2025 Family Search Centers closed in 2 states
I moved from one state to another in late 2024. The FSC where I lived in Arizona had been closed for years and now in Iowa there are none open where I live now. Are they ever going to reopen??? If not, could they make the records available online from home??
Answers
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What specific records do you need to access? Have you checked to see if they are available at an affiliate library in your area?
Affiliate libraries (AL) are usually part of the local public library system, with much longer hours and larger facilities.
My local FSC is only open one hour per week, so I understand when it's difficult to access what you need. I manage to get much of what I need from the local AL.0 -
This blog article may help give you some resources:
FamilySearch Center Resources Now Accessible at All Church Meetinghouses3 -
If you no longer have a FamilySearch library near you, you can now have access using your own laptop. You can download an app on Chrome that gives you almost all access to everything a FamilySearch library has. The best thing to do if you need assistance is to contact the local FamilySearch consultant; which you can find by going to Find a FamilySearch consultant, and they can assist you in what is needed to get on the site.
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I'm trying to find out if they are closed everywhere. I understand that church members are allowed in but I am referring to the general public. Every time I ask this question, people just tell me to go look up stuff but don't actually answer if their local ones are open. Then the question is marked as answered and is closed. This doesn't get me anywhere.
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My local one is open. I go at least once a month. It's only 2 hours per week, but it is open. And, if you use your own laptop, you can connect to the portal from anywhere in the building. That means any time the doors are open, you can sit in the vestibule and access the restricted records.
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Search for your location here: https://locations.familysearch.org/en/search
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@Amy Archibald My understanding from the above thread is that I can access restricted resources via a Chrome extension from the local LDS church building which is an easy walk from my house. However the link you provided only lists the nearest FSC which, though v welcoming, is a train ride away.
Also the link provided by @sc woz implies it's possible to do the install yourself (given the Windows skills). So can I just walk to the local church building, when open, and get started without bothering anyone?
Please can we have a clear statement of the position for both LDS and non LDS people? This thread has confused me tbh (it is the first I have heard of this possibility, which is very welcome indeed).
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@MandyShaw1 Installation of the portal needed to access the restricted records is extremely easy. I have it installed on my laptop on both Firefox and Chrome browsers. Instructions
I consider myself a competent Windows user, but not a supergeek.
I'm not LDS, as you know.
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The locator I posted the link to is for FamilySearch Centers.
At any LDS Church building, you can use the extension on a laptop and use the FamilySearch portal - and it is simple to add the extension to your browser and use when on the internet at the Church building.
Here is the locator for Church buildings: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/welcome/find-a-church?lang=eng1 -
Thanks Amy, that's brilliant.
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The places listed near me say closed. They are not close by. Therefore I can't just waltz in and use my laptop. Again, that was not my inquiry.
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You asked "I'm trying to find out if they are closed everywhere." No, as explained, they are not closed everywhere. All closed during COVID, of course, and some have not reopened.
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And the notion of taking my laptop is therefore irrelevant. The one closest to me says temporarily closed with no other info and they don't seem set to reopen.
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This has been a great thread from my perspective, honestly, because I previously had no idea that I could use my laptop to access FSC-available resources at any LDS church, not just at FSCs. (Though I haven't tried yet, will do so after Easter & report back on any problems I encounter.) @CopperhairEmeraldeyes do you have no nearby LDS church either?
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Even if the Center is reported as closed, if the building is still in use as an LDS facility, you can access the restricted records by installing the portal on your own computer.
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Would be interested to know whether you were able to try out accessing restricted resources, particularly restricted records at a LDS church, particularly as there is a Group topic elsewhere in
FamilySearch Center Coordinators and Staffhttps://community.familysearch.org/en/discussion/comment/596862/#Comment_596862 dated 20 May 2025
which says "On the topic of accessing 'restricted records', my call to FS Support resulted in being told that these records (distinguished by the camera and lock icon on the images) can only be seen on PCs in a FSC or a FS-Affiliated Library. The answer helped me differentiate that access to Premium websites provided by the browser extension (e.g. in Chrome) for personal laptops on Liahona wifi in non-FSC church buildings is a different topics than accessing restricted records. Does anyone else have any different understanding or clarifications."
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Sorry @MaureenE123 I haven't tried yet, will try to get round there this week armed with some 'restricted' links and do some testing. (It's a bit off my normal beaten track.)
Incidentally I do not use a VPN.
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Thanks @MandyShaw1
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It sometimes is dependent on the personal laptop's settings… but generally the hard wired Center computers have more access.
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@AndersonMaryCatherine1 (or anyone)
Do you have a link or other information to compare what is and isn't possible:
A) on a laptop, connected to FS church public wifi and with the Chrome extension installed, where there is no active/open FSC,
B) ditto, in a building with an active & open FSC,
C) on a FSC hard-wired computer?
Also:
What does 'FS church public wifi' as above actually mean in practice? If there are multiple publicly available wifi networks, which one should be used when taking advantage of the Chrome extension? Or does the user need to get information/support from the church reception etc., ad hoc or or in advance, in order to connect correctly and/or to install the Chrome extension? If so, whom should I ask, and how much notice, if any, do I need to give of my visit?
There seem to be several contradictory messages floating around here in Community - before I walk down to our local (UK) LDS church during its weekday opening hours and see what I can and can't do, it would be brilliant to avoid wasting everyone's time (and, worse, potentially looking as if I was trying to hack the wifi of an organisation I'm not a member of) by having the official guidance in front of me.
Thanks.
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- You need to set up your Chrome Extension on site in a Meetinghouse - so you could download the Premium Sites FamilySearch Center Chrome Extension ahead of time, but you have to activate it on site.
- Most buildings have Liahona wi-fi as their guest wi-fi, but calling and asking ahead will not only allow you to know what a particular building is running, but also to get the password, should it be something different than normal. (99% of the time it is the same in one place as another, but not always)
- You may have to clean out cookies on your laptop to get full use of Premium Sites Extension after using it for awhile - like several weeks of use.
- Here is the info I usually share with my new friends prior to their using the Chrome Extension. https://www.familysearch.org/en/help/helpcenter/article/family-history-center-premium-content-browser-extension
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Brilliant thanks, I will give it a try ASAP.
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When looking for a Family Search Center on the internet and find that they are (Closed) and does not mention when they are (Open) it does not mean that they are permanently closed. The Family Search Coordinator has not posted the times that they are open. You need to contact the Family Search Consultant.
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@Quint Hurst just for the avoidance of doubt my planned visit will be to a LDS church that is not a FSC (and that has opening hours on its website), the objective being to confirm that premium content is available there via the Chrome extension.
P.S. I am having great difficulty contacting them - the website says 9am-6pm Mon-Sat but by appointment only, but provides no contact details to make the appointment with - where can I find an email address (preferably) or 'phone number please? (the church is 46A Locksbrook Rd, Bath BA1 3ES, UK, if anyone could possibly look it up and PM me with the information - many thanks if so).
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@MandyShaw1
I did not find a phone number for the Bath Church. I did find that the meeting time is 10 am on Sunday. A Google search found a missionary on Facebook that is in Southampton now who was in Bath. He invited people to send him a message if they would like to see the Bath Church.
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Many thanks for trying @Quint Hurst, that's very strange! I wouldn't want to turn up with such a request on a Sunday morning in the middle of a service. I'll try texting the number on Facebook to see if they can put me in touch with the right person locally, or at least tell me the wifi details.
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I know it's too late for THIS Sunday, but turning up with such a request is usually fine, at least as far as I've seen. The main sacrament service isn't too long, and there is a break between that service and Sunday School. There are the Bishopric up at the front of the chapel, but really, most anyone you talk to then will be able to connect you to the correct person.
It'd probably be a very enjoyable experience. At least the 2nd or 3rd most enjoyable experience of the week! 😁
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Thanks-I've managed to contact a volunteer there now, they are going to speak to the local leaders about my request.
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Wonderful @ MandyShaw1
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I still think it's odd that their website says 'by appointment only' while providing no way to /make/ the appointment ... communications 101.
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