Society of Genealogists Membership

Investigate your ancestors, discover your unique family history and connect with fellow genealogists

There’s only so far you can take your family history research without support, and as you’re here, there’s a good chance you’ve reached that point already.

👉 Perhaps your progress is being thwarted by a page of aged and indecipherable handwriting or an impossible to navigate archive.

👉 Or you know you’ve made an incorrect connection somewhere on your family tree, but you’re not sure where or how it happened, and now you’ve got a whole branch to unravel.

👉 Maybe you’ve got plenty of dates and locations, but you’d love for that information to have more meaning so you can connect with the real lived experiences of your ancestors.

When you bump into these roadblocks, it’s difficult to know who to ask for help, and you might start questioning your abilities and thinking that maybe genealogy just isn't for you.

The truth is, genealogy is a complex and intricate puzzle that requires patience and perseverance (what you already have) and support and guidance (what we can provide).

Founded in the heart of 1911, the Society of Genealogists has been a champion of heritage exploration for over a century.

Our mission is to help you:

• Investigate your ancestors

• Preserve, organise and analyse your genealogy, and

• Delve into social history….

…so you can connect with your past and discover your unique family history.

The Society of Genealogists now has two types of membership:

• Standard: Best suited to people whose main goal is to access our collection of records.
• Gold: Best suited to people who want to improve their research techniques and genealogical skills, gain a better understanding of the historical context of their family tree, and have access to expert support when they need it.

What’s Included:

Below is an outline of what’s included in both the Standard and Gold membership:

Visit the Research Hub to:

• Use our computers to access records with Ancestry, FamilySearch, Find My Past, The British Newspaper Archive and The Genealogist

• Meet with other Society members in-person

• Meet with our onsite experts

• See documents from our archive*

• Access our collection of 15,000 books*

*Please give advance notice of your visit so we can make sure we have the records or books you need on site

What's Included In Gold Membership?

Unlimited Access to Expert Talks (1 and 2 hour-long sessions) - Included with Gold Membership

Gold members have an open invitation to a vast array of expert-led talks, which you can watch live (online) or as a recording after the event.

The experts and topics will help you upgrade your genealogical research skills, and gain historical understanding, giving context and meaning to the ancestors you have discovered. 

Gold members are able to book a ticket to attend live or watch the replay any time within 12-months of the original recording - at no additional charge - it’s all included in the Gold membership fee.

(Standard Members can purchase tickets to each talk separately, in advance of the event, and have access to the replay for 1 month, but cannot purchase access to talks that have already taken place.)

Occasionally (at the request of the speaker), Expert Talks will only be accessible live, with no recording available afterwards or recordings available for shorter periods.

In 2024, you can enjoy topics as diverse as Graham Walter’s exploration of 'Cloud Computing for Genealogists', to John Hanson’s ‘My Ancestor Came from Yorkshire’, to a journey through the history and development of civil and criminal courts with Sarah Pettyfer.

Membership Levels Overview

With the exception of visitor access to the Research Hub on Wharf Road, all features of the Society of Genealogists membership, Standard and Gold level, are delivered online, meaning you can access them from anywhere that has an Internet connection.

Not a Member Yet?

Reminder: The Society of Genealogists is a charity; your membership helps fund our charitable activities, from youth conferences to rescuing at-risk historical documents to keeping the doors of our Research Hub open!

Frequently Asked Questions