Portal:Repository

Simply put, a Repository is the location where you went to find the source of the genealogical information used in your research. This may be a physical or virtual location that houses collections of genealogical and historical sources. Physical repositories include such places as the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS), National Archives (NARA), and LDS Family History Library. Virtual repositories include such sites as Ancestry.com, AmericanAncestors.org, FamilySearch.org, and RootsWeb.com.

WeRelate Repository Pages are typically used to identify organizations and institutions such as libraries, societies and government facilities useful for genealogical research, and are helpful because they can include contact information, physical address, hours of operation, etc. In many instances, identification of websites used as repositories can be included in the Source Page itself, so there may be only limited need to provide Repository Pages in WeRelate for virtual repositories. Many physical repositories also have an Internet site which may include source collections.

The repository help page offers answers to many frequently asked questions about repositories and Repository Pages.

WeRelate is a dynamic community and for it to be successful volunteers are needed to help out in a variety of ways. Consider some of the things you can do:

• Search for a repository
• Add a repository
• Contribute to the repository help page
• Locate and identify repositories to add to this portal
• Join the discussion on differentiating between Source Namespace and Repository Namespace
• Provide input for categorizing Repository name spaces.

WeRelate has over 2500 repositories namespaces. Here are examples of two Repository Pages.

Historical Society of Berks County (Pennsylvania)

Allen County Public Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana

• Cyndi's List of U.S. - State Level Records Repositories: State Libraries, Archives, Genealogical & Historical Societies
• Yahoo! Directory of U.S. State Libraries
• Council of State Archivists (CoSA) Directory of State and Territorial Archives and Records Programs
• Public Libraries in the United States

The following WeRelate repository pages have sufficiently helpful content and useful information added to highlight them here (listed alphabetically by state, then country).

United States

• Pasadena Public Library (California)
• Harold Washington Library Center (Chicago, Illinois)
• Newberry Library (Chicago, Illinois)
• Allen County Public Library (Fort Wayne, Indiana)
• St. Louis Public Library (Missouri)
• The Daily Record (Dunn, North Carolina)
• Harnett County Library (Lillington, North Carolina)
• Johnston County Heritage Center (Smithfield, North Carolina)
• Historical Society of Berks County (Reading, Pennsylvania)
• Plano Public Library System (Texas)
• MilitaryCity.com (Springfield, Virginia)
• The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington)

International

• House of Names (Kingston, Ontario, Canada)

Others may be identified under location research guides or by conducting a search.