American Ancestors

American Ancestors is the public-facing name and principal digital brand of the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS), a nonprofit genealogical and historical organization founded in Boston in 1845. The society is widely described as the oldest and largest genealogical society in the United States. Its work combines archival preservation, scholarly publishing, public education, research assistance, and digital access to historical records. The organization serves people investigating family history as well as professional genealogists, historians, local historians, and researchers studying the social history of New England and North America. Its staff and research center provide guidance on source evaluation, lineage reconstruction, migration, vital records, cemetery research, probate records, military records, and related subjects. The institution also offers lectures, seminars, online courses, research tours, and other educational programs, sometimes led by staff genealogists and sometimes by invited specialists. Its Boston headquarters at 99–101 Newbury Street in the Back Bay contains the Brim-DeForest Library and associated research collections. The library holds substantial printed, manuscript, microfilm, art, and decorative-arts materials relevant to genealogy and history. Reported holdings include approximately 200,000 bound volumes, more than 5,000 linear feet of original manuscripts, and about 100,000 rolls of microfilm. The collections emphasize the United States, particularly New England, while also covering the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, and other regions connected to North American migration. Notable holdings include the Gore Roll, described as the earliest known American armorial, and a broad range of family papers, institutional records, genealogical manuscripts, and visual materials. American Ancestors.org extends these resources online. The website provides a searchable catalog, articles, online exhibits, educational materials, and a large collection of digitized databases. The referenced material describes nearly 3,000 searchable databases containing information on more than 113 million people, including Massachusetts vital records, cemetery transcriptions, wills, migration resources, historical periodicals, and the Social Security Death Index. The site also supports the Great Migration Study Project and provides access to material connected with the society’s publications and research programs. Publishing is another central activity. NEHGS publishes scholarly books, source compilations, genealogical guides, compiled genealogies, and family histories. Its Newbury Street Press imprint specializes in privately sponsored family histories. The society’s flagship periodical, The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, has been published quarterly since 1847 and is one of the oldest continuing scholarly genealogical journals. The publication focuses heavily on New England families, source records, immigrant origins, and multigenerational studies. An annual American Ancestors Journal supplement was introduced in 2009. The society also sponsors or supports long-running scholarly initiatives. The Great Migration Study Project, directed by Robert Charles Anderson, documents European immigrants to colonial New England during the principal migration period from 1620 to 1640. The project has produced biographical sketches and published volumes covering thousands of immigrants. In addition, the Committee on Heraldry, established within the society in 1864, is described as the world’s oldest nongovernmental body primarily concerned with heraldry. American Ancestors remains an active membership, research, publishing, and educational institution. Its identity has evolved from a Boston-based learned society and library into a hybrid organization that combines physical collections and expert services with a large online research platform. It is not a publicly traded company and has no publicly reported stock ticker.

The New England Historic Genealogical Society was founded in Boston in 1845 during a period when historical and antiquarian organizations were being created to preserve records of the early United States. From its beginning, the society focused on genealogy as a field requiring documented sources, careful analysis, and preservation of original evidence. Its work developed around a research library, manuscript collections, publications, and assistance for members and the broader public. The organization occupied several Boston locations during its early history, including premises at Court Square, Massachusetts Block, Tremont Street, Bromfield Street, Somerset Street, and Ashburton Place. In 1964 it moved to 99–101 Newbury Street in Boston’s Back Bay. The first three floors of the building had been constructed in 1928 for the New England Trust Company, and the society later added five floors when adapting the property for its headquarters. The Newbury Street location became the institution’s principal research center and remains associated with the American Ancestors brand. The society’s library and archives expanded into a major repository for family-history research. The Brim-DeForest Library contains printed genealogies, local histories, vital-record materials, manuscripts, microfilm, and resources concerning the United States, the British Isles, Ireland, and Canada. The collections also include cultural and artistic materials connected with American history. Among the holdings identified in reference material are the Gore Roll, an early American armorial, and a photograph of Helen Keller with Anne Sullivan taken in 1888. The Keller photograph was later transferred to the Brewster Historical Society. Publishing has been central to NEHGS since the nineteenth century. The New England Historical and Genealogical Register began in 1847 and became a major scholarly venue for source transcriptions, compiled genealogies, immigrant-origin studies, and multigenerational treatments of New England families. The society also publishes books and research guides, including family histories and source-based works. Its Newbury Street Press imprint developed a particular role in producing privately sponsored family histories. In 2009 the society introduced American Ancestors Journal as an annual supplement to the Register. The society’s educational mission grew through lectures, seminars, online classes, research tours, and longer residential programs. Its programming has addressed both introductory and advanced topics, including Internet research, organization of evidence, preparation of lineage-society applications, and specialized regional research. For decades, the organization has offered research opportunities in locations such as Salt Lake City, Ireland, Scotland, England, Quebec, Washington, D.C., and New England. A major scholarly undertaking is the Great Migration Study Project, which began in 1988 and examines European immigrants to colonial New England during the period from 1620 to 1640. Directed by Robert Charles Anderson and carried out in cooperation with the society, the project aims to create concise, evidence-based biographies of the immigrants, numbering more than 5,500 principal subjects before accounting for dependent family members. More than a dozen volumes had been published in the supplied reference material, covering over two thousand subjects. Digital publishing and database access became increasingly important from the 1990s onward. The society launched its first website in 1996, expanded it under the New England Ancestors identity in 1999, and redesigned it in 2001 to provide richer data, articles, and member forums. The current American Ancestors.org platform combines online databases, a research catalog, educational resources, articles, and digital exhibits. The referenced material describes nearly 3,000 searchable databases with records relating to more than 113 million people. Today, American Ancestors presents NEHGS as a hybrid research institution: it retains a physical library, archives, expert staff, scholarly publications, and educational programs while serving a large online audience. Its principal strengths remain New England genealogy, historical-record preservation, professional research support, and the interpretation of documentary evidence for family and social history.

• 2009

  American Ancestors Journal is introduced

  [1]New England Historic Genealogical Societyen.wikipedia.org

  The society adds an annual supplement to its flagship genealogical journal.

• 2001

  Website is redesigned around richer research content

  [1]New England Historic Genealogical Societyen.wikipedia.org

  A redesign adds data-rich material, articles, and member forums to the society’s online service.

• 1999

  New England Ancestors web identity is introduced

  [1]New England Historic Genealogical Societyen.wikipedia.org

  The society expands its online content and changes its web address while introducing a magazine of the same general brand family.

• 1996

  First NEHGS website launches

  [1]New England Historic Genealogical Societyen.wikipedia.org

  The organization establishes an early online presence with information about its services and programs.

• 1988

  Great Migration Study Project begins

  [1]New England Historic Genealogical Societyen.wikipedia.org

  The society begins a major scholarly project documenting European immigrants to colonial New England between 1620 and 1640.

• 1964

  The society moves to Newbury Street

  [1]New England Historic Genealogical Societyen.wikipedia.org

  NEHGS relocates to its current Boston Back Bay headquarters at 99–101 Newbury Street.

• 1864

  Committee on Heraldry is established

  [1]New England Historic Genealogical Societyen.wikipedia.org

  NEHGS creates a committee devoted primarily to heraldry; the organization describes it as the world’s oldest nongovernmental body of its kind.

• 1847

  The New England Historical and Genealogical Register begins

  [1]New England Historic Genealogical Societyen.wikipedia.org

  The society launches its quarterly scholarly journal, which becomes a long-running publication devoted to genealogies and historical sources.

• 1845

  New England Historic Genealogical Society is founded

  [1]New England Historic Genealogical Societyen.wikipedia.org

  The genealogical society is established in Boston and begins building an institutional base for family-history research and historical preservation.

An authoritative, nonprofit center for family-history research, New England historical records, genealogical scholarship, archival preservation, and public education.

• Digital genealogy platform · 1996

  AmericanAncestors.org

  The organization’s principal online research platform provides a catalog, searchable historical databases, genealogical articles, educational material, online exhibits, and member-oriented tools. Referenced databases include Massachusetts vital records, cemetery transcriptions, wills, migration studies, historical periodicals, and the Social Security Death Index. The platform extends the society’s physical-library mission to researchers who cannot visit Boston.

• Research library and archive

  Brim-DeForest Library

  The Brim-DeForest Library is the society’s principal physical research collection. It contains approximately 200,000 bound volumes, more than 5,000 linear feet of original manuscripts, and roughly 100,000 rolls of microfilm according to the supplied reference material. Its scope includes American, New England, British, Irish, and Canadian genealogy, together with selected art and decorative-arts materials.

• Scholarly periodical · 1847

  The New England Historical and Genealogical Register

  Published quarterly since 1847, the Register is the society’s flagship scholarly journal and one of the oldest continuing periodicals in genealogy. It publishes compiled genealogies, source material, immigrant-origin studies, and articles addressing the histories of New England families and communities.

• Genealogical scholarship project · 1988

  Great Migration Study Project

  This ongoing research project documents European immigrants to colonial New England during 1620–1640. Directed by Robert Charles Anderson, it produces evidence-based biographical sketches and published volumes intended to clarify origins, migration, family relationships, and colonial settlement patterns.

• Genealogical publishing imprint

  Newbury Street Press

  Newbury Street Press publishes family histories and other genealogical works, with a particular emphasis on privately sponsored family histories. The imprint forms part of the society’s broader publishing program alongside scholarly journals, source compilations, and research guides.

• Professional and educational services

  Genealogical education and research services

  American Ancestors offers research assistance, lectures, seminars, online classes, research tours, and longer educational programs. Topics range from introductory family-history methods to specialized work with archives, lineage applications, regional records, and complex genealogical problems.

• 2001

  Redesign the website around searchable and community-oriented contentStrategy

  Background

  The society’s digital service was developing beyond static pages and required a structure capable of supporting research data, articles, and member interaction.

  Action taken

  NEHGS redesigned the website to include richer data content, new articles, and member forums.

  Aftermath

  The redesign supported the organization’s longer-term transition toward a substantial digital genealogy platform.

  Source

• 1999

  Expand from an institutional website into an online genealogy publicationStrategy

  Background

  After establishing a basic website, the society sought to provide more substantive genealogical content for members and the public.

  Action taken

  The organization introduced the New England Ancestors magazine and changed its web address while adding genealogical articles.

  Aftermath

  The move positioned the website as an ongoing content and research service rather than only an informational brochure.

  Source

• 1996

  Launch an online presenceProduct launch

  Background

  The society was historically centered on its Boston library, archives, publications, and in-person services. The growth of the Internet created an opportunity to make its programs and research resources available beyond the physical headquarters.

  Action taken

  NEHGS launched its first website with information about its services and programs.

  Aftermath

  The initial site developed into broader online publishing and database services, later taking on the American Ancestors identity.

  Source

1. 1New England Historic Genealogical Societyen.wikipedia.org
2. 2American Ancestors official websiteamericanancestors.org