On December 28, I published an announcement stating that the Godfrey Memorial Library in Middletown, Connecticut, is in the process of dropping HeritageQuest Online from its portfolio of offerings. This caused a lot of consternation amongst genealogists, as this had been a very popular offering for the Library.
Many genealogists had joined the Godfrey Memorial Library's membership program for $35 a year solely for the purpose of accessing HeritageQuest Online and its many excellent databases of census records, digitized genealogy and local history books, Revolutionary War pensions, and more. That's a bit ironic as most Americans already could obtain free access to the same databases. The few that cannot find free access can obtain access via several other providers for $35 a year or less.
In the discussion board on http://www.eogn.com, newsletter reader Chris Dunham wrote:
Has anyone thought of maintaining a list online of participating libraries and societies? Maybe an entry for HeritageQuest Online could be added to the Encyclopedia of Genealogy so that visitors could add (or delete, as necessary) access points.
I thought Chris' suggestion was a good one so I created such a page and added information about 40 such libraries. Since then, that page has been updated hundreds of times by other newsletter readers.
That page on the Encyclopedia of Genealogy now provides a very long list of libraries that offer free, in-home access to HeritageQuest Online. It also lists nine more organizations that provide in-home access for a fee. Five of them do so for less than $40 a year.
You can find this long list on the Encyclopedia of Genealogy at http://www.eogen.com/HeritageQuestOnline
Henderson, NV and Las Vegas, NV only offer Heritage Quest access to residents of their respective taxation districts. While Las Vegas library district includes almost all of Clark County it does not include the city of North Las Vegas. Residents elsewhere in the state may get a library card but may not access the Heritage Quest database.
Posted by: RBrowning | January 31, 2006 at 11:13 PM
RBrowning,
I'm the one who checked out libraries in Nevada (among many others) to see which ones might offer HQ. I checked each website for databases &, if I found remote HQ access, then library card requirements to see if other than local residents could get a card.
Your comments are interesting. BUT not mentioned on either of their websites. There were no limitations on use. All the two sites say is that residents of the state may apply for a card in person.
Henderson, gives the option of just 'registering' an existing Nevada library card instead of getting a HDPL card, which I'm sure wouldn't work on the net, since the bar codes would be different ... ie starting numbers ... for a different library, and not recognized as a 'member' of the local library.
Sorry, if there was a problem, but I could only go by what the web site(s) say, since I'm in NJ.
Did you call or go to these libraries? Just curious.
Posted by: Maureen | February 01, 2006 at 01:16 AM
Maureen,
Your work is excellent and I don't think anyone could have found the "exclusions" that the libraries apply here. Since they specifically mention those who live in the "taxation district" as the individuals who may access the records it probably has to do with money more than anything else.
This quote is found buried in the site when you actually request access to Heritage Quest:
This service is available to residents of the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District.
What is sad for me is the entire county has access to these databases - except for those of us who live in North Las Vegas. I plan to query the library as to why they do not join with either of the other three districts who provide this serve to the rest of the county.
Posted by: RBrowning | February 04, 2006 at 11:35 PM
The McMinnville Public Library in Oregon should be added to your list.
http://www.maclibrary.org/
Posted by: Gordon Banks | February 06, 2006 at 04:49 PM