The FamilySearch Research Wiki (formerly also known as the FamilySearch Wiki or the Family History Research Wiki) is a website containing reference information and educational articles to help locate and interpret genealogical records.[1][2] The wiki is part of the FamilySearch website and was launched in 2007. It is a free-access, free-content online directory and handbook that uses a wiki platform to organize pages. Content is created collaboratively by a member base made up of FamilySearch employees, Mormon missionaries, and the wider online community.[3] As of 2024, pages can be edited only by registered contributors who have completed training on current content policy.[3]
The site itself does not contain information about people or pedigrees, contains no photos or records, and does not accept genealogical queries. Rather, it helps users discover other websites and resources to find such information.
Content
Content on the website is organised into article pages, most of which focus on a specific place. For example, a place may be a town, county, state, province, or nation. Each place article provides guidance on the specific types of records available in that jurisdiction. Every nation worldwide has at least one article, with more extensive coverage for places in the United States, Canada, and Europe.
Content for a place article may include maps, primary repository contact information, organization dates, parent jurisdictions, internal subdivisions such as towns or counties, boundary changes, any record losses or gaps, neighboring localities, local record types, local migration routes, and other local libraries, archives, societies, or museums. Contributors may also include information about record start and stop dates, social life and customs that affected local record keeping, local record idiosyncrasies, records housed in unusual places, and tips for using the records more effectively.
Pages also exist for genealogical, historical, and surname societies.[4]
Religious doctrines, church policies, and religious images are not permitted on the Family History Research Wiki except where they directly impact genealogical research.[5]
History
Content
Starting about 1988, the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City, then known as the Family History Library, developed a series of "research outlines"[6] to aid volunteer staff at its many FamilySearch Center branches, who offered free research advice to visitors.[7] When the FamilySearch Research Wiki was launched in late 2007, the electronic copies of these paper outlines were transferred into the wiki.
This resulted in about 162 initial articles, of which 86 were front-page articles, with each linked to around 25 related topical sub-pages. For example, the front-page article New Jersey Genealogy was linked to the New Jersey Biography, New Jersey Cemeteries, and New Jersey Census pages. Much of the early structure and phrasing of the wiki can be attributed to these publications.
Platform
Screenshot of the FamilySearch Wiki MainPage in 2007-2008
The English-language wiki was launched on December 14, 2007.[8] Initially, it used Plone software.[9]
It was soon determined that MediaWiki software would be a better platform, and in January 2008, it was moved to MediaWiki.[citation needed] As of 2009, moderators had been introduced on the platform.[10] In October 2011, FamilySearch deployed the wiki in 10 additional languages.[9] In 2011, a Wiki Governance Team was set up, which in 2015 was replaced by the Governance Council whose role was to oversee the direction and management of the Research Wiki.[11][12]
In late March 2016, the wiki was transitioned to WikiMedia 1.23.10, a newer, more stable platform which required less maintenance from FamilySearch computer engineers.[citation needed] FamilySearch management dissolved the Wiki Governance Council in April 2021 and replaced it with a Wiki Executive Council.[13] In 2024 the Executive Council suspended the Adopt-a-Page program and the wiki Moderators program.[14] In July 2024, all users' editing rights were suspended, with contributors now required to complete training and pass a test on current FamilySearch content policy before contributing.[3] As of September 2024, it used MediaWiki version 1.39.6.[15]
The Family History Research Wiki receives over 100 million views per year.[16] During most months, it is typically the second-most frequently visited section (out of ten sections) of FamilySearch, its host site. As of March 7, 2016, the English edition of the Family History Research Wiki had 150,561 registered users who had contributed to the creation of over 82,858 articles.[17]
^"FamilySearch Wiki:About Us". FamilySearch.org. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Archived from the original on November 25, 2015. Retrieved March 6, 2016.
^James L. Tanner, Guide to FamilySearch Online (Mesa, Ariz.: Bookmark Graphics, 2011). From reader review: "I found the section on FamilySearch Wiki to be extremely helpful. This portion of the book is worth the price all by itself."
^"Civil War and the FamilySearch Research Wiki," Crossroads, 6, no. 2 (June 2011).
^"FamilySearch Research Wiki, Overview," Searchers and Researchers, 33, no. 2 (summer 2010).
^"FamilySearch Wiki as a Research Tool," Voices of the Past, 9, no. 1 (March 2013).
^"FamilySearch Research Wiki," Sedgwick County Genealogy News, 13, no. 4 (December 2009).
^"FamilySearch Research Wiki Description and User Tips," Echoes (The), 12, no. 6 (November 2013).
^"Research Using FamilySearch Wiki," Genealogy Updates for VGS / Village Genealogical Society Newsletter, 2, no. 4 (April 2012).
^FamilySearch: Oswego CountyArchived March 11, 2016, at the Wayback Machine in Ainsworth Memorial Library Genealogy (Sandy Creek, NY) (accessed March 9, 2016). Recommendation for local Oswego County research.
^Free Mormon Genealogy in Ancestor Search (accessed March 9, 2016). Short basic description of this wiki, on a list among others.
^Nancy Hendrickson, Toolkit: Wikis 101Archived March 11, 2016, at the Wayback Machine in FamilyTreeMagazine April 20, 2010 (accessed March 9, 2016). Discusses four online wikis.
^FamilySearch.orgArchived April 2, 2016, at the Wayback Machine in Mary’s Genealogy Treasures (accessed March 9, 2016). Wiki takes a large section of this aggregator site menu.
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