Pennsylvania, Historical Society of Pennsylvania Card Catalog - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States Pennsylvania

What is in the Collection?
This collection consists of images of the card catalog in the reference room of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania for the years 1553 to 2015.

What Can this Collection Tell Me?
Card catalog images usually contain the following information:


 * Title of family history books in repository
 * Library file number
 * Author
 * Publication date and place

How Do I Search the Collection?
To begin your search it is helpful to know:
 * The subject of interest surrounding your ancestor
 * Other identifying information such as the surname or names of family members.

View images in this collection by visiting the Browse Page: To search the collection you will need to follow this series of links: ⇒ Select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page ⇒ Select the “Category’” ⇒ Select the “Item of Interest'” which takes you to the images.

Look at each image to determine if the image relates to your ancestor. You may need to look at several images and compare the information listed in those images to make this determination. Keep in mind for multiple surnames and record types.

What Do I Do Next?
When you have located records that may be appropriate to your ancestor, download a copy of the record, or extract the information needed. You will then need to contact the Historical Society to gain access to the record. You may also find helpful information on the [http://hsp.org/ Historical Society of Pennsylvania's website).

I Found Who I was Looking for, What Now?

 * Use the information found to locate additional records for your family.
 * Titles may be clues to property ownership, occupations, rank, or status within the community.

I Can't Find Who I'm Looking for, What Now?

 * If your ancestor used multiple names throughout their life, look for all their names.
 * Check in surrounding localities for your family.

Citing this Collection
Citing your sources makes it easy for others to find and evaluate the records you used. When you copy information from a record, list where you found that information. Here you can find citations already created for the entire collection and for each individual record or image.

Collection Citation:

Image Citation