Heritage Quest

How to access Heritage Quest from home:

  1. Call or visit the library to receive the TexShare username and password codes necessary to use the Heritage Quest database at home. You must be a current patron of the library. (These codes are not your library card number or pin.)
  2. Type in www.myhuntsvillelibrary.com.
  3. Hover over “Genealogy” and click on “Genealogical Resources”
  4. Under the “Databases” heading click on “TexShare Databases”.
  5. Fill out the username with the special code given by the library.
  6. Fill out the password with the special code given by the library.
  7. Press “Enter” on your keyboard.
  8. Under “History and Genealogy” click on “HeritageQuest: Discover your family history today”.

Get ready to start searching Heritage Quest. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes and be sure to have fun!


How to fill in the search page in Heritage Quest:

  1. Once you are in the Heritage Quest database (see “How to access Heritage Quest”) click on “Search” which is found in the top left corner next to “Home” or below the title in the red heading. The green “Begin Searching” yields the same result.
  2. After clicking on “Search” several searchable databases will appear.
  3. Click on “Search Now” at the bottom of the desired database or click on the name of the desired database in order to search it.
  4. Fill in the boxes with the search criteria you know. Usually this includes the first name (and sometimes the first letter of the middle name or the full middle name) and the last name. Be flexible. Nicknames and different spellings of names can also help in getting you the results you are looking for.
  5. Other information can also be included. If you know the year the person was born place this in the “Year” box next to “Birth”. If you know the location, then include this in the box underneath the word “Location” and next to “Birth”. It is ok to leave one or both of these blank if you don’t know.
  6. Location can also be given for where the individual lived (year is not necessary) and can be included in the box under “Location” and next to “Lived In”.
  7. “Any Event” is asking for a date and location for anytime in the person’s life that you may know of. This may be used in lieu if you do not know where the individual was born or where he or she lived. An example would be if you know the person was married in Omaha, Nebraska in 1933 even though the individual lived in several states other than Nebraska. 1933 would be placed in the “Year” box next to “Any Event” and Omaha, Nebraska would be placed in the “Location” box next to “Any Event”.
  8. Information about family members of the individual will be included next. Be sure to place the first and/or middle names or initials in the first box and the last name in the second box. The “X” next to the boxes allow you to delete an entry. If you delete an entry by mistake or if you would like to add an entry (such as another sibling) then select the appropriate relationship found next to the “Add Family Member” title.
  9. Next we have a box labeled “Keyword” which can be used to include a known occupation or a title of an organization or group the individual was involved with. Place quotations around the keywords if you want the search to be for the exact words or phrase given. This “Keyword” search can help with searching in books, newspapers, etc.
  10. Finally, you can select the gender of the individual you are searching for and the race/ethnicity of the individual.
  11. Once you are done filling out the boxes then click the word “Search” at the top or bottom of the form. At the top next to the word “Search” is a choice to select “Match all terms exactly”. Selecting this will ensure the database looks for the entered information exactly, but it could also exclude relevant results. Often this choice is chosen if more specific or narrowed results are needed. At the bottom next to the “Search” button is “Clear search”. Clicking this will delete all information in the form so that you can start over on your search criteria.
  12. Fill out the information that you know. If you do not know the information then simply leave it blank and move on to the next set of criteria. More information is meant to help narrow your search results and to give you more accurate search results. However, be aware that only having the name of the individual can yield results (usually a lot of results). The more information you have the more specific the results will likely be. Sometimes less information can help provide results by allowing for more broad interpretation. Searching is a process and changing up search parameters can help with this process.
  13. After hitting “Search” you may find that you have too many results or you may realize that you gave incorrect information. On the left side of the screen you will find an area that says “Search Filters” and a list of the different fields given. Next to “Search Filters” are the words “Broad” and “Exact” with an arrow between them. Next to each search criteria is a box which is below the arrow between “Broad” and “Exact”. You can move these boxes to search with more exact or broader criteria. This can help narrow your results or provide you with more results depending on your needs. Click the “Update” button once you are done moving boxes. You can click the “Edit Search” button to fix or add to the information already entered. Click on the “New Search” button to start a completely new search.

How to Print a Search Result:

  1. Once you have entered your search information (see “How to fill in the search page”) then you must select the “View Record” button for the specific result that you want to look at and print.
  2. The record will give the person’s name and any other information available from the specific record. To the right will be a button stating “View printer-friendly”. Click on this button.
  3. A new page will open showing you the record in a slightly different format. This is a printer-friendly format.
  4. Right click on the mouse to open your options to print. Select the “Print” option. Your computer will open a print page that gives you options on how you want the document printed. This page is where you can choose to print the document in landscape or portrait orientation, all pages or only a certain one, or other choices.
  5. Click the “Print” button to print the record.

How to save/download, email, or print an image:

  1. First, you must view a record and the record must have an image for you to save. Once you have opened a record from your search results look in the left top corner of the record for an option to “View” an image.
  2. Click on “View”. The page will change to the image you chose to view. Select the back arrow or the arrow pointing left found in the left top corner of the image to go back to the record.
  3. If you wish to save the image to your computer:
    1. Click on the “Save” button found in the right top corner of the image.
    2. Select “Save to this computer”. Either the image will automatically save (in pictures or a preset location setup in your computer) or you will have to select a destination to save the image in. This can be on your desktop, in your pictures folder, or in a different area of your choosing. Feel free to change the name of the file to something easier for you to identify or find.
    3. Another place to download the image is found by selecting the button with the picture of a wrench and a hammer on it. Then choose “Download”. This will follow the same process at “Save” in step 3b.
    4. If you wish to email the image to yourself or a friend or family member’s email account:
      1. Click on the “Save” button found in the right top corner of the image.
      2. Select “Send image home”.
      3. A window will pop up asking for you to enter the email account of your choice and then to confirm the email account by entering it again. (You will have to fill out this pop up window for every image you wish to email). Ancestry.com will send you an email.
      4. To access the image you will need to open the email sent by Ancestry.
      5. Then click on “View your discoveries”. This will give you the option to “Download Image” or view a “Printer Friendly” page so you can print the record (not the image).
      6. If you want to print the image:
        1. Click on the button with a wrench and a hammer on it.
        2. Select “Print”.
        3. Here you have the option to print the entire image (automatically selected) or to print a zoomed view giving you a close up look at a specific area of the image. You also have the option to print the index and source data associated with the image. Different images may provide other options specific to the image and associated data.
        4. Pay attention to any notes given about the best way to print the image. (An example would be to print the image in “Landscape” orientation).
        5. Click “Continue”.
        6. Your print screen will come up. This is where you can change the settings (like changing the layout from portrait to landscape) to fit whatever instructions might have been given or leave the settings as they normally are.
        7.  Click “Print”.