Immigration

Ellis Island (Free, searchable database now includes all immigration through the Port of New York from 1820–1957)

Potpourri of Ellis Island (History and related information. Many interesting links!)

The Immigration Era’s Effect on New York Today

Buffalo Research

Buffalo & Erie County Public Library Genealogy Databases (Erie County residents with a valid Buffalo & Erie County Public Library card number have free access to HeritageQuest Online, which contains U.S. federal census records from 1790-1940, special federal census schedules, over 20,000 local and family history books, over 20,000 U.S. city directories, a genealogical and local history serials index, Revolutionary War Pension Files, Freedman’s Bank Records, and select content from the U.S. Serial Set.)

Buffalo & Erie County Public Library’s Digital Collections (Unique collections for genealogy which include Erie County Poor House Ledgers; Marriage and Death Announcements, 1811–1833; as well as atlases and city directories.)

BuffaloResearch.com (A portal for researching architecture, business, genealogy, literature, and obscure websites in Buffalo, NY. Includes a very helpful collection of links to Buffalo City Directories online from 1828–1942, as well as a few directories that included the broader Western New York area.)

Grave Finder at St. Stan’s (Volunteer Barbara Ruppert created this photographic index to burials in St. Stanislaus Cemetery, a historic cemetery which has served the Buffalo, New York, Polish community since 1889.)

Forest Lawn Cemetery database (Although not a Polish cemetery, the Forest Lawn Cemetery database is nonetheless a valuable research tool for those researching Western New York ancestors as it includes burials from Forest Lawn, St. Matthew’s in West Seneca, Lakeside in Hamburg, Lancaster Rural Cemetery and two cemeteries in the village of Williamsville, NY—Williamsville Cemetery and Gethsemane Cemetery. Some database entries offer links to images of cemetery records which can be downloaded.)

Broadway-Fillmore Neighborhood: Polish-American History in Buffalo, NY (A collection of links to photos and articles documenting the architectural history in one of Western New York’s Polish neighborhoods.)

History of Buffalo and Erie County in the World War, 1914–1919, Daniel J. Sweeney, compiler (Historical account of World War I from a local perspective, including an extensive roster of service men and women from Erie County, those killed in action, medical personnel, government officials, etc. A list of Buffalonians in the Polish Army appears on p. 694/image no. 706.)

Album pamiątkowe i przewodnik handlowy : osady polskiej w mieście Buffalo, z dołączeniem okolicznych miejscowości ze stanu New York [Souvenir album and trade guide of the Polish settlements in the City of Buffalo, with the addition of neighboring towns in the State of New York] The Przewodnik Handlowy was published in Buffalo in 1906. The book contains genealogically-relevant paid ads, for which information was supplied by the advertiser. In most cases, information includes place and date of birth, name of spouse and year of marriage, names of children, and the organizations or parish to which the family belonged. The entire album is now available for browsing and searching online. Alternatively, we offer a database of names found in the Przewodnik Handlowy.

A History of the City of Buffalo: Its Men and Institutions; Biographical Sketches of Leading Citizens (While not specifically focused on Polish-Americans, this is a general reference for the history of the city, published in 1908.)

Buffalo’s Polish Pioneers (Article reprinted from Polish American Studies, Vol. XXI. No. 2, July-December 1964.)

Translation

Dziennik Translation Guide (Helpful template for translating Polish-language death notices.)

PolishOrigins Translation Forums for Polish, Russian, German, and Latin records

Genealogical Translations group on Facebook

In Their Words: A Genealogist’s Translation Guide to Polish, German, Latin, and Russian Documents, by William F. Hoffman and Jonathan D. Shea (A four-volume series of highly-recommended translation guides available in print or PDF form)

Zofia Federowicz’s Parish Records in Russian site (Provides translation templates for translating Russian-language birth, marriage, and death records)

Databases for Research in Poland

Geneteka (Indexed vital records for locations throughout Poland today as well as other areas with a Polish presence historically. Marriage records from St. Stanislaus Church in Buffalo, 1874–1913 are included here.)

Lubelskie Korzenie [Lublin Roots] (Indexed vital records from the Lublin region)

PomGenBase (Indexed vital records from the Pomerania region)

Projekt Warmia (Indexed vital records from the Warmia region)

FBPGG Index (Miscellaneous indexed records from Poland and other locations)

Jamiński Zespół Indeksacyjny [Jaminy Indexing Team] (Indexed vital records from these parishes in northeastern Poland, Lithuania, and Belarus)

Słupca Genealogy (Indexed vital records from Słupca, Kalisz, and Ostrów Wielkopolski Counties in Wielkopolska)

Projekt Podlasie  (Indexed vital records, court records, conscription records, etc. from the Podlasie region of Poland)

BaSIA (Indexed vital records from Wielkopolska)

Poznan Marriage Index Project (Indexed marriage records from the Poznań region of Poland between 1800–1899)

Projekt Kurpie (Indexed vital records from the Kurpie region of Poland)

Portal Rodziny Szpejankowskich i Szpejenkowskich [Szpejankowski and Szpejenkowski Family Portal] (Indexed vital records from the Dobrzyń nad Wisłą region of Poland)

Projekt Eliza-Bzura (Indexed vital records from the Bzura River area, including locations in Płock and Sochaczew Counties in Mazowieckie Voivodeship, and Kutno, Łęczyca, Łowicz, and Skierniewice Counties in Łódź Voivodeship)

Towarzystwo Genealogiczne Ziemi Częstochowskiej (Indexed vital records from the Częstochowa area)

Metryki Wołyń (Indexed vital records from the Volhynia area)

Świętokrzyskie Towarzystwo Genealogiczne “Świętogen” (Indexed vital records from Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship)

Garwolińska Grupa Indeksacyjna (Indexed vital records from Garwolin County)

Szukajwarchiwach (Main search portal for holdings of the Polish state archives, including digital images)

Metryki GenBaza (Digital archive of vital records held by numerous state archives, as well as the diocesan archive in Kielce)

Genealogiawarchiwach (Repository for digital images of vital records held by the state archives in Toruń, Bydgoszcz, Inowrócław, and Włocławek)

Skanoteka (Sister site to Geneteka; repository for digital images of vital and other records held by various state archives and civil registry offices)

Miscellany

Personnel of the Polish Air Force in Great Britain 1940–1947 (Names and brief biographical data for Polish airmen who served in Great Britain during World War II)

Free Resources offered by the National Genealogical Society (Includes instructions for building a family tree, links to free genealogy websites, research hints and tips, a family relationship chart—for all those who wonder what “once removed” means—and more)

Member Submitted Links lists useful websites that have been submitted with commentary.