Explore a family tree from root to branch at Swem Library at the College of William & Mary.
The library, already home to a host a resources for those interested in researching personal pasts, has signed up for a subscription to Ancestry.com. The online tool will provide access to historical documents and photos, local narratives, oral histories, indexes and other resources that span from the 1500s to the 2000s.
Don Welsh, head of research for the library, said the subscription is an asset on top of the hundreds of databases frequently used by students, from undergraduates to advanced Ph.D. pursuants in history or American Studies. He sees the new resource as a way to expand offerings to them, as well as the community members who use the library for professional research or to discover their own family histories.
“We do get people who are local as well, and some that have been working on their genealogy a while – we get to know them because they’re in here so much,” Welsh said. “I think people who kind of get bitten by the genealogy bug definitely make use of our collection.”
Ancestry.com and other resources are now available to students, faculty and staff on campus and remotely, and to any community member at the library. While borrowing privileges come with a charge, there is no fee to use the resources in the library, or a new book scanner that entered the library last year and scans to an email address.
With a flashing light, overhead scanning tool and foot pedal to turn book pages, Welsh said it looks like something from another planet, but is easy to operate.
Swem’s modern technology is juxtaposed with its historical resources, which include the Jefferson papers — copies of the writings of Thomas Jefferson concerning the college and Williamsburg — as well as an early 20th-century genealogy notebook compiled by Jefferson’s grandnephew Wilson Miles Cary.
Welsh notices frequent out-of-town guests seeking knowledge at the library – he spots their Colonial Williamsburg visitor badges when they come through the door. More than 400 professional and amateur genealogists come to Swem every year, poring over county records and passenger lists, and a strong collection in local and family history in southern Virginia in the 19th century.
For a school of William & Mary’s size, Welsh said the number of databases at a visitor’s disposal is vast. He lost count after the list topped 300.
His favorite is the Virginia Historical Index, a database of Virginia journals and published records catalogued by the library namesake Earl Gregg Swem. With a focus is between 1890 and 1920, Welsh said students and genealogists will frequently pull out the journals to look up their ancestors.
“Even though it was published some time ago, it is used all the time,” he said.
The journals in the Swem index shared the local records citizens would have needed to journey to a courthouse to track down. Writers visited the county ledger and reported the births and deaths to be disseminated.
“Before the Internet, it was the way you found genealogy information,” Welsh said. “It’s just a wonderful resource.”
He welcomes members of the community to come experience all of the library’s resources firsthand, especially during the quieter summer months.
With ecofriendly initiatives and no public printing, Welsh encouraged guests to bring a flash drive or plan to email themselves documents, databases or nuggets of family knowledge they might unearth.
Swem’s summer hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, with the library closed on weekends and July 4.
For more information, visit the library website or call 221-4636.
