Free Online New York Digital Archives

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.

Types of Information Available in Digital Archives

• 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, preceded by Archives that are available for the region or the country:

Multistate Archives

• Digital Commons Collections
• Digital Public Library of America
• Library of Congress Digital Collections
• National Archives Online Exhibits
• PastPerfectOnline Collections
• Smithsonian Digital Library

New York Archives

• Adelphi University Digital Collections
• Albany Institute of History and Art
• Alfred University Digital Collections
• Alliance University Archives and Special Collections
• Bard College Digital Collections
• Bronx County Historical Society
• Buffalo and Erie County Public Library
• Buffalo History Museum
• Center for Brooklyn History
• Center for Jewish History
• Chemung County Library District Genealogy Department
• Colgate University Digital Collections
• College of Saint Rose Digital Collections
• Columbia University Digital Collections
• Cornell University Digital Collections
• CUNY – Baruch College Digital Collections
• CUNY – Brooklyn College Digital Collections
• CUNY – City College Digital Collections
• CUNY – College of Staten Island Digital Collections
• CUNY – Hunter College Digital Collections
• CUNY – John Jay College of Criminal Justice Digital Collections
• CUNY – Lehman College Digital Collections
• CUNY – Medger Evers College Digital Collections
• CUNY – Queens College Digital Collections
• Digital Culture of Metropolitan New York
• FamilySearch – New York Online Genealogy Records
• Fordham University Digital Collections
• Hamilton College Digital Collections
• Hartwick College Digital Collections
• Historic Hudson Valley Library
• Hofstra University Digital Collections
• Holland Society of New York
• Hudson River Valley Heritage
• Huguenot Society of America
• Leo Baeck Institute
• Long Island University – Brooklyn Campus Digital Collections
• Long Island University – CW Post Campus Digital Collections
• Manhattan College Digital Collections
• Manhattanville College Special Collections
• Maria College Digital Collections
• Molloy University Digital Collections
• Montgomery County Department of History & Archives
• National Archives at New York City
• New School University Digital Collections
• New York Genealogical and Biographical Society
• New York Heritage Digital Collections
• New York Historical Society
• New York Public Library Digital Collections
• New York Public Library Digital Projects
• New York State Archives Digital Collections
• New York State Historical Literature (Cornell University)
• New York State Library Collections
• New York University Digital Collections
• NYC Municipal Archives Collections
• Onondaga Historical Association
• Pace University Digital Collections
• Queens Historical Society
• Rochester Institute of Technology Digital Collections
• Siena College Digital Collections
• St John Fisher University Digital Collections
• St John’s University Digital Collections
• Staten Island Historical Society
• SUNY – Albany Digital Collections
• SUNY – Binghamton Digital Collections
• SUNY – Buffalo Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Brockport Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Buffalo (Buffalo State College) Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Cortland Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Fredonia Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Geneseo Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at New Paltz Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Old Westbury Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Oneonta Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Oswego Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Plattsburgh Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Potsdam Digital Collections
• SUNY – College at Purchase Digital Collections
• SUNY – College of Environmental Science & Forestry Archival and Special Collections
• SUNY – College of Technology at Farmingdale Digital Collections
• SUNY – Fashion Institute of Technology Digital Collections
• SUNY – Maritime College at Ft Schuyler Digital Collections
• SUNY – Stony Brook Digital Collections
• SUNY – Upstate Medical University Digital Collections
• Syracuse University Digital Collections
• Union College Digital Collections
• United States Merchant Marine Academy Digital Collections
• United States Military Academy Special Collections
• University of Rochester Digital Collections
• Utica.University Digital Collections
• Vassar College Digital Collections
• Yeshiva University Digital Collections