Website makes it easier to do historical research

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Officials say a website created by the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library will make it easier to locate information in the library's 12 million-item collection.

The site features a timeline of the 16th president, podcasts, blogs, selected bibliographies and research links.

Visitors can search lists of local newspapers on microfilm from the early 1800s, learn how to preserve their own historical documents and artifacts, and use a link to ask questions routed directly to the staff member who can answer them. It also offers access to oral history interviews.

Genealogists of all levels of skill and interest will be able to identify more easily the types of materials in the library using a searchable last-name obituary database or other tools such as ethnic and military service bibliographies.