The Lafayette Library has a number of ways to explore your family history! Enjoy free access with your Lafayette Library card to the library editions of Ancestry and MyHeritage. Ancestry is available to search from home through April, and then will revert to in-Library use only. MyHeritage is always accessible remotely.
Ancestry
To use our Library’s access to Ancestry, navigate to the Library’s research web page and choose Ancestry from the list of popular resources, or go directly to: https:cityoflafayette.com/ancestry.
On Ancestry’s homepage, choose the green “Begin Searching” button.
You’ll see a basic search, which you can expand for more options, a Search by Location, and a Collections/Browse the card catalog (which sorts historical records into categories, such as “Census and Voter Lists” or “Immigration and Travel”).
If you choose to search by name, there are a few helpful options to narrow your search, including:
- a place your ancestor may have lived
- your ancestor’s date of birth, marriage, or death
- the name of your ancestor’s spouse, children, or parents
For more help, check out Ancestry Anne’s Top 10 Search Tips, or navigate to the Library’s genealogy web page and find the tutorials link under Ancestry Library Edition.
MyHeritage
MyHeritage offers access via your Lafayette Library card number to comprehensive genealogy resources, with billions of historical documents, millions of historical photos and other resources in thousands of databases that span the past five centuries.
Use the Library’s link, and log in using your library card number. You may have to click on another MyHeritage link before arriving at the members’ search page.
Tip: Use the Watch Tutorial link to watch a video to help you get started, or access the comprehensive user guide.
Troubleshooting
The site may experience sporadic service disruptions. If you are unable to access it, or have issues with the search, view the tips on troubleshooting in this article.