The Ancestor Hunt regularly adds and updates new collection links, as well as searches for and fixes broken links.
(This page's most recent update is October 2024)
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The Ancestor Hunt has been cataloging and listing links to free online genealogy collections in over 24 different record categories since 2014. These are available for you to view and use via the Resources tab above.
There is a massive amount of genealogy and historical material that can help us researchers as we discover who belongs in our family tree, and more importantly, what is their life story. But much of this genealogical and historical material doesn’t fit nicely into a specific genealogy record category.
As researchers, we should avail ourselves of the types of materials listed below. They definitely will help us in our genealogy and family history research These online resources are available generally at state libraries and archives, larger public libraries, and college and university digital collections. Hence the creation of these lists of links to free online digital archives for the state. I hope they prove useful to you in your pursuit.
- Scrapbooks
- Diaries
- Family Papers, Biographies, and Other Collections
- Letters
- Oral Histories
- Maps
- Bulletins and Newsletters
- Corporate Collections
- Local Community and County Histories
- Photographs and Postcards
- Rare Books and Manuscripts
- Government Publications and Documents
- And yes, Genealogy Record Collections and Indexes
The Free Online Digital Archives for the state are listed below:
Minnesota Archives
- Access Genealogy – Minnesota
- Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center
- American History & Genealogy Project – Minnesota
- Ancestry Free Index Collections
- Augsburg College Digital Collections
- Bethel University Digital Collections
- Carleton College Digital Collections
- Central Minnesota Historical Center
- Chronicling America – Minnesota
- Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Database
- Concordia University-St Paul Digital Collections
- Cyndi’s List – Minnesota
- Dakota County Historical Society
- David Rumsey’s Historical Maps
- Dead Fred
- Death Indexes – Minnesota
- Digital Commons Collections
- Digital Public Library of America – Minnesota
- Duluth Public Library
- FamilySearch
- FamilySearch – Minnesota Online Genealogy Records
- FamilySearch Catalog
- FamilySearch Wiki – Minnesota
- FindAGrave
- Genealogy Trails – Minnesota
- Goodhue County Historical Society
- Google Books – Minnesota
- Hamline University Digital Collections
- Hathitrust – Minnesota
- Hennepin County Library
- I Dream of Genealogy
- Immigration History Research Center
- Interment.net – Minnesota
- Internet Archive – Minnesota
- Iron Range Research Center
- LDS Genealogy – Minnesota
- Library of Congress Digital Collections
- Linkpendium – Minnesota
- Macalester College Digital Collections
- Minnesota Digital Library
- Minnesota Digital Newspaper Hub
- Minnesota Genealogical Society
- Minnesota Historical Society
- Minnesota People Records
- Minnesota Research
- Minnesota State University-Mankato Digital Collections
- Minnesota State University-Moorhead Digital Collections
- MNopedia
- National Archives and Records Administration
- National Archives at Chicago
- National Archives Online Exhibits
- National Archives Resources for Genealogists
- Nationwide Gravesite Locator
- New Horizons Genealogy – Minnesota
- Northeast Minnesota Historical Center
- Northfield Public Library
- Norwegian American Genealogical Center
- PastPerfectOnline Collections
- Pioneering the Upper Midwest: Books from Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, ca. 1820-1910
- Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota Digital Collections
- Saint Olaf College Digital Collections
- Sanborn Maps – Minnesota
- Smithsonian Digital Library
- Southern Minnesota Historical Center
- Southwest Minnesota Historical Center
- Southwest Minnesota State University Digital Collections
- St Cloud State University Digital Collections
- St. Catherine University Digital Collections
- St. Michael Historical Society
- Stillwater Public Library
- The Official Land Records Site
- United States Social Security Death Index
- University of Minnesota – Crookston Digital Collections
- University of Minnesota – Duluth Digital Collections
- University of Minnesota – Morris Digital Collections
- University of Minnesota – Twin Cities Digital Collections
- University of Minnesota Digital Conservancy
- University of Saint Thomas Digital Collections
- US GenWeb – Minnesota
- US GenWeb Archives – Minnesota
- Washington County Historical Society
- West Central Minnesota Historical Center
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!