Growing a Family Tree

In addition to today being Flag Day (you can read more about that here), June 14 is also Family History Day. This actually makes me think of my dad, who has become quite the budding genealogist. Over the last several months, he has been extensively researching our family tree.

Apparently one of my very distant great-grandfathers (I think ninth) on my mother’s side was Col. Richard Henry Esq., “The Immigrant” Lee (1617-1664). Among other things – he was attorney general of the Colony of Virginia, Clerk of the Quarter Court at Jamestown and at the time of his death likely the richest man in Virginia – he was the great-great-great grandfather of Confederate general Robert E. Lee and great grandfather of President Zachary Taylor.

According to my dad, we are also somehow related to Geronimo on his side, although I don’t think he’s found conclusive evidence to the fact thus far in his research.

The Library of Congress can help you grow your family tree with one of the world’s premier collections of U. S. and international genealogical and local historical publications. The Local History and Genealogy Reading Room, located in the Library’s Thomas Jefferson Building, is the hub for such research. More than 50,000 genealogies and 100,000 local histories comprise its collections, which are especially strong in North American, British Isles and German sources. These international strengths are further supported and enriched by the Library’s royalty, nobility and heraldry collection, making it one of only a few libraries in America that offer such resources. In addition, the vertical files in the reading room contain miscellaneous materials relating to specific family names; to the states, towns, and cities of the U.S.; and to genealogical research in general.

Reading room reference librarians also have compiled several bibliographies and guides to the Library’s genealogy collections.

The Library’s genealogy collection began as early as 1815 with the purchase of Thomas Jefferson’s library, which included such titles as the “Domesday Book,” which was the record of the survey of England made for William the Conqueror; Sir William Dugdale’s “The Baronetage of England,” a genealogical and historical account of the English Baronets up to King Henry III; and “Peerage of Ireland,” another historical and genealogical account of Ireland’s nobility.