Kalamazoo Resources
The Western Michigan University Archives and
Regional History Collections consists of historical
University, regional, and local governmental records.
The holdings total over 17,000 linear feet, making the
WMU Archives the largest facility of its type in
southwestern Michigan and one of the largest in the
state. Detailed finding aids exist for the manuscript
collections. In addition to the manuscript
collections, the unit has oral histories, census
records, a research collection of books, magazines,
and newspapers, and several large photographic
collections.
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Kalamazoo Public Library
315 S
Rose St,
Kalamazoo,
MI 49007
Phone: (269) 342-9837
Local History Room: (269) 553-7808
The
Kalamazoo
Public Library has a local history room with a
collection that includes county and local histories, old
city directories, and plat maps.
They have extensive files of clippings, pamphlets, etc.,
many of which might be useful to searchers who have
family in the Kalamazoo area. Their microfilm
collection includes
Michigan
census records through 1920 - including soundex - and
back issues of the
Kalamazoo Gazette. There is also a
computer index to the Gazette which can be searched.
The library catalog, as well as other library
information, can be accessed online
(select 'Resources -
all of KPL' from this page and then click
'search.' Resources available to search include
the card catalog, the indexed Kalamazoo Gazette
and the Community Information Database.
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The Kalamazoo County Clerk’s Office
has marriage records from 1831 and birth and death
records from 1867. Research assistance from Kalamazoo
Valley Genealogical Society volunteers is available.
If you are an out of town researcher, you can e-mail
Ardis Pierce or
Sue Sanders at least two weeks prior to your visit
and they will try to assure that help will be
available even on days and times a volunteer is not
scheduled. Volunteers are usually
available weekday afternoons from 1-4 as well as
Friday mornings 9-12. Copies of certificates are
available for $13 for the first copy, if you need a
copy. You are welcome to transcribe all of the
information you wish. A telephone call to assure
a volunteer is scheduled is recommended for all
visiting researchers.
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LDS
Family
History
Center
1112 N Drake,
Kalamazoo
,
MI 49006
Phone: (269) 342-1906
The
Kalamazoo
Family
History
Center
staff invites you to visit us and get acquainted with
our facility and operations. We are located on
the south side of the Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints at 1112 North Drake Road in
Kalamazoo
. We are open Tuesdays and Wednesdays (
10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
); however, there are seasonal closings so call ahead
(269) 342-1906.
We
have a permanent collection of most vital records (on
microfilm) for the following
Michigan
counties: Allegan, Barry, Berrien, Calhoun, Cass,
Clinton
, Eaton,
Kalamazoo
, Lapeer,
Oakland
,
St. Joseph
, and Van Buren. In addition, we have some vital
records on microfilm for Alcona, Antrim, Bay, Branch,
Charlevoix,
Genesee
, Grand Traverse, Gratiot, Ingham,
Ionia
, Isabella,
Jackson
,
Kent
, Leelanau,
Livingston
,
Macomb
, Manistee, Mecosta, Montcalm,
Muskegon
, Newaygo, Otsego,
Ottawa
, St. Clair, Sanilac, Washtenaw,
Wayne
, and Wexford counties. Other films may be
ordered from
Salt Lake City
for a charge; currently $5.50 per roll of microfilm.
Many
patrons now use the library catalog at
www.familysearch.org
to determine the microfilm they want to search and
then stop by to order the film. Patrons then return to view the film about 2 to 3
weeks later after notification of arrival. These
films, containing genealogical records from all over
the world, remain in our library collection for about
a month and may be renewed for longer periods of time
if desired. A copier is available for making
prints of microfilm images for $0.30 per page.
Four
computers with broadband Internet connection are now
available for patron use at no charge. Like many
genealogy libraries, the
Kalamazoo
Family
History
Center
has full access to records on the Ancestry.com
website. Ancestry’s extensive and rapidly
growing US Census Index, with links to the original
records, is a popular resource. Computer
printouts are $0.05 per page. We look forward to
your visit.
Find
a Family History Center
LDS
FamilySearch
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Michigan Resources
County Clerk offices maintain public
records of great interest to genealogists. The
Archives of Michigan was pleased to make the 1994 Michigan
County Clerks Genealogy Directory available on the
World Wide Web in 1996. Since then, there have two
major updates to the entire directory (The most recent
was in December 2001). The Archives continues to make
revisions, as new information becomes available -
usually from the County Clerks themselves.
Records are generally available from
1867 on. To receive a copy of a birth record,
you must have a legal relationship with the
individual.
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The
Division of Vital Records and Health Statistics has
provided Internet access to information from archived
death records through the Genealogical Death Indexing
System (GENDIS). This system allows the user to
search for records using key pieces of information
such as the decedent's name, father's last name, and
year of death.
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Archives
of Michigan
Michigan
Historical
Center
702 W Kalamazoo,
PO Box 30738
Lansing
,
MI
48909-8238
This is an excellent listing that
describes the holdings of the state of Michigan
Archives in detail.
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Library
of Michigan
Michigan
Historical
Center
702 W Kalamazoo,
PO Box 30007
Lansing
,
MI
48909-7507
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MeL databases contain full-text
articles from magazines, journals and newspapers as
well as digital books.
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Founded in 1972, the
Michigan Genealogical Council is an organization
composed of two delegates from each member society.
It's objectives are to locate, preserve, publish and
deposit in suitable repositories records of value to
genealogists and to initiate activities which
encourage and assist those who are involved in
genealogical research.
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A cumulative full-name index merging
many Michigan publications and manuscripts.
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Grand
Rapids Public Library
60 Library Plaza,
Grand Rapids
,
MI
49503
Phone: (616) 456-3640
Collections include Federal census
records for
Michigan
and
New York
, microfilmed newspapers, cemetery records, and vital
records. They also have county histories, genealogical
periodicals and family histories.
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Van
Buren District Library
Webster Memorial
Library
200 N Phelps St,
Decatur, MI 49045
Local History/Michigan/Genealogy
collection for the District library
system are housed at the Webster Memorial Library.
Also housed here is the collection of the Van Buren
Regional Genealogical Society.
Collections includes Federal and State census for the
six counties of southwest Michigan, newspapers on
microfilm, court records on microfilm, cemetery
records, surname/locality vertical files, obituary
collection (approx. 150,000), atlases, general
genealogy, family histories, maps, periodicals,
directories, and is currently serving as a repository
for yearbooks of the six counties of SW Michigan and
other Michigan counties.
This collection is regional in nature and very strong
in general
Michigan
history including large sets such as the Michigan
Pioneer Collection, Michigan Soldiers and Sailors of
the Civil War and the Michigan History Magazine.
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Detroit
Public Library
5201 Woodward Ave,
Detroit, MI 48202
Phone: (313) 833-1000
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Other
Area Resources with Michigan Data
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Allen
County Public Library
900 Library Plaza, Ft Wayne, IN
46802
Phone: (260) 421-1252
Second largest
resource in the world
for the most comprehensive genealogical information in
the world.
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The
Newberry Library
60 W Walton St, Chicago, IL
60610-7324
Phone: (312) 943–9090
The Newberry Library, free to the
public, is one of the world's leading independent
research libraries. Focusing on the humanities, the
Library's evolving collections embrace the history and
literature of the civilizations of Western Europe and
the Americas.
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