch.org, it too offers hints, memories and photos. ·       Find My Past – As an LDS member, you have free access to this site from home. This site has British newspapers mostly for the U.K. area. Lots of English, Ireland, New Zealand records, passenger lists, etc. British Army Records; Records back to the year 1200. Site is expanding its US and Canada Records.
 * Geneanet – “Geneanet offers    every kind of genealogy record published by researchers, genealogy societies,     commercial companies, etc.”

·       Fold 3 – This site now owned by Ancestry.com. This site has Military records; Crews Registers (Ship Registers); and Civil War Pension records.

·       Paper Trail – This site lists classes; historical information (stories, data, etc.). Mostly information of the Oregon Trail – Info on things such as: How many people, by ox cart or Calistoga, diseases along the way, etc. More of an informational site than a genealogical site.

·       Kinpoint – Per the site: “Family History, Simplified.”. “Do family history in just a few minutes. Quickly see what to work on and get help finding new information.”. “Less searching, More Finding – with Premium, our kinpoint guide shows problems in your family tree and finds records for missing information.”. “Love To Grow Things? – So did your ancestors. Discover your ancestors occupation with the Explore Summary.”. “Love Mountains? – Maybe it’s in your blood. See where your ancestors came from with the Explore Summary.”. “Go Back in Time – See photos, stories and the events from a person's life with Memories and Timelines.” Kinpoint also “makes it easy to see ordinances that are ready or need more information to complete.”

·       MyHeritage – As an LDS member, you have free access to this site from home. A Family History Research site, easy to use – enter name of person for whom you are searching, location, and even 'keyword' if you like. I hear MyHeritage is the European equivalent of Ancestry.com. MyHeritage will even send you e-mails of 'matches' it may have found.

·       ProQuest Obituary Listings – Per the site: “The Proquest Obituaries collection is a premier resource for genealogical and historical research.”. “You can use the collection to search obituaries and death notices from prominent newspapers, such as The New York Times (dating back to 1851). The collection includes both famous and lesser-known individuals and can be searched by name or by keywords appearing in the body of the article.”. I noticed in the side bar of ProQuest the following newspapers listed: Atlanta Constitution (1868-1922); Boston Globe (1872-1922); Chicago Defender (1921-1975); Chicago Tribune (1852-1984); Los Angeles Times (1851-1994); and Washington Post (1877-1950). I also noticed (I did a test search) that even though an ancestor may have died in one state, such as New Jersey, a listing for them could show up in another state's newspaper, such as New York.

·       Puzzilla.Org –  Wow, has this site changed. The youth may get a kick out of this one. This site offers both “Free and Premium Service” subscription. The site does have a tutorial, which lasts about 15 minutes. I highly advise taking the tutorial. Puzzilla lets you see your line and cousin lines too. The colors found at the tips of the lines indicate if there is a possible duplicate; if a person died before reaching age 16; if a hint exists; and much more. Note: If you use this site from the Family History Center, you will have full use of ALL the color codes, otherwise from home, you will be very limited in the colors; mostly the blue, red, and yellow. (Male, female, died before age 16). To use the free version from home, you'll need to use your FamilySearch Account password.
 * Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints aged 13 and over can join five subscription websites for free: Ancestry.com, Find My Past, My Heritage, Geneanet, & American Ancestors.  Follow this link and sign in with your FamilySearch/LDS Account for access to these excellent resources!   Partners  Be sure to open "Partners" and select one or all of the five sites listed.

Hardware and Equipment

 * There are personal computers, printer, microfilm and microfiche readers available in this Center for patron use on a first come, first served basis.
 * Wireless connections are available for personal laptops and tablets.

Staff Research Specialties
(Include sections for any other services your center provides. Add additional sections for those services. See the Bountiful and Chattanooga FHC pages for examples.)

Resources in the Local Area
Denver Public Library, 10 West Fourteenth Ave. Pkwy, Denver, Colorado 80204 -- Western History &amp; Genealogy Dept located on the 5th floor.

National Archives Records Administration, 17101 Huron Street, Broomfield, CO 80023

Links
Black Genealogy Search Group Denver

Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library

Denver Public Library

Denver Public Library, Genealogy tools A-Z

Rocky Mountain Regional NARA, 17101 Huron Street, Broomfield, CO 80023

National Archives Records Administration (NARA)

NARA Resources for Genealogists

Colorado Genealogical Society

Foothills Genealogical Society

African American Genealogy

The Freedman's Bureau Project -- Be sure to scroll down to see the whole page

German Research

Germany Genealogy

Native American Research

Mexico Genealogy

Wales, Ireland, Scotland, England (W.I.S.E.)

Volunteer at the Center
''Yes, we are in need of 4-6 volunteers to assist at the Family History Center. If you are familiar with doing family history and/or genealogical research, we would love to have you join us. Not familiar with the FamilySearch Program, not to worry -- we will be happy to introduce you. Who knows, perhaps in the process you will see your own family tree grow.''