A free planner for family-history archive and library visits
Genealogy research trip planner.
Put the question, repository and precise record references together before you travel. Keep availability checks, priorities and the results of each visit in your own words.
Up to 20 stops · Text download · Blank or filled printing · No account
Getting the worksheet ready…
Arrive with a question and a record reference
Start with a few people or one branch of your historical family research. Write what you already know, the question still open and the particular records that could help. Check the repository’s catalog, collection descriptions and finding aids; a broad surname alone may not identify the material you need.
The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society’s research-trip guide recommends narrowing your focus, preparing questions and reviewing catalogs before a visit. The U.S. National Archives’ visit-planning guidance advises contacting the relevant location beforehand to check where the records are held and keeping notes on what you consult. This original planner gives you space to organize those checks; it does not make an appointment or confirm access.
Separate a plan, a request and a confirmation
A proposed date is different from a confirmed visit. Record the public facility page and when you checked it, and label any unconfirmed request. Check the current rules for that specific repository, including registration, opening dates, record retrieval, permitted notes and copying. Do not assume one archive’s arrangements apply elsewhere. Keep an alternative collection or online task in case your first choice is unavailable.
A fictional example
Stop: Invented County Archives. Question: Which historical household included Jo around 1910? Target: An invented assessment series, volume 4, pages 20–35. Availability: Catalog checked; staff confirmation still pending. First task: Verify the series and date coverage. Result: Leave blank until you have actually examined the records, then keep the source and the scope of any unsuccessful search.
Before you save your visit plan
Is this a free printable genealogy research trip planner?
Yes. Type a plan for an archive or library stop, or print one blank worksheet with handwriting lines. Add up to twenty stops. Filled text and printing include stops with something entered, even without a label, and retain their original numbers. Untouched extras are skipped.
Does the planner book visits or check whether records are available?
You make those checks yourself using the repository’s current official information. The worksheet does not search catalogs, send messages, make requests, reserve records or book a visit. Keep a request clearly marked until the repository has confirmed it.
What should I keep after the visit?
Record what you actually consulted, the full references, any useful findings and what remains uncertain. For an unsuccessful search, keep its date range, collection and scope. Add the next record or question you want to investigate without treating an unexamined source as evidence.
Are my research plans uploaded or saved automatically?
They stay only in this page’s memory. They are not uploaded or autosaved; refreshing or closing clears them. Download text or print before leaving. Saved TXT and PDF copies cannot be reopened here as editable plans. Keep private identification numbers outside this worksheet.
Can I print from editing or save a PDF?
Yes. Choose Review my sheet, then Print or save PDF, or use your browser’s print command while editing. Check Letter or A4 in the preview. Each further stop starts on a new page, and long notes can continue onto additional pages. Field labels keep their stop number.
Keep a remembered story beside your research
Save your plan first. MemoirWell’s separate guided interview can help you develop your own memory into an AI-assisted draft chapter to check and edit. These visit notes are not transferred automatically.
Start a free first chapterDownload or print your plan before leaving this page.