Unearth a Story: Digging Up History with Digitization and Genealogy Resources at the Library

This summer we’re unearthing stories and exploring the past, both prehistoric and a bit more recent. For those interested in digging up their own history, the library offers several resources to discover and preserve your past. So, if the mementos in your attic are collecting dust, or you’re still searching for the missing piece in your family puzzle, read on to learn about some of the equipment and databases available to you with a library card.

Digitization Resources:

Want to share old VHS footage at your next family reunion or restore those damaged photographs of your great grandma? Head to a Digital Media Lab near you to digitize photos, slides, film (35mm and medium format), and personal VHS tapes and preserve your history for the next generation. Each Digital Media Lab offers a high-resolution scanner, with inserts available for film and slides, and a VHS to digital file conversion station. Both are available on a first-come, first-served basis during Open Lab Hours and come equipped with step-by-step instructional guides for reference. Our upcoming digitization classes are another great way to familiarize yourself with equipment. In addition to our scanners and converters, patrons can also take advantage of Digital Media Lab software, like Adobe Premiere and Photoshop, to edit video footage and restore photographs with rips, stains, and dust marks. And if you’re new to Adobe editing software, we have beginner classes on those too!

Please contact staff at your nearest Digital Media Lab location—available at all Area Libraries—if you have specific questions about your project or the materials you’d like to digitize.

Research Databases:

Whether you’re digging deeper into the story behind those photos or starting your family tree from scratch, an HCPL card gives you access to databases that can help you unearth historical records. Search Census documents, city directories, immigration records, and more through Heritage Quest, and browse a selection of materials from Ancestry.com without a paid subscription through Ancestry for Virginians.

We also recommend checking out the many genealogical resources available through the Library of Virginia, Library of Congress, and National Archives.

COLLECTION

Plus, our collection also offers some tips and insights about researching your past and piecing together your family’s history:

• A Dictionary of Family History: The Genealogists’ ABC by Jonathan Scott (also available on Hoopla)
• Black Archives: A Photographic Celebration of Black Life by Renata Cherlise
• Early Virginia Families Along the James River: Their Deep Roots and Tangled Branches by Louise Pledge Heath Foley
• The Essential Questions: Interview Your Family to Uncover Stories and Bridge Generations by Elizabeth Lillian Keating (also available on Hoopla)
• Film: The Living Record of Our Memory by Inés Toharia (also available on Hoopla)
• Finding Your Family Tree: A Beginner’s Guide to Researching Your Genealogy by Sharon Leslie Morgan
• Finding Your Roots series (DVD) by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. (also available on Hoopla)
• How to Archive Family Photos: A Step-by-Step Guide to Organize and Share Your Photos Digitally by Denise S. May-Levenick
• Magazine of Virginia Genealogy by the Virginia Genealogical Society
• Photo Restoration: From Snapshots to Great Shots by Robert Correll
• The Story of Stories: The Million-Year History of a Uniquely Human Art by Kevin Ashton
• Virginia Magazine of History and Biography by Philip Alexander Bruce