For Queen Victoria, the personal and the political were closely intertwined, and this affected her relations with her ten prime ministers. Join Anne Somerset, author of Queen Victoria and Her Prime Ministers, as she shares a fascinating new perspective on Victoria’s reign through the bitter clashes—sometimes comic, sometimes shocking—and affectionate interactions she had with her prime ministers.

Finding information about New York ancestors can be tricky. In this online lecture, Chief Genealogist David Allen Lambert will discuss go-to repositories for research in the Empire State—including the New York State Library and Archives, the New York Public Library, and more. 

The Brim-DeForest Library at American Ancestors serves as a center for research, learning, and discovery, where history comes to life through archival collections and expert guidance. Learn more about the collections, services, and other library offerings during a brief tour.

Anyone can do family history research! In this one hour lecture, you will learn about key resources, strategies, and first steps to discovering and recording your family history. We will also demonstrate how to use important organizational tools, such as the multi-generational chart, family group sheet, and research log. And you will learn how to create a solid research plan.

Share your genealogical finds, hot tips, and research stories while gaining new avenues of research and encouragement from fellow family historians and members of American Ancestors. Senior Genealogist Melanie McComb will be on hand to answer questions and lend support during the discussion.

As the Jewish Heritage Center continues to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the groundbreaking book, The Jews of Boston, and looks ahead to the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, we are hosting the book's co-editor, historian Ellen Smith, for a webinar about Boston's earliest Jewish history.

Visit the Wyner Family Jewish Heritage Center at American Ancestors in our new space and meet our expert staff, tour the Family Heritage Experience and JHC office, have a nosh and chat!

In this online lecture, we will discuss how to ensure you are doing an exhaustive search, provide information on alternate sources, and how to draw conclusions from multiple sources when a “smoking gun” record doesn’t exist. This 60-minute lecture will include three, 10-minute intervals for audience Q&A for a total of 90 minutes.

Embroidered coats of arms were among the most prolific and enduring forms of schoolgirl needlework in eighteenth-century Boston. Not only do these objects demonstrate the skill and dedication of their makers, but as examples of genealogical material culture, heraldic needlework makes clear that young colonial women were integral to the articulation and preservation of their family history.