Sources for U.S. Immigrant Research - Scandinavians in America

01. Norwegian American and Norwegian research Links from the Norwegian Amercian Genealogical Center and Naeseth Library. This List of Links is especially useful for Immigration or Immigrants in the U.S. data.

03. Original Records of the Evengelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Archives (Includes records of some of the previous Lutheran synods merged in to ELCA.)are at the ELCA:

Many of the Original Records of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America are now Online and Indexed at Ancestry.com
(free at FHC's and many libraries or $ online)

Brief Guide for Archives of Congregations. (Note: You may need to download the .pdf file to read this article.) General, rather wordy discussion of the types of records which may have existed. Apparently, most of those have been retained by the individual congregations. Apparently, the staff at the archives will help you identify which church your ancestor attended once you have determined their location of residence.

ELCA Archive Catalog and Search
Note: The website states that for information on congregational microfilm, please contact the Archives directly. Also Note: An old article stated "The ELCA Archives does hold a large collection of microfilmed congregational records. These are primarily from The American Lutheran Church portion of the predecessor bodies, but also include a number of Swedish-American Lutheran microfilms."

The ELCA Family Tree is available from the "Quick Links" menu item on the right side of their Archives page. This is a Family Tree-style arrangement of the various branches of the Lutheran church which were bound into the ELCA during its history. It is a valuable resource for understanding the complex regroupings that have occurred.

04. Norwegians in the Civil War (and some from other wars).
Database listing Norwegians (and some other Scandinavians) serving in the U.S. Civil War, giving their county of residence and other personal information (varies greatly by soldier) such as injuries, deaths, county of residence after the war, etc. Provided by the Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum. (Also in book form at S.O.N. Culver City)

More Links Coming Soon!

Sources for Scandinavian Research - see also separate pages for Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, and Iceland.

01. Scandinavian Center, Thousand Oaks.
Limited library access hours - check library schedule on their website, or call/email ahead.

02. Browse by Country portal at FamilySearch.org

More Links Coming Soon!