rootschat.com

About the project

RootsChat. com is the UK's largest free genealogy forum. The project bills itself as the busiest resource of its type in the country, bringing together family history enthusiasts. At the moment, the community has almost 300 thousand registered members and more than 6.9 million useful posts. The main idea of ​​the project is simple: help in finding ancestors without any subscriptions or paid barriers. The site focuses on British and Irish genealogy, offering tools for working with censuses (particularly 1881 and 1901) and other archival data.

Main directions

The forum's topics cover a wide range of issues related to origin and migration. The focus is on the regions of Great Britain and Ireland: England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, as well as the Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey, Sark and Alderney. For Welsh-speaking users there is a section in the Cymraeg language. In addition to the geographic location, the site structure is divided into specialized boards:

• Genealogical topics:from general questions to narrow regional queries (for example, Durham, Lancashire, Yorkshire).
• Resources and suggestions:Information sharing for Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Europe and the USA.
• Emigration and immigration:discussion of moving from the UK to other countries and vice versa.
• Military History:Including Imperial German Military History, Royal Navy and British Army units (eg 79th Cameron Highlanders).
• Beginners:special sections for those who are just starting to build their family tree.

Activity on the forum is high. You can see new requests at any time: from deciphering handwriting in old documents and searching for burials to analyzing the results of DNA testing (Ancestry DNA, MyHeritage) and help determining the profession of ancestors (for example, Roma or sailors).

Site Features

The key feature of RootsChat is its social nature. This is not just a database, but a living community. Users help each other in real time. The home page shows the latest topics being discussed right now: searching for 1786 baptisms, questions about marriages in Leinster, or problems with Amazon ratings. This format allows you to quickly get a response from people who have practical experience working with specific archives. The site also offers technical resources. There are sections for help with your computer if your tablet or phone has gone crazy, as well as tips for restoring old photos and reading manuscripts. Genealogical society events are highlighted to help participants find local meetings.It is important to note that the project is completely free. No hidden fees for access to information or advice. This makes it especially valuable for those who do not want to pay expensive subscriptions to large commercial genetics companies.

Contact information

Direct contact information (address, telephone, email) is not included in the materials provided. Communication is carried out exclusively through the internal mechanisms of the forum: personal messages, comments on topics and participation in discussions. Registration or login is required to get started.

FAQ

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            Domain Name: ROOTSCHAT.COM
Registrar: eNom, LLC
Domain Status: client transfer prohibited
Creation Date: 2002-12-30T16:07:03Z
Registry Expiry Date: 2030-12-30T16:07:03Z
Updated Date: 2025-07-11T18:01:25Z
Name Server: DAVE.NS.CLOUDFLARE.COM
Name Server: OLGA.NS.CLOUDFLARE.COM
REGISTRAR Contact: eNom, LLC
>>> Last update of RDAP database: 2026-05-23T07:31:38Z         

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