LibAnswers

Ancestry offers research tools and access to billions of records across U.S. and international collections for censuses, vital records, military documents, ship lists, directories and more. Ancestry provides different kinds of subscriptions to individual consumers and libraries.

Johnson County Library subscribes to Ancestry Library Edition, which is designed for community use and includes the following features:

• A variety of U.S. and international collections
• Search interface and detailed search indexes
• Read-only access to Message Board community posts and public member family trees
• Learning Center with research aids and geographic information
• Charts and forms to organize your research

Ancestry.com is designed for individual consumer use and includes the above features plus the following features not available in Ancestry Library Edition:

• Collaborative tools for members to interact with each other
• DNA testing and matching
• Family Tree creation and management
• Some databases and collections

Learn more details in this document on Key Differences between Ancestry.com and Ancestry Library Edition (PDF) from ProQuest, the vendor that distributes Ancestry Library Edition.

The Kansas Historical Society offers access to portions of Ancestry.com for Kansans. Access requires a valid Kansas driver's license or state ID, and require a personal Ancestry.com account, which users can create for free. Once logged into Ancestry, features such as Family Tree creation and collaborative tools are available as well as access to a variety of Kansas state records.