GenWeb Projects and WebRings

by Barbara Renick

Barb@ZRoots.com

GenWeb Projects

Goals

help researchers learn more about doing genealogical research in that area

“dedicated to the free use and access of public domain genealogical information”

create “local repositories of information that researchers world-wide can access”

this does not mean direct answers to questions about your personal research

History

USGenWeb Project began in June 1996

WorldGenWeb Project began in October 1996 (currently 400 Web sites)

Organization

non-commercial, non-profit, volunteer organizations

not the same as genwebs (which are searchable collections of GEDCOM files)

more structured than WebRings

more required elements for project Web sites than WebRings

more prohibited elements for project Web sites than WebRings

volunteers are researchers who either live in, or are familiar with, genealogical research in that area

volunteer coordinators decide content beyond the required and prohibited elements

content varies greatly from county to county and state to state

Levels

World GenWeb Project http://www.worldgenweb.org/

Ų eleven regions

§ currently, most large countries have GenWeb Project sites

· divided by geopolitical subdivisions (such as powiats in Poland)

USGenWeb Project http://www.usgenweb.org/

Ų State GenWeb Project Sites

§ County GenWeb Project Sites

Navigation

by maps

by tables

by text lists (fastest method)

by hyperlinks

Typical Content

(These items are not necessarily included on each Web site.)

links to or addresses of county/state/country public records offices

record availability and lists of published resources

links to maps and geographic resources

information about the history and culture of that county/state/country

library addresses and/or links

archives addresses and/or links

address of local Family History Center

information about pertinent historical and genealogical societies

information about e-mail mail list discussion groups

query pages (for posting and searching)

messages boards

surname registries

family reunion lists

cemetery locations

free, limited look-ups

migration databases

Queries posted at most county project sites are automatically indexed
into the Surname Helper, part of GenConnect at RootsWeb.
Surname Helper ( http://surhelp.rootsweb.com/srchall.html )
includes a search engine that allows researchers to search for a surname by country.

If you need help, the USGenWeb’s “Help for Researchers” Web page is located
at http://www.usgenweb.org/researchers/researchers.html

USGenWeb Project Archives:

National USGenWeb Archives search engine

State USGenWeb Archives search engine

includes actual transcriptions of public domain records

types of records transcribed

Ų census records

Ų marriages bonds/licenses

Ų wills and probate records

Ų tombstone inscriptions

includes the USGenWeb Archives Census Project and online census images

USGenWeb Tombstone Project¾This project encourages anyone to transcribe tombstones in cemeteries and donate copies of their cemetery surveys to this project. All it takes is a word processor file.

USGenWeb Digital Map Library¾This project’s goal “is to make available to genealogists useful, readable, high quality maps.” These include historical maps as well as custom maps designed from the results of genealogical and historical research. As with all USGenWeb projects, these maps are freely accessible online.

USGenWeb Archives Pension Project¾This project endeavors “to provide actual transcriptions of pension related materials for all wars prior to 1900.”

USGenWeb Special Collections Project¾This project is for those materials that do not fit into the standard state/county archives division; in other words, they cover multiple states and counties.

USGenWeb Kidz Project¾This project’s goal is to interest young people in genealogy.

USGenWeb Lineage Project¾This project lists researchers interested in the descendants of one ancestor who lived in the U.S. and was born before 31 Dec 1850.

USGenWeb Genealogical Events Project¾This is a calendar of genealogical events.

World GenWeb Project¾This project is currently seeking volunteers to translate World GenWeb Web pages into many languages.

WebRings

Definition

A WebRing is a group of Web sites that share a theme or topic. They use a small navigation utility program to add a navigation box to each member site. This links the WebRing sites together so that you can surf from site to site around the ring.

History

A high school student designed the first WebRing on the Internet in May 1995. Today there are tens of thousands of WebRings with millions of member sites. This is an interesting way to bring searchers to your genealogy Web site.

Organization

Anyone can start a WebRing. There are fewer requirements and prohibitions for member sites of WebRings than there are for GenWeb Project sites. Two Web sites that have directories of WebRings and help you create new ones are Yahoo!WebRing and RingSurf.

RingSurf ( http://www.ringsurf.com/ )

Yahoo!WebRing ( http://dir.webring.yahoo.com/rw )