ALBANY -- The New York State Civil War Soldier Database has been selected as one of the 101 Best Undiscovered Websites 2005 by Family Tree Magazine. The database is one of numerous genealogical resources that can be accessed via the New York State Archives’ website at www.archives.nysed.gov.
Literally years in the making, the Civil War Soldier Database is an index to more than 360,000 men who served in New York State Volunteer and United States Sharpshooter units, as well as the state's three regiments of United States Colored Troops. Among the numerous search functions, the index enables genealogists to search for an individual soldier (including alternative spellings of many last names), identify what unit he served in during the Civil War, and list all of the soldiers who served in a particular unit.
"Scholars and other citizens who care about this branch of history are very exacting in their standards," said New York State Commissioner of Education Richard Mills. "Thus it takes a lot of hard work to win such praise."
Family Tree Magazine is the first mass-market, beginner-friendly genealogy magazine. It covers all areas of potential interest to family history enthusiasts, reaching beyond strict genealogy research to include ethnic heritage, family reunions, memoirs, oral history, scrapbooking, historical travel, and other ways that families connect with their pasts.
"We focused this year's list entirely on previously undiscovered sites. Many are newly launched. Most have never appeared on our 101 Best lists, or they've improved dramatically since their long-ago listings," according to David Fryxell of Family Tree Magazine.
The New York State Archives preserves and makes accessible the essential recorded evidence -- past and present -- of New York’s governments, organizations, peoples and events. At its Albany facility, the Archives cares for more than 140 million archival records of New York State government dating from the 1630s to the present. As a program of the State Education Department, the New York State Archives provides services to assist 4,300 local governments and 3,000 community organizations care for their records.