About Us

Genealogy is a valuable tool to connect people and help them explore their connection to events in history. The San Francisco Bay area began with a rich Spanish heritage. Then, the Gold Rush of 1849 sparked a phenomenal growth. The City of San Francisco became the major west coast center for immigrants and emigrants from all points of the globe and played many parts in national and world history throughout the years. The surrounding counties also grew in population. The City of San Francisco also has the unfortunate distinction of losing many valuable vital documents during the 1906 disaster. This has made researchers search for other types of sources outside the mainstream.

SFgenealogy was initially formed to create a niche for San Francisco genealogy and history on the internet, and has expanded into neighboring counties. We currently have sections for:

History

SFgenealogy began as part of the USGenWeb project in 1996. In November 2002, the founders left USGenWeb and established SFgenealogy.com. In July 2015, SFgenealogy incorporated as a non-profit foundation and became SFgenealogy.org.

Non-Profit Status

SFgenealogy is registered as a California, non-profit tax-exempt organization (RCT Registration Number: CT0223256). We are also an IRS approved 501(c)(3) private operating foundation (EIN# 474731041, aka Federal Tax ID). (California Registry of Charitable Trusts Verification Search) | (IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search)

So, what is our purpose?

The primary purpose and highest priority of SFgenealogy is to provide FREE internet access to genealogical and historical information for San Francisco, the San Francisco Bay Area, and the State of California. Our commitment is to never charge fees for any data hosted at SFgenealogy.

In addition, we:

• Accept monetary and noncash donations.
• Promote and practice the use of digitizing and transcribing any available pertinent records.
• Inform researchers of genealogical and historical records pertaining to San Francisco Bay counties.
• Host third-party indexes (which may require fees for further information) of information-rich databases.
• Foster education into the process of local genealogical and historical research.
• Purchase and donate to appropriate institutions records for their preservation.
• Encourage exchange of information between researchers via various resources including lookup volunteers.
• Encourage and practice a high standard of data quality (presenting the data as it was originally formed) and using source references.
• Encourage ethical standards in genealogical practices.
• Build a foundation upon which future generations may continue this work.

If you have any questions, please don't hestitate to contact us.

Thank you!