If you know of a good genealogical education site, email us and we’ll include it.
Allen County Public Library’s Genealogy Center. The largest public genealogy library in the world hosts PERSI, the PERiodical Source Index that collects articles on history and genealogy from thousands of publications worldwide. ACPL offers an inexpensive look-up service for items in its collection, including PERSI. It offers virtual genealogy programs several times a week, and has a great YouTube Channel where the past programs stay forever.
American Ancestors is the website of the New England Historical and Genealogical Society. Some webinars are free, but many others cost money. Classes can range from a one-hour webinar to a multi-week deep dive into a topic. Members have better access and get discounts on classes, plus access to a huge database of digital research materials, journals, and records, mostly in New England. Among the Society’s projects and initiatives are the Great Migration Study Project (early colonial America), Henry Louis Gates’s “Finding Your Roots” television program, the Jewish Heritage Center, and 10 Million Names, which seeks to identify people who were enslaved in America. The Brue Family Learning Center offers lectures on art, history, and genealogy education. $
Arkansas Genealogical Society (AGS) – Kitchen Round Table Talks happen by Zoom at 6:30 p.m. on the third Tuesday of each month. Advance registration is required, but attendance is free. The Annual Conference is held on the third Saturday in October. See the website for more information.
Arkansas State Archives – a trove of local history and a respectable library of historical and genealogical resources from other states. The Arkansas Digital Archives has limited free content online. The helpful staff can’t be beat. Visit in person at the Big Mac building on the Capitol Mall.
CALS (Central Arkansas Library Services) – Learning Express Library – A variety of classes are offered, and genealogy research tools are available. Visit the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies at the Bobby L. Roberts Library of Arkansas History and Art at Library Square in downtown Little Rock.
ConferenceKeeper – Free online aggregated calendar of genealogy conferences and events.
Cyndi’s List – a seemingly inexhaustible list of genealogical findings on the Internet, amazingly managed by a solitary woman named – you guessed it – Cyndi.
FamilySearch offers live webinars, and keeps a library of over 2000 past webinars all available for free. Best of all is the Research Wiki – the mandatory starting place for any genealogy research.
GRIP Genealogy Institute – Virtual and in-person classes in Pittsburgh, PA. A week-long intensive study of genealogy methods, tools, and practices. Topics vary. $
IGHR – Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research, from the Georgia Genealogy Society. A week-long virtual intensive study of genealogy methods, tools, and practices. Topics vary. $
International Institute of Genealogical Studies – For genealogists interested in honing skills or even turning pro. Offers transcripts and credit hours. $
Legacy Family Tree Webinars: Hundreds of webinars taught by the stars of genealogy education, and unlimited access to the entire catalogue is available for subscribers. Possibly the best $50/year you’ll ever spend.
Library of Congress webinars for genealogy.
Lifequest of Arkansas – classes for older adults, sometimes including genealogy. Visit the website for more information. $
National Archives (NARA) Genealogy Fair and Series. Annual festival of genealogy webinars on using the NARA collections, and an annual series on genealogy research at the National Archives. Past years are available on YouTube.
National Genealogical Society’s Learning Center – Resources in print and online classes available to members. NGS also offers an annual conference. $
SLIG-UGA – The Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy and the Utah Genealogical Association – Webinars from UGA for members. SLIG offers a virtual week-long class, and the fall and spring virtual sessions last several weeks, meeting one day a week. $
Virtual Genealogical Association – Virtual meetings & conferences. Any time. Any place. The Arkansas Chapter is on Facebook. $
TV AND RADIO SHOWS
American History Television (CSPAN3)
Explore Our Nation’s Past on American History TV. Discover the people and events that document the American story. Saturdays on C-SPAN2 starting at 8 am ET or online anytime at c-span.org/history. Also see the YouTube Channel.
Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Tuesdays 7 pm Central time and streaming on PBS. Find past episodes on YouTube.
Genealogy Roadshow with Kenyatta D. Berry, Joshua Taylor, and Mary Tedesco
Find episodes in the Genealogy Roadshow playlist on PBS’s YouTube Channel.
The Genetic Detective
Genetic genealogy expert CeCe Moore starred in this ABC show. Moore was the genetic genealogy consultant on “Finding Your Roots” and “Genealogy Roadshow,” and she and her team have assisted law enforcement in solving dozens of cases using DNA. This 6-episode show followed her as she worked with police departments to catch criminals using DNA and genealogy research. Streaming on Hulu and other networks.
Long Lost Family – Heartwarming TLC series about adoptees finding biological families. Streaming on several platforms.
Roots Less Traveled Ancestry.com debuted this series on April 4, 2020. The show, designed for teenagers, follows pairs of family members as they travel together and discover their shared family history. Four seasons. Seasons 1 and 3 currently stream on Prime Video, but episodes are on Ancestry’s YouTube Channel.
Who Do You Think You Are? Celebrities study their lineages and family trees, usually learning surprising secrets they never knew about their families. A total of 22 seasons through Summer 2025 in both Great Britain and the US. NBC and streaming services for the American version, BBC and YouTube for the British version.
PODCASTS and RADIO SHOWS
Ancestral Findings Podcast – Each episode explores stories from the past and offers helpful tips to uncover our ancestral roots. Brief historical and informational snippets about genealogy and history.
Extreme Genes – Popular and informative family history radio show and podcast. The show dropped its weekly schedule at the end of 2023, but continues to publish occasional new episodes. More than 400 episodes. The host, Scott Fisher, posts transcripts of each podcast on his website.
Genealogy Gems Podcast – Offers quick and easy-to-use research techniques. Producer and host Lisa Louise Cooke brings you the best websites, best practices, and best resources available.
The Genealogy Guys Podcast & Genealogy Connection. Each episode includes the latest news from genealogical companies and organizations, listener email, and other content, such as book reviews and brief interviews. In June 2016, the Guys added Genealogy Connection, an all-interview podcast featuring some of the biggest names in the genealogical community, including researchers, writers, speakers, educators, entrepreneurs, technologists, librarians, and archivists.
Research Like a Pro Genealogy Podcast – Learn about research objectives, analysis, locality research, research planning, source citations, report writing, case studies, and more. Hosts Diana Elder, AG, and Nicole Dyer wrote the best-selling book, Research Like a Pro: A Genealogist’s Guide. They are professional genealogists who help clients solve difficult research problems. They incorporate DNA evidence when applicable and discuss genetic genealogy topics on the podcast as well.