Connecticut Archives and Libraries

United States Connecticut  

These archives, libraries, societies, and museums preserve sources, maintain indexes, and provide services to help genealogists document their ancestors who lived in Connecticut.

Wiki Articles on Major Repositories in Connecticut
Connecticut Historical Society • Connecticut State Library •  Connecticut Society of Genealogists Library •  Godfrey Memorial Library •  Mystic Seaport Museum Collections Research Center •  New Haven Museum Whitney Research Library •  UConn Libraries Homer Babbidge Library •  Western Connecticut State University Haas Library •  Yale University Sterling Memorial Library •  Albany Institute of History and Art •  American Antiquarian Society •  Bennington Museum Research Library •  New England Historic Genealogical Society •  New York Public Library •  Vermont Historical Society Leahy Library •  Western Reserve Historical Society •  National Archives at Boston

National Repositories
National Archives at Boston 380 Trapelo Road Waltham, MA 02452-6399 Phone: (781) 663-0130 Fax: (781) 663-0154 E-mail: [mailto:waltham.archives@nara.gov waltham.archives@nara.gov] Internet: National Archives at Boston


 * Collects Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont documents, photos, and maps of 80 federal agencies, War of 1812, fortifications, coastal facilities, World War II research at Harvard and MIT, federal bankruptcy courts, First Circuit Court of Appeals, Navy, Coast Guard, westward expansion, ethnology, genealogy, Revolutionary War, Civil War, captured German records, territorial papers, censuses, passenger arrival records for Boston and New England, and Canadian border crossings.

Statewide Repositories
Connecticut Historical Society 1 Elizabeth Street Hartford, Connecticut 06105 Telephone: 860-236-5621 Fax: 860-236-2664 E-mail: [mailto:ask_us@chs.org ask_us@chs.org] Internet: Connecticut Historical Society Internet: Family History reference works, Mss., online resources, periodicals, microfilm and fiche.


 * Town records, biographies, manuscripts, families, early settlers, church records, photos, and maps.

Connecticut State Library 231 Capitol Avenue Hartford, Connecticut 06106 Telephone: 860-757-6500 or toll free: 866-886-4478 E-mail: E-mail Us form Internet: Connecticut State Library Internet: History and Genealogy Home


 * Barbour Collection, Bibles, census, church, Hale Collection newspaper marriages and deaths, manuscripts, books, cemeteries, probates, vital records, directories, land, local histories, maps, military, naturalization, passenger arrivals, and e-mail questions. Holdings include the collection, "Connecticut Archives," 1629–1820. A helpful inventory of this collection is:


 * Connecticut State Library, Guide to Archives in the Connecticut State Library, Third Edition. (Hartford, Connecticut: Connecticut State Library, 1981; Family History Library book No. 30).


 * The State Library also houses the Museum of Connecticut History (860-757-6521).

Connecticut Society of Genealogists Library 175 Maple Street East Hartford, Connecticut 06118-2634    Mailing address: P.O. Box 435, Glastonbury, CT 06033-0435 USA Telephone: 860-569-0002 Fax: 860-569-0339 E-mail: E-mail form Internet: Connecticut Society of Genealogists Library


 * The library's holdings are not limited to Connecticut and include census records, tax lists, family histories, church records, local histories, and much more.

Regional Repositories
Godfrey Memorial Library 134 Newfield St. Middletown, Connecticut 06457 Telephone: 860-346-4375 Fax: 860-347-9874 E-mail: [mailto:Sharon@godfrey.org Sharon@godfrey.org] Reference Librarian Internet: Godfrey Memorial Library about us, memberships, search, events, and opportunities. Internet: Catalog by keywords, author, title, subject, location, and others. Internet: AGBI Search form ($).


 * The collection is national in scope with many online records in addition to its physical collection. They compiled the . This library is an excellent genealogical facility including many New England town records, guidebooks, indexes, biographies, and genealogies.

Mystic Seaport Museum Collections Research Center 75 Greenmanville Ave. Mystic, CT 06355 Telephone: 860-572-5367 E-mail: [mailto:collections@mysticseaport.org collections@mysticseaport.org] Internet: Collections and Library Art &amp; objects, books, film &amp; video, manuscripts, maps &amp; charts, periodicals, photography, ships' plans, sound archives, and watercraft.


 * Best first-stop for ships' logs and images, journals, ledgers, diaries, and documents from the whaling, fishing, and shipping industries. Preserves the maritime history of Connecticut and New England. 1,300 logbooks, 390 collections, and 800 related volumes from 1720-present.

New Haven Museum Whitney Research Library 114 Whitney Avenue New Haven CT 06510 Telephone: 203-562-4183 x15 Fax: 203-562-2002 E-mail: [mailto:library@newhavenmuseum.org library@newhavenmuseum.org] Internet: The Whitney Library collection description, catalog of manuscripts, research guides, and services.


 * This is the best collection of the earliest southern Connecticut town records. They also have passenger arrival lists, Federal censuses, and a complete set of New Haven city directories since 1840. Formerly known as the New Haven Colony Historical Society.

UConn Libraries Homer Babbidge Library 369 Fairfield Way Storrs, CT 06269 Telephone: 860-486-2518 E-mail: Ask a library form Internet: UConn Libraries


 * They have an outstanding Connecticut genealogy collection.

Western Connecticut State University Haas Library 181 White Street Danbury, CT 06810 Telephone: 203-837-9100 E-mail: E-Mail Reference form Internet: WSCU Libraries about, hours, remote access, FAQs, contact. Internet: Online catalog by keyword, author, title, family name, or subject.


 * Their collection includes histories, biographies, genealogies, and local histories.

Yale University Sterling Memorial Library 120 High Street New Haven, CT 06511-1918 Telephone: 203-432-1775 E-mail: [mailto:askyale@gmail.com askyale@gmail.com] Internet: Sterling Memorial Library


 * Their genealogical strength is their religious collection and Puritain and Congregational Church records. They are also strong on Connecticut, New Haven, and New England history, manuscripts, diaries, and journals.

Out of State Repositories
Albany Institute of History and Art 125 Washington Avenue Albany, New York 12210 Telephone: 518-463-4478 E-mail: [mailto:information@albanyinstitute.org information@albanyinstitute.org] Internet: Library Internet: Online Catalog


 * This is the best collection of indexes and original records for "old" Albany County, New York, part of which included what is now all of Vermont. During the 1600s many families which started in Connecticut later migrated into Vermont and upstate New York.

American Antiquarian Society 185 Salisbury Street Worcester, Massachusetts 01609-1634 Telephone: 508-755-5221 Fax: 508-753-3311 E-mail: [mailto:Library@americanantiquarian.org Library@americanantiquarian.org] Internet: http://www.americanantiquarian.org/


 * They have many Connecticut vital records, newspapers, and town histories. The AAS is best known for their U.S. newspaper collection of over 18,000 bound volumes 1704-1820, history, genealogy, Bibles, maps, biography, directories, Native Americans, women, canals, railroads, photos, and manuscripts.

Bennington Museum Research Library 75 Main Street Bennington, Vermont 05201-2885 Telephone: 802-447-1571 E-mail: [mailto:tresch@benningtonmuseum.org tresch@benningtonmuseum.org] Internet: Bennington Museum Research Library


 * Their collection includes early Connecticut, New York, and Vermont records. It is a great place to find records of families that moved up the Connecticut River and then west.

New England Historic Genealogical Society 101 Newbury Street Boston, Massachusetts 02116-3007 Telephone: 617-536-5740; Library 617-226-1231 Fax:  617-536-7307 E-mail:  [mailto:info@nehgs.org info@nehgs.org] Internet: AmericanAncestors.org


 * Best overall collection for New England (and Connecticut) vital records and probates, and excellent collection for Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, and Europe. The manuscript collection for members-only has diaries, letters, account books, business papers, church and town records, sermons, maps, wills, deeds, unpublished town and family genealogies, photos, and papers of the region's best genealogists since 1850.

New York Public Library U.S. History, Local History &amp; Genealogy Division Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street, Room 315S New York, New York 10018-2788 Telephone: 212-930-0829 E-mail: Ask a librarian Internet: http://www.nypl.org/


 * This is one of the largest research libraries in the world including excellent genealogical resources for Connecticut. The library has city and telephone directories, vital records indexes, local histories, genealogies, federal and state censuses, passenger lists, genealogical collections (including DAR transcripts), and church records. For maps, write to the Map Division at the same address.

Vermont Historical Society Leahy Library Vermont History Center 60 Washington Street Barre, Vermont 05641 Telephone: 802-479-8500 E-mail: [mailto:info@vermonthistory.org info@vermonthistory.org] Internet: Vermont History Center


 * VHS is a good place to research former early Connecticut residents who later moved to Vermont.
 * Brigham, Loriman S. Guide to the "Miscellaneous File" of Uncatalogued Material in the Vermont Historical Society: With a Supplementary Index to the Guide. Montpelier, Vermont: n.p.,1969. ; . This card index of persons, places, and subjects includes family histories and court, business, and land records. The family histories listed may have genealogies, pictures, military records, financial family papers, and correspondence.
 * Brigham, Loriman S. A Calendar of Manuscripts in Certain Boxes at the Vermont Historical Society. Montpelier, Vermont: n.p., 1970. ; . This is a continuation of the above guide.
 * Brigham, Loriman S. A Calendar of Manuscripts in Document Boxes at the Vermont Historical Society. Montpelier, Vermont: n.p., 1972. ; This is a continuation of the above guide.

Western Reserve Historical Society 10825 East Boulevard Cleveland, Ohio 44106-1788 Telephone: 216-721-5722 x1509 Fax: 216-721-0645 E-mail: [mailto:reference@wrhs.org reference@wrhs.org] Internet: Family History and Genealogical Research


 * The Western Reserve was a large part of Ohio at first intended for settlement by Connecticut Revolutionary War refugees. The Research Library at the Western Reserve Historical Society History Center  is the premier repository for Cleveland, Ohio and the Connecticut Western Reserve  history material. This important collection includes original land records, as well as many genealogies, biographies, histories, and Bibles from Pennsylvania and New England. Includes over 20 million manuscripts for genealogical research and northeast Ohio history. They have the world's largest and most comprehensive collection of Shaker materials. Other important collections include the American Civil War, and the automotive industry.


 * Kermit J. Pike, A Guide to the Manuscripts and Archives of the Western Reserve Historical Society (Cleveland, Ohio: Western Reserve Historical Society, 1972). ;.
 * Western Reserve Historical Society. History Library. Card Catalog to the Manuscripts Collection in the Library of the Western Reserve Historical Society (Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1974). ;.

Research Guides

 * Kemp, Thomas Jay.Connecticut Researcher's Handbook. Detroit, MI: Gale, 1981.
 * Leclerc, Michael J., editor. Genealogist's Handbook for New England Research. Boston, Massachusetts : New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2012.