When researching in Northeast Ohio one of my favorite places to conduct research is at the Cleveland Public Library- History and Geography Department on Superior street. The unique items in this collection make it well worth a personal trip, but some of the records can be accessed online. I will highlight some of the items in the collection that I find unique.
As mentioned in a previous article on City directories it is one of my favorite between census sources for documenting a families location. The library has a complete collection of directories for the city directories for the City of Cleveland on microfilm. This collection starts as early as the 1840's. Other cities that are covered are Bay Village, Bedford, Berea, Chagrin Valley, Euclid, Fairview Park, Garfield Heights, Lakewood, Lyndhurst, Parma, and Rocky River. The years vary in this collection and the records are not available online through the library, but some are available on Ancestry.
My favorite part of the collection and what I find to be a amazing source is the Cleveland Necrology File. It is a amazing resource. This is the death notices in the City of Cleveland that appeared in the paper from roughly 1833, 1847-1848 and finally 1850-1975. Now for the amazing part this collection is available for review online. Included in the online information is the persons name, date of death, name of paper, address, survivors and where they were buried. The papers included are the Plain Dealer, Herald and the Press. I can not say enough good things about this collection.
In the upcoming weeks I will be highlighting other items from this collection. As always please post your questions and ideas for me. Look forward to hearing your thoughts.
1 comment:
Thanks for this post, Derek! I know that city directories are a great way to search for the living, extending past the 1940 Census. They are next on my list! But also the Cleveland Necrology data sound so useful, complete, and online as well. Makes me wish my relatives were from Cleveland. You are generous with your list of databases!
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