The Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies

The School of Family History

IHGS Becomes a FamilySearch Affiliate Library

Wednesday 26th March 2025

IHGS Becomes a FamilySearch Affiliate Library

The Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies (IHGS), Canterbury, Kent—If you want to be part of the popular ancestry search trend, you may not need to look any further than the local library. The IHGS is now a FamilySearch Affiliate Library, which means it has access to more genealogy resources to help you make more family discoveries. FamilySearch is a world leader in family history.

There are only a few hundred affiliate libraries in the country. The designation means local library patrons will now have greater and more convenient access to the wealth of genealogical resources available through FamilySearch. The popular web service has over 6 billion searchable names and 2 billion images of historical genealogical records—and you get the helpful assistance of library staff.

FamilySearch adds over 300 million free genealogical records and images online yearly from all over the world and manages the famous FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City. It has amassed billions of birth, marriage, death, census, land and court records from more than 130 countries to help you discover and make family connections.

 

How to use FamilySearch at IHGS

As the IHGS library is a FamilySearch affiliate, you can access digital documents when using FamilySearch within our library for free

You can explore the FamilySearch catalogue from home https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog. If you try to access a set of images from home, you may receive a message indicating whether they are viewable at an affiliate library. If they are, you can plan to view them during your visit to IHGS.

Useful tips are available here:  www.familysearch.org/en/help/helpcenter/article/how-do-i-search-the-catalog-for-records

You can access FamilySearch’s digital collections on a library computer or your personal device connected to our WiFi network. Please remember to bring your free FamilySearch account login details or you can set one up on the day.

Booking

The FamilySearch facility will be open from the 9th April.

It is free to visit IHGS to use FamilySearch. IHGS is open on Wednesdays 10am-4pm, and whilst booking is not essential it is recommended as space is limited.

Please note: If you plan to use our other library facilities there is a small visitor fee for non-members. Members and students have free access to the library.

To book

The Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies                       Terms and Conditions
80-82 Northgate
Canterbury
Kent, CT1 1BA
UK
Tel: +44 (0)1227 768664

Charitable Educational Trust No: 313304
Companies House No: 01629916 

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