By Carol Darrow
Is your computer your enemy or your friend? Do you use your computer for just reading and sending emails or just playing games? I want to take this opportunity to tell you that you live in amazing times. You have the world of information at your fingertips – and that includes for genealogy research. Even if you limit yourself to free sites such as FamilySearch.org or FindAGrave.com, you can do extensive research on your family. Add to that the free Denver Public Library website (www.denverlibrary.org) where you can enter the names of the county and state where your ancestors lived to see what books about vital records and county histories are available on the 5th Floor of DPL. Then you can repeat that search of county and state names on www.worldcat.org to see what books are available through InterLibrary Loan.
Also available to you from home is MyHeritage.com through the Denver Public Library. From the catalog page you can select the “Research” tab, Databases A-Z, select “M” and go down the list to My Heritage. You will need your Denver Library card to log in. This is a new addition to the arsenal of tools available to those looking for their family history.
If you’re still “afraid” of your computer, you can check with your local Senior Citizens Center for classes in computer skills. The downtown Denver Library offers a free beginning genealogy class on the second Saturday of every month. This class will help you understand the most effective ways to search the Internet for the information you seek.
This is the best of times to research genealogy and family history. Today information that took months to retrieve from courthouses and family members is now available at the touch of a finger. Don’t be left behind.
~ Carol Cooke Darrow is a certified genealogist who teaches free Beginning Genealogy classes at Denver Public Library from 10am – noon on the second Saturday of each month.