1. Example Searches
Simple Search Box
Searches in all fields (title, description, creator, subjects, full text, etc.) in all collections for christmas and cards.
Advanced Search
Searches in the title field in all collections for "bible record"
Searches in the title field in the 1901 Confederate Pension Applications collection for smith or smyth or smythe.
2. Search Tips
Wildcards
Using an asterisk (*) at the end of a search term will search for all terms that start with that search term.
For example, John* will look for John, Johnson, Johnston, Johnstone, and so on.
Punctuation
Punctuation marks (like dashes, commas, and periods) are searched the same as letters and number. For example, well-known will find different results than well known.
Search by Date
Results of date searches may surprise you! Why? Because "Date" may refer to either:
(1) when material was published/created, or (2)the time period described by the material.
In the Advanced Search area, you can search by date. Use the drop-down list to specify a date range, or to search after, before, or on a particular date. Entering a 4-digit year (YYYY) is required to perform a search. You can also search by month and day.
Search with Google
Google may not include all items from the Digital Collections. New items, in particular, may not have been indexed by Google yet.
You can also search our collections using Google. Enter your search term into the Google search bar, followed by site:digital.ncdcr.gov. Google will show you items in the Digital Collections, and may also show you search results pages or collection pages from the Digital Collections.
Google is especially good to use if you aren't sure if only know the approximate spelling or wording of your search term, because it can help correct spelling mistakes or predict near-correct search words.
Google is also good when you are searching for a term or phrase that you expect to appear in the full text of documents. Google shows snippets of text, which can give you a clue about where your search terms show up in documents.
For example, imagine that you were looking for information about the creation of North Carolina's Administrative Office of the Courts. In the search below, for "hereby established" and "Administrative Office of the Courts", you can see that the first result has information about the creation of the new state office. After clicking on the document, you'll need to perform a full text search to find the page or issue that contains this text.
3. FAQs
How do I search for words within the full text of a document?
Most items with text are full text searchable, but many are not. Handwritten documents, for example, are only full text searchable if they have been transcribed.
This site allows for two levels of searching:
- Searching for items
- Searching within items
Searching for items
You can look for all documents that contain specific words by entering your search terms in the simple search box or the advanced search box. By default, the search box searches across all fields, including full text.
Searching within items
Once you have found the item you are interested in, you will next need to find where your term appears in the item. There are four ways to do this:
- Click the "Text Search..." button above the viewing pane and enter your search term. Results will appear in the Thumbnails/Content pane on the right, but search terms will not be highlighted in the document itself.
- Download the file and search using Adobe Reader. Search terms will be highlighted in the document.
- Depending on your browser, there may be a search box within the PDF that highlights the search terms in the document.
- Click "View PDF & Text" button to the top right of the viewing pane. You will be taken to a new page with the full text on the left, and the page on the right. Note: This method may be very slow, depending on the size of the document
Can I search across all collections?
Yes! This site, the North Carolina Digital Collections, has over 30 different collections. You can search across all of the collections, a few of the collections, or within just one collection. You can add or remove collections to your search in the Advanced Search area, or at the top left of the database where it says "Add or remove other collections to your search".
Which are the best collections for doing genealogical research?
The North Carolina Digital Collections has over 30 different collections. Several of these are especially likely to be helpful for genealogical research, including:
There are also many more historical collections in which the names of ancestors may appear:
We also suggest performing searches across all collections. Although you are likely to turn up many non-relevant results, you may find what you are looking for in an unexpected place.
4. Field names
When you filter your results or use Advanced Search, you may notice that field names change, depending on whether you are searching within a single collection or within more than one collection.
| Field names when searching in a single collection |
Field names when searching across 2+ collections |
| Place |
Coverage - Spatial |
| Time Period |
Coverage - Temporal |
| Format |
Format - Medium |
| Digital Format |
Format - Medium |
| Digital Collection |
Relation-Is Part Of |
| Collection |
Relation-Is Part Of |
| Series |
Relation-Is Part Of |
| Serial Title |
Relation-Is Part Of |
| Agency-Current |
Creator |
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