Tucson Arizona Family History Center

The Tucson Family History Center serves the Tucson area. Established in the 1980's, it houses a large collection of family histories and genealogy books donated by the Southern Arizona Genealogical Society and Pima County Library.

Center Contacts and Hours
Location &amp; Map:


 * 500 S. Langley Ave., Tucson, AZ 85710-4834 United States
 * The free standing building is located on the north east side of the Tucson East Stake Center parking lot, south of Palo Verde Park. There is ample parking and handicap accessibility.
 * Location Map

Phone: 520-298-0905

E-mail: [mailto:az_tucson@ldsmail.net az_tucson@ldsmail.net]

Facebook: Search "Tucson Family History Center" on Facebook to join our group to receive updates and information on Center events.

Open Hours ( note 2019 holiday and vacation schedule below ):


 * Tuesday 10 am - 6 pm
 * Wednesday 10 am - 2 pm
 * Thursday 10 am - 6 pm
 * Friday 10 am - 5 pm
 * Saturday 10 am - 5 pm
 * Closed: Sunday and Monday
 * Center is available Tuesday through Thursday evenings with advance notification
 * Closed for Christmas Holiday: Sunday, December 22 through Monday, January 6

2020 Family History Fair
The 2020 Family History Fair will be held on Saturday, February 8, 2020 at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Chapel and Family History Center at 6901 E. Kenyon Drive, Tucson. The Keynote address UNDERSTANDING RESEARCH FACILITIES: GENEALOGY RESEARCH ANYWHERE by Robert M. Wilbanks begins at 8:30AM and sessions go until 4:00PM. Click here to see the class schedule. Class descriptions and handouts will be added below.

The Family History Guide: We'll review this absolute best resource for family history research, teaching, learning and activities. (Handout) Bob Black volunteers at the Tucson Family History Center and served as Director of the Center from 2104 to 2019.

Jewish Special Interest Group
A special interest group for those interested in Jewish Research meets every first Wednesday of the month from 3:00PM to 5:00PM at the Center. The group is facilitated by Moreen Ferdie. We usually meet as a group for education and sharing first and then move to the computers to do individual research. The group is open to anyone.

The Family History Guide
Go to www.thefhguide.com for a free learning, resource, and training center for family history/genealogy.

The Family History Guide Mission Statement: "Our mission is to greatly increase the number of people actively involved in family history worldwide, and to make everyone's family history journey easier, more efficient, and more enjoyable."

Here are some of the unique features you'll find on the site:


 * Over 1,200 Goals for learning, supported by over 2,300 flexible Choices
 * Step-by-step instructions to make learning easier
 * Instructions on how to access and use FamilySearch, Ancestry, Find-My-Past, and MyHeritage
 * Links to over 2,400 videos and articles from FamilySearch, Ancestry, and more
 * QUIKLinks that take you to record searches from multiple sources, with a single click
 * A Vault full of additional resources not included in the learning goals
 * Project Tracker sheets and Training materials for self-study or group instruction
 * Family history resources for families, youth, and children
 * Extensive information for Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints member interests

Brigham Young University Family History Technology Lab
The BYU family history technology lab (click here) has links to several innovative programs to research, visualize, and play games with ancestor information in your personal FamilySearch.org family tree.

Past events - Family History Fairs 2013-2019
Family History Fair 2019 - Click here for the list of courses and links to class handouts

Family History Fair 2018 - Click here for the list of courses and links to class handouts

Family History Fair 2017 - Click here for the list of courses and links to class handouts.

Family History Fair 2016 - Click here for the list of courses and links to class handouts.

Family History Fair 2015 - Click here for the list of courses and links to class handouts.

Family History Fair 2014 - Click here for the list of courses and links to class handouts.

Family History Fair 2013 - Click here for the list of courses and links to class handouts.

Collections

 * The Cox Collection: This microfilm collection contains copies of US county histories published in newspapers in the 1875-1900 period, as well as city directories for major cities of the time.
 * Tucson FHC catalog Several thousand donated books, film and fiche as well as webinars are part of our holdings.This User guide explains how to search it. Be sure to "Search" the "Catalog" in FamilySearch.org as we are transitioning our catalog of holdings to that catalog.  Many of our books are found in the FamilySearch catalog and our internal catalog, but some are only found in one of the two catalogs.
 * 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. Websites available are:
 * 19th Century British Library Newspaper Digital Archive
 * Alexander Street Press - The American Civil War: Research Database, Letters and Diaries, Images and Photographs
 * Alexander Street Press - Social and Cultural History: Women and Social Movements in the United States
 * American Ancestors (New England Historic and Genealogical Society)
 * Ancestry - Institutional Versions: US, Australia, Canada, Germany, Sweden, United Kingdom
 * ArkivDigital Online - Swedish church records
 * FamilySearch Discovery Experiences
 * FamNet
 * Find My Past (UK) - Institutional Version
 * Fold3 (military records)
 * The Genealogist - Gold-Level Subscription
 * Geneanet
 * Kinpoint - Premium
 * MyHeritage / World Vital Records (all content has been added to MyHeritage.com) - Library Edition
 * Paper Trail
 * Puzzilla - Premium Services
 * Scottish Records (DOS program version)
 * ( See "Additional Computer Resources" below for more premium subscriptions available only at the Tucson Family History Center )

Periodicals and Magazines

 * Internet Genealogy
 * NGS quarterly
 * American Ancestors (NEHGS online magazine)

Computer Software Programs and Resources
We have deluxe versions of the following genealogy management software for you to "test drive."


 * Legacy 9
 * Roots Magic 6 and 7 (software programs that interact with Family Search and My Heritage)
 * Ancestral Quest 15

Additional computer resources include:


 * Genealogy Bank (the Center has a paid subscription for patron use)
 * NEW Newspapers.com Publisher Extra edition (the Center has a paid subscription for patron use)
 * NEW Archives.com (the Center has a paid subscription for patron use)
 * Family Tree Maker disks (some--check catalog)
 * Some Pedigree Resource File disks
 * PAF 4 and PAF 5

Family Search Compatible and Verified Programs


 * Many interesting and helpful programs that tie to information in Family Search can be found at FamilySearch.org/solutionsgallery

Hardware and Equipment

 * Eleven (11) patron use computers with free access to the premium sites listed above
 * Microfilm digital copier - copy microfilm/microfiche images to flash drive
 * Scan pictures and documents directly to FamilySearch Memories
 * NEW Photo Scanning System: scan up to 85 photos per minute at 300 dpi, flatbed scanner will separate multiple photos on one page (such as photo album or scrapbook pages), and 'auto correct' can bring pictures back to life

Individual Consulting

 * Center staff are available for personal consulting with no appointment needed and at no cost

Staff Research Specialties

 * British Isles: Saturday, 10am - 2pm
 * US: Thursday, 10am - 2pm
 * Other specialty times and languages available; send your request to az_tucson@ldsmail.net

Presentations

 * Center staff are available for presentations to community and religious groups. Please send an email to the address above with your request.  There is no charge for such presentations.

Volunteer at the Center

 * Community volunteers with an interest in family history, a desire to serve others, and are willing to commit to a weekly or bi-weekly shift for at least one to two years are invited to join our staff. Training will be provided.  Contact the center through our email or phone number at the top of this page for specific opportunities that fit your schedule.