Oakhearth™
Now inviting beta testers

Every branch,
one home.

Oakhearth is a private home for your family's history. Your family owns it, you host it, and it never gets sold to anyone.

OAKHEARTH™ EVERY BRANCH, ONE HOME
Yours to keepIt runs on your own computer, so your family's photos and stories stay with you.
No ads, no AINobody mines your memories, trains a model on them or sells them.
No subscriptionPay once and keep your version for as long as you like.
Easy for every ageA simple Classic look and a friendly guide help grandparents feel at home.
Take a tour

See Oakhearth in action.

Real screens from Oakhearth, filled with a made-up sample family, the Whitlocks.

The Whitlock Family Oakhearth

Sample data only: every name, date and place shown is invented.

Why Oakhearth

Social media wasn't built to hold a family's history.

Big platforms make money from your attention and your data. Oakhearth is built the other way around. It's a quiet, private place that belongs to your family and is run by someone you trust.

A safe place for the whole family to share memories and stories, without any of it being used by big corporations.
  • Private by designOnly invited relatives can sign in. Nothing is public and nothing shows up in search engines.
  • Hosted by youInstall it on a Windows PC or your own server. Your family's data stays on hardware you control.
  • Every branch welcomeEvery surname is welcome. Kids, in-laws and blended families all find their place, and each family adds its own name: “The Whitlock Family Oakhearth.”
  • Bring your tree with youStart from a GEDCOM file exported from the genealogy program or website you already use.
What's inside

Much more than a family tree.

Oakhearth turns a family's research into something relatives actually want to visit, explore and add to.

Family tree & ancestor stories

A pedigree you can browse and edit, plus life-story pages for every ancestor, with homes, journeys and keepsakes.

Hearthside Library

Records, maps and clippings, filed by family. You can even page through a whole old newspaper issue and zoom in on your relative.

Photos & memories

Albums, people tags and posts made for meaningful moments like anniversaries, graduations and remembrances, not daily filler.

Alma Mater & Passions

Where everyone went to school, plus sports, music and stage, nursing, teaching and the family awards room.

Homesteads & the village

Each member gets a home that grows as they take part, all set in a village around the family oak.

Quests, badges & games

Hearth Road quests, family trivia and earned achievements keep relatives coming back to learn about each other.

Messages & branch calendars

Private and group chats, announcements and event calendars for each branch of the family.

Hall of Honor & In Memoriam

A respectful home for the relatives who served and for those you've lost.

Meet Leif, your guide

A friendly oak-leaf helper on every page who gives tips, answers family questions and gives a short tour to new members.

How it works

Up and running in an evening.

Installation is meant to be as easy as installing a game, with no command line needed.

Install it

Run the Oakhearth installer on a Windows PC that stays on, or on your own server. Everything it needs comes in the box.

Bring in your tree

Import a GEDCOM file, give your site its family name and choose its look.

Invite the family

Send invites to relatives. Leif walks each one through linking themselves to the tree on their first visit.

The beta is for Windows to start, and you'll need a computer that can stay on. Comfortable running your own server? Even better. Tell me in the form below.

Fair and simple

Buy it once. It's yours.

Oakhearth will sell for a flat price, not a monthly fee. Since you run it yourself, your version keeps working for as long as you want. Big new versions will be optional upgrades.

During the beta
Free, with every feature included.
At launch
One-time purchase. Pricing will be announced to beta testers first.
Major updates
Optional. Upgrade when you want to, or stay where you are.
Beta testers wanted

Help shape Oakhearth.

I'm looking for a small group of families to run Oakhearth and tell me honestly what works and what doesn't.

  • Free access to the full kit during the beta
  • A direct line to the person building it
  • First word on launch pricing
  • Your feedback goes straight into what gets built next

I'll only use your email to talk with you about Oakhearth. No mailing lists are sold or shared, ever, and you can ask me to delete your details at any time.

Thank you!

I've got your request and will reach out personally soon. Every branch, one home.