Utah, George Beard Photograph Collection - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States Utah

What is in the Collection?
The collection covers the years 1870 to 1944. It consists of an index to the Beard photograph collection located in the Harold B. Lee Library, Special Collections, located at Brigham Young University, in Provo, Utah. This index does not include every photograph in the collection but is limited to those containing individuals who have been identified by the photographer or by the record custodian. The entire collection, as well as a more detailed description of each photograph,can be found on the BYU Library website.

Collection Content
The records generally contain the following:


 * Contractor's name - usually refers to the family name associated with the photograph
 * Date photograph was taken
 * Description of the content of the photograph

How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search you will need to know:


 * The person’s name or the family name
 * The approximate date the photo was taken or the dates the family lived in the area

Search by Name by visiting the Collection Page: Fill in the requested information in the boxes on the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the individuals in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to look at the information on several individuals comparing the information about them to your ancestors to make this determination. Keep in mind:


 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names, or variations of their name, throughout their life.
 * If your ancestor used an alias or a nickname, be sure to check for those alternate names.
 * Even though these indexes are very accurate they may still contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings, misinterpretations, and optical character recognition errors if the information was scanned.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the wiki article FamilySearch Search Tips and Tricks.

What Do I Do Next?
Once you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given for new information. Add any new information to your records of each family. You should also look for leads to other records about your ancestors.

I Found Who I was Looking for, What Now?

 * Use the place and date the photo was taken to search for the family in census records.
 * Use the place and date the photo was taken to search for the family in church records.
 * Use the place and date the photo was taken to search for the family in land records.
 * Use the place and date the photo was taken to search for the family in probate records.
 * Use the place and date the photo was taken to search for the family in additional county and state records.

I Can't Find Who I'm Looking for, What Now?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for nicknames and abbreviated names.
 * Look for another index. Local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby counties.
 * Try alternative search methods such as only filling in the surname search box (or the given name search box) on the landing page leaving the other box empty and then click on search. This should return a list of everyone with that particular name. You could then browse the list for individuals that may be your ancestor.

Citing this Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.

Collection citation:

Record citation (or citation for the index entry):