Heartland Genealogy Through the Years
Yesterday, I shared the story of how Heartland Genealogy evolved from GeoCities to WordPress.
After writing that post, I took a trip down memory lane with the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine—and discovered that some of my earlier genealogy websites still survive.
Looking at those archived pages feels a bit like opening an old scrapbook. Some things made me smile. Some made me laugh. And all of them reminded me how much both genealogy and technology have changed.
2006: GeoCities and the Early Web
Yes, Heartland Genealogy really did begin on GeoCities.
Here’s a screenshot from 2006.
That page takes me right back.
At the time, I was a school librarian and technology coordinator. While I was responsible for the computers, much of my work involved helping teachers and students learn to use technology effectively.
I’ve always thought of myself more as an information specialist than a technology expert.
Creating a website became part genealogy project and part professional learning exercise.
Building pages taught me about HTML, hyperlinks, navigation, and the organization of information on the web.
And genealogy gave me the perfect excuse to experiment.
Looking at that page now, several things stand out:
- my surnames were clearly front and center
- Kansas already had a visual presence
- genealogy and history were linked from the beginning
- “Other Interests” suggests I wasn’t entirely single-minded
The design may scream “early internet,” but at the time, having your own website felt cutting edge.
The Collaborative Web: USGenWeb and Kansas GenWeb
Those were also the years when USGenWeb and Kansas GenWeb were getting started.
I became involved with both projects and even managed county pages for a time.
That early genealogy web community was built on volunteers who believed that local history and genealogical information should be freely available online.
Those projects helped shape how I thought about sharing research.
Genealogy wasn’t just about collecting information for myself.
It was about making it accessible to others.
The Master Genealogist and Second Site
As my research database grew, maintaining a hand-built website became impractical.
When I switched from Personal Ancestral File (PAF) to The Master Genealogist, I found a much easier solution.
John Cardinal’s Second Site software allowed me to transform my genealogy database into a searchable website.
That was a game changer.
Instead of manually editing dozens—or hundreds—of pages, I could regenerate the entire site directly from my database.
By then, Heartland Genealogy had moved to heartlandgenealogy.org.
This version of the site offered:
- surname indexes
- individual profiles
- place indexes
- descendant reports
- source information
- charts
While I also maintained a tree on Ancestry, it did not include everything in my files.
My own website allowed me to share my research on my own terms.
From Data to Storytelling
Eventually, simply publishing database information wasn’t enough.
I wanted to tell stories.
That led me to Blogger.
Blogging gave me a way to share discoveries as they happened:
- interesting documents
- research questions
- ancestor stories
- courthouse finds
- military records
- newspaper discoveries
Instead of simply presenting names, dates, and relationships, I could explain why a record mattered.
That was a very different kind of sharing.
WordPress and Long-Term Control
Eventually, I moved from Blogger to WordPress.
Part of that decision was practical. Google has a habit of discontinuing products and features, and I wanted more long-term control over my content.
But the move also reflected how my genealogy work had changed.
Heartland Genealogy was no longer simply a place to publish database material.
It had become a place for:
- Monday’s Diggings
- Friday Finds
- ancestor biographies
- military biographies
- document transcriptions
- proof discussions
- historical reflections
- videos
- AI-assisted genealogy projects
Why Online Sharing Still Matters
Living in northeast Kansas, I am about 75 miles from the nearest genealogy library or society.
I do not live near my ancestral homes.
I do not live near cousins who share my research interests.
The internet changed that.
What began as a way to learn technology became a way to connect.
The platforms have changed dramatically:
GeoCities.
USGenWeb.
TMG.
Second Site.
Google Sites.
Blogger.
WordPress.
Ancestry.
AI tools.
But the purpose remains the same:
Preserve family history.
Share discoveries.
Connect with others.
And keep learning.
Your Turn
Did you have a genealogy website in the early days of the web?
GeoCities? RootsWeb? USGenWeb? A hand-coded personal site?
If so, have you checked whether the Wayback Machine remembers it?
You might be surprised what survives.