Research Family History

This tool provides you with access to census data and records pertaining to birth, death, marriage, immigration and military service. Records are available from Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. Ancestry Library Edition is only available for use within the library. Access Ancestry Library Edition(https://www.ancestrylibrary.ca/)

Record your family tree using MyHeritage Family Tree Builder software. This software is installed on computers in the Creativity Centre. Please see the Creativity Centre page (/services/creativitycentre)for more information, including how to book a computer.

The Georgetown Branch is home to the Esquesing Historical Society's archives (https://vitacollections.ca/HaltonNews/search)and holds documents related to where your relatives may have lived or worked. You can ask to see these documents at any service desk at the Georgetown Branch.

This database is a free, family history research tool that provides online access to billions of historical records. FamilySearch is free to use from anywhere with internet access, but users must create an account to log in and search. Access Family Search(https://www.familysearch.org/) The Halton Hills Public Library is a FamilySearch Affiliate Library, offering in-library access to additional, limited-access FamilySearch databases. You must log in to your FamilySearch account from within one of our library branches to access additional records.

If your family lived in Halton Region, you can search our online databases to discover if they appeared in the local news. • Halton Hills Newspapers:(https://vitacollections.ca/HaltonHillsNews/search) Search full-text articles in the local Halton Hills newspaper archives. Publications include: Acton Free Press, Action Tanner, Georgetown Gemini, Georgetown Herald, Halton Hills This Week, Independent & Free Press, North Halton Compass. • Halton History Index:(https://vitacollections.ca/HaltonHistoryIndex/search) Search local land, surrogate court and cemetery records, Lorne Scot's enrollment and business directories, for names and subject in Halton Region. • Halton Images:(https://vitacollections.ca/HaltonImages/search) A virtual gallery of historical photographs, books, drawings, maps, videos, audio recordings, and other media from Halton Region. • Halton News:(https://vitacollections.ca/HaltonNews/search) Search for articles in the local newspaper archives of Burlington, Erin, Milton and Oakville.

• Early Canadiana Online:(https://www.canadiana.ca/) This is a virtual library with full-text historical content about Canada, including books, magazines, and government documents. The collections include Indigenous Studies, the Hudson's Bay Company, Women's History, and more. • Library and Archives Canada:(http://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/Pages/home.aspx) Access to historical census records, military history, Canadian university theses and dissertations, genealogy and family history documents, immigration records and more. Special digital exhibits are also featured. • OurOntario:(http://ourontario.ca/) A collection of over 2.2 million items and collections from libraries, archives, museums, historical societies, community groups, and government ministries, including contributions from the Halton Hills Public Library and the Esquesing Historical Society.