Ancestry News

Major family history website Ancestry has announced that it is acquiring UK military records website Forces War Records.

Ancestry, which holds over 24 billion family history records from 80 countries, has purchased Clever Digit Media, which owns and operates Forces War Records as well as family history research service British Genealogy.

Since it was founded in 2010, Forces War Records has transcribed 26 million Commonwealth military service records from the First and Second World Wars and other conflicts, two million of which are exclusive to the site.

Ancestry has not yet announced what the acquisition will mean for Forces War Records’ collections, but an Ancestry spokesperson said they expected it would be “business as usual” for the site.

In further Ancestry news, it has been announced that home access to Ancestry Library Edition will continue until 30 September 2021.  Ancestry made the decision back in April 2020 to allow this database, normally only accessed in the library buildings using our public PCs or wi-fi, to be accessed from home while the CoronaVirus pandemic impacted library access for many.  So Campaspe Library members can continue to access this fantastic genealogical resource from home.

To access Ancestry Library Edition, you need to go to the Campaspe Regional Library web page at https://www.campaspe.vic.gov.au/library  On the left hand column, click on 'Genealogy' and then on 'Databases'.  The link for Ancestry Library Edition from home is at the top right.  You will be prompted to log in using your library card number and PIN, then follow the prompts to Ancestry's page and continue researching your family history from the comfort of home.