12/13/2025
🎁 Family Historian Holiday Gift List 🎄
It's the most wonderful time of the year! If you still need some gift ideas for the family historian in your life, dropping a hint about what you'd really like to find under the tree, or buying your own gifts, we've compiled a wish list of essential tools, courses, and unique keepsakes.
Here are some top gift ideas for every family history enthusiast:
1. 💻The Digital Deep Dive (Subscriptions & Kits)
The greatest gift you can give a researcher is access to new records! Subscriptions are the fuel that keeps the research engine running.
Genealogy Subscriptions: A gift membership to a major research website can unlock billions of records. Top platforms include Ancestry.com, MyHeritage, and Findmypast (great for UK/Irish research).
Record Access: For those who love digging into primary documents, a subscription to a niche site like Newspapers.com or Fold3 (military records) is invaluable.
DNA Testing: If they haven't tested, a kit from AncestryDNA, MyHeritage DNA, or FamilyTreeDNA can break through those stubborn brick walls and connect them with new cousins.
2. 📑The Preservation Station (Archival & Organization)
Most genealogists are also record archivists. Help them protect their precious documents and photos for future generations with quality archival supplies.
Archival Storage Boxes & Sleeves: Acid-free, lignin-free storage is a must. Products like the Itoya Profolio Archive-All Storage Box or archival document cases are perfect for safely storing old documents and photos.
Organization Systems: A specialized binder or starter kit makes organization easy. The Performore Family History/Genealogy 3 inch Ring Binder comes designed specifically for family records. For a full organizational overhaul, consider a kit like the Lineco Archival Preservation Kit which often includes gloves and acid-testing pens.
3. 🤓The Organizational & Learning Toolkit
Genealogy Software: Having a local copy of a family tree is essential. Programs like Family Tree Maker or RootsMagic are industry standards for tracking, charting, and reporting.
Education & Training: Gift a subscription to Legacy Family Tree Webinars for access to thousands of genealogy classes, or help fund a spot at a genealogy institute like SLIG or GRIP for immersive, in-depth learning.
Conference Trip: One of the largest genealogy conferences in the world is RootsTech in Salt Lake City. If you have some budget for a big-ticket item like a 3-day getaway, this is the one!
Essential Books: Every serious genealogist needs a few core texts, such as Evidence Explained: Citing History Sources by Elizabeth Shown Mills, or a book on breaking through "brick walls."
4. 📕Keepsakes & Custom Creations
These gifts are personal and beautiful ways to display the hard work of research.
Custom Family Tree Art: Personalized family tree charts or posters, such as those from Family ChartMasters, can turn research into a beautiful wall-hanging.
Heirloom Recipe Books: Take those old family recipes, often written in an ancestor's handwriting, and compile them into a professional-quality, keepsake recipe book.
StoryWorth: This unique service compiles a family member's answers to weekly questions into a beautiful, hardbound book, preserving personal stories and memories for generations.
🎄🎁We hope this list helps you or your loved ones find the perfect way to celebrate your passion this holiday season! ⛄🤶🎅