Genealogical Writing: Donating Your Genealogy by Michael J. Leclerc Authors of compiled family histories often ask me where they should give a copy of their work. Some people ask this in the belief that there is only one place they should place their book. Many of those are surprised when I start talking with them, as a number of places come to mind immediately. The first place is the Library of Congress. The Local History and Genealogy Reading Room at LOC has more than 50,000 compiled genealogies and more than 100,000 local histories. If you register your book with the Copyright Office, you are required to submit two copies of your work within three months of publication. One of those copies will be given to the Local History and Genealogy Reading Room. If you choose not to register, you can still donate a copy at any time. You can find more information about donating to LOC at www.loc.gov/rr/genealogy/gifts.html. You should also donate a copy of your book to major genealogical libraries. I recommend at least three. The first, as you have probably guessed, is the New England Historic Genealogical Society. With more than 30,000 published genealogies, NEHGS has one of the premier collections in the country. Visit www.NewEnglandAncestors.org for more information about the library and making donations. The Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana, is also a leading repository for genealogical research. Between print, microtext, and manuscripts, there are more than 50,000 volumes of compiled genealogies at the library. The ACPL also publishes the Periodical Source Index for genealogical magazines and journals. You can find more information at www.acpl.lib.in.us. And of course, the biggest genealogical library in the world is the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. The FHL has an active program of collecting compiled genealogies for families from around the world. They do have stringent requirements for donations, which you can read in the Library section of www.FamilySearch.org. Each state in the U.S. also has a state library and state historical society. Consider donating copies to the libraries and historical societies for the states covered in your compilation. The same could be said for local and county libraries and historical societies for locations featured in your work. And remember to include state, county, and local genealogical societies as well. The more places you place your book, the more likely it is that a copy will be found by descendants in the future. And when somebody finds a copy of your book at the library, they may contact you to purchase a copy for themselves. That’s a win-win.