Ancestry.com opens up US military collection to free searches in honor of Veterans Day

Ancestry.com opens up US military collection

PROVO, Utah — Genealogy Web site Ancestry.com is opening up its entire U.S. military collection in honor of Veterans Day.

The Provo-based company says anyone can search the collection for free through Friday.

The company also says it has added more than 600 Navy cruise books to its online collection of military records for the holiday.

The books are like yearbooks and include the names and photos of those who served on ships. Ancestry.com says one book — a 1946 edition for the U.S.S. Pennsylvania — includes a photo of TV legend Johnny Carson.

The collection of books spans cruises following World War II from 1950-88.

The Navy Department Library has about 3,500 cruise books on file that Ancestry.com plans to digitize and add to its collection.