A quick post today highlighting the many volunteer opportunities for genealogists of varying skill levels. The majority are transcribing projects that can be done online from the comfort of your home, whenever you have time. Others are more general, like volunteering at your local genealogical library, or teaching a class at a nearby community college, and may have to wait until your community allows more in-person activities.
Working on transcriptions is a great way to improve your own skills, and volunteering within your community is a wonderful way to make personal connections and network. Not to mention the value of helping others, and the benefits of improving records to everyone researching their family history.
Personally I am so grateful to everyone that’s ever spent time transcribing and indexing records to make it easier for everyone to search and find what they need. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Specific Opportunities
Bible Rescue - This nonprofit out of Utah finds family bibles, records the information in them, and attempts to return them to relatives. Email them to find out how you can help from home.
Beyond Borders: Transcribing Historic Maine Land Documents - A zooniverse research project to assist the Maine Historical Society.
Citizen Archivist at the National Archives - Comment, transcribe, tag, and contribute to the National Archives Catalog. Note that NARA also has several in-person volunteer opportunities that are currently suspended due to the virus.
Crowd Source Indexing - Various projects and various language transcription projects.
Digital Maine Transcription Project - Assist with Maine records.
Europeana Transcribe - Register for a free Transcribathon account and work on various projects from across Europe.
Every Name Counts - A zooniverse project creating a memorial for victims of National Socialism.
FamilySearch Indexing Projects - help FamilySearch index records from various countries.
FromthePage.com - Sign up for a free account to help crowdsource various transcriptions for notable libraries, universities, museums, and others.
Library and Archives Canada: Co-Lab - Help preserve Canada’s historical documents and make them accessible to all.
Library of Congress Campaigns -Work on projects for the Library of Congress, from the papers of suffragists and poets to presidents.
Measuring the Anzacs (New Zealand) - Another zooniverse project to help record the men and women of New Zealand in World War I
Ohio Memory Transcriptions - Transcribe some collections from Ohio.
Royal British Columbia Museum Transcribe - Various transcription projects for the Royal BC Museum in Victoria.
Smithsonian Digital Volunteers: Transcription Center - Assist the Smithsonian with assorted projects.
University of Iowa Digital Library: DIY History - Register to transcribe for the library, as well as commenting and tagging their digital photos.
Washington State Archives - Create a free Scribe account to help the WA State Archives transcribe public records.
World Memory Project from Ancestry.com and the US Holocaust Museum
General Ideas
Contact your local genealogical society. If you have technology skills, you can help with their website, newsletter, or mailing list. You may consider serving on the board or being an officer. Many genealogical societies also maintain a library that needs volunteers.
Reach out to your local history museum or historical society for volunteer opportunities.
Your local State Archives often have a volunteer program
Your local library may have a need for genealogists.
Teach a class or a workshop, or give a presentation, through your nearby community college, local library. genealogical society or history society.
Know another language? Help translate documents for others through social media requests (see our page on Facebook Groups)
Assist someone with their lineage membership application.
Search thrift stores and used book stores for family history books, and attempt to reunite them with descendants.
Volunteer with one of the many genealogy conferences (there are sometimes added benefits like free admission or networking opportunities).
Contribute to FindaGrave.com by photographing and transcribing gravestones not yet on the site.
National Genealogical Society - contact them for opportunities on various projects or to help with their conference.
Search Angels - A nonprofit, volunteer run genealogy service that requires background checks of it’s volunteers (currently a waitlist).
Volunteer with one of the many genealogy conferences (there are sometimes added benefits like free admission or networking opportunities).
How do you volunteer your time? Do you know of more projects available to genealogists? Leave a comment here or on our Facebook post.
See also: Transcribing Records and Handwriting
