Ancestors in Yearbooks

Find your ancestors in yearbooks to learn more about them in their younger years! Did you ever wonder what they looked like as a child or who their friends were? Here’s your chance to find out!

Keep in mind this is helpful for both students and school staff.

Read on to learn more!

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Things you can learn from Yearbooks

1) What your ancestor looked like at a certain age

2) Where they went to school (name of the school, town, county, state, country)

3) Approximate birth year (by comparing what the grade the person is in to the date, can assist in calculating their age and therefore birth year)

4) Activities the person was involved in at that time (sports, music, committees, etc.)

5) Friends pictured in photos together, there may be names included as well

6) Some yearbooks feature a “this year in history” This can show you what was going on in the world at that time, impacting your ancestor’s life.

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Reference a personal family picture of the individual you are looking for, if it is from a similar age, even better! This will help you identify what to search for in the yearbook.

Be sure to look through all of the pages, you never know where you may spot your ancestor in a photo.

Always check the main signature pages in the front and back of the yearbook (and all other pages just in case!) You may be able to see a friendly note left by someone else.

Tuck a notecard in the front of the book with a list of page numbers for quick reference of where your ancestors are featured.

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Preserving Your Yearbooks

Just a side note on how to preserve your yearbooks, as they are important pieces of family history.

I recommend storing your memory books in a place away from natural elements (rain, humidity, etc.) to maintain their condition. Moisture and other effects can impact the pages.

Maybe in a sealed container or safety locked box tucked in a weather proof closet.

If you are able to, keep all the yearbooks from your family members together in the same place.

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Where Can I Find Old Yearbook Photos Online?

On Ancestry.com you can digitally search through United States Yearbooks from 1900 to 2016.

Step By Step Yearbook Finder Guide:

1) Log in to your Ancestry account (you can try a 2 week free trail! Here’s a link – https://www.ancestry.com/offers/freetrial )

2) Click through the following options:

3) Search & Browse – Card Catalog – Directories & Member Lists – School Lists & Yearbooks – North America – United States (US) – State – County – Dates [based on availability]

Through these steps it will help you narrow down where to begin your search for your ancestor!

From here search any possible name information that you have (Full name, first name, last name, nicknames, etc.)

If you don’t have information regarding location, begin your search with a broader area and then start searching names.

Conclusion

I hope this article has helped with your search for your ancestors in yearbooks!

If you don’t find the person you are looking for, don’t give up!

New content is added to Ancestry and other online resources all the time.

Best of luck with your family history discoveries!