Your Papers Are an Important Source of Research
Why Donate Materials?
American Ancestors encourages our members and friends to consider donating their genealogical materials. Donations of books and other published material (family histories, periodicals, etc.) relevant to genealogy or local history are greatly appreciated. These gifts will be added to our Research Library as new titles or replacement copies. If they are not needed in the collection, they may be sold to benefit the American Ancestors Book Preservation Fund. We also seek donations of digital files (preferably PDF or Word documents) for addition to the American Ancestors Digital Library and Archive.
Many researchers own unique manuscript items. Donations of such items to American Ancestors form the basis of our amazing manuscript collection. Many researchers may wish to plan for the eventual disposition of their family collections. American Ancestors is the perfect place to preserve and protect your family treasures, and make them available to future generations of family history researchers.
What American Ancestors Collects
- Books and other published material (family histories, periodicals, etc.) in print or electronic form
- Handwritten and typed family histories and charts
- Material with vital statistic data such as Bible records, town, church, and cemetery records
- Genealogical papers compiled by genealogical researchers and authors
- Family association collections
- Original primary source documents donated individually and in collections of family papers
For more information on donating manuscript items, books and other published materials, please contact Archivist Judy Lucey at jlucey@nehgs.org or 617-226-1223.
As we prepare to close for construction, please be sure to contact our archivist before sending any donated materials to the American Ancestors Research Center.
