Free Access to Findmypast and Ancestry

Good news posted in Family Tree Magazine's online newsletter. I have copied announcements from Findmypast and Ancestry that their collections or parts of them will be available for searching in honor of Veteran's Day.


Here's the scoop from Family Tree Magazine:


If you've been wanting to try the subscription genealogy website Findmypast, now is the time: In honor of Veterans Day (Nov. 11 in the United States), Findmypast will open up its collections for free access this weekend.

The free period will run from 7 a.m. ET Friday, Nov. 7 to 7 a.m. ET Monday, Nov. 10.

The free access includes global record sets such as censuses; vital records; newspapers; local English, Welsh, Irish and Scottish records; passenger lists; the Periodical Source Index and more. You'll need to set up a free registration to access the free records.


Subscription genealogy site Ancestry.com announced that its top collections of old military records will be free to access in honor of Veterans Day. The free access period ends Nov. 11 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

The free records include all US wars and some global collections, though the focus is on World War I, which began 100 years ago this past July. Featured collections include:

• WWI draft registration cards
• WWI Mothers' Pilgrimage Lists
• WWI, WWII and Korean War casualty lists

The "Start Free Trial" link at the top of the free military records landing page might be confusing. You don't have to actually start a free trial, which requires entering payment information, to access the free military records.

Instead, either log into the free basic Ancestry.com account you already have, or scroll down on the landing page, run a search, click on a matching record you want to view, and create a free basic account when you're prompted.