Toledo‑Lucas County Public Library

United States Ohio  Archives and Libraries  

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Contact Information
E-mail: Contact us e-mail form

Address:


 * Main Library
 * 325 Michigan Street
 * Toledo, Ohio 43604

Telephone: genealogy 419.259.5233, or general 419.259.5200

Hours: Sunday 1pm-5pm; Monday - Thursday 9am-8:30pm;  Friday - Saturday 9am-5:30pm.

Map, directions, and public transportation:


 * Map: Google map: Toledo-Lucas County Public Library


 * Directions
 * from the northwest on OH-51/Monroe St: Head southeast on OH-51/Monroe St toward Toledo. Turn slight left onto W Bancroft St, 0.9 mi. Turn right onto Ashland Ave, 0.3 mi. Turn slight left onto Adams St, 0.6 mi. Turn right onto N Michigan St/OH-25, 0.05 mi. The Toledo-Lucas County Public Library at 325 N MICHIGAN ST is on the right.
 * from the north on I-75: Merge onto I-75 S toward Toledo. Merge onto I-280 S via EXIT 208 on the left toward Turnpike E/Cleveland, 1.1 mi. Take the OH-25 S exit, EXIT 11, toward Downtown, 0.2 mi. Keep right to take the Greenbelt Pkwy ramp toward OH-25 S, 0.2 mi. Merge onto OH-25, 1.7 mi. The Toledo-Lucas County Public Library at 325 N MICHIGAN ST is on the right.
 * from the east on OH-2/Jerusalem Rd/Navarre Ave: Turn toward Toledo onto Jerusalem Rd/OH-2. Continue to follow OH-2. Merge onto I-280 N toward Detroit, 1.1 mi. Take the OH-65/Front St exit, EXIT 9, 0.7 mi. Stay straight to go onto OH-65/Craig Bridge St, 0.5 mi. Turn left onto N Summit St/OH-65, 1.3 mi. Turn right onto Adams St, 0.4 mi. Turn left onto N Michigan St/OH-25, 0.05 mi. The Toledo-Lucas County Public Library at 325 N MICHIGAN ST is on the right.
 * from the southeast on I-80/I-90: Merge onto I-80 W/I-90 W/Ohio Tpke W toward Toledo (Portions toll). Merge onto I-75 N via EXIT 64 toward Toledo/Detroit, 5.9 mi. Merge onto OH-25 N via EXIT 201B toward Downtown, 1.4 mi. Turn left onto Adams St, 0.1 mi. Take the 2nd left onto N Michigan St/OH-25, 0.05 mi. The Toledo-Lucas County Public Library at 325 N MICHIGAN ST is on the right.
 * from the south on I-75: Merge onto I-75 N toward Toledo. Merge onto OH-25 N via EXIT 201B toward Downtown, 1.4 mi. Turn left onto Adams St, 0.1 mi. Take the 2nd left onto N Michigan St/OH-25, 0.05 mi. The Toledo-Lucas County Public Library at 325 N MICHIGAN ST is on the right.
 * from the west on I-90: Merge onto I-80 E/I-90 E/Ohio Tpke E toward Toledo (Portions toll). Merge onto I-75 N via EXIT 64 toward Toledo/Detroit, 6.2 mi. Merge onto OH-25 N via EXIT 201B toward Downtown, 1.4 mi. Turn left onto Adams St, 0.1 mi. Take the 2nd left onto N Michigan St/OH-25, 0.05 mi. The Toledo-Lucas County Public Library at 325 N MICHIGAN ST is on the right.


 * Public transportation: All TARTA Toledo buses (except 2C and 3) stop within two blocks of the Main Library.

Internet sites and databases:


 * Toledo-Lucas County Public Library books and media, eMedia, research, services, programs and events, kids, teens, and get connected.
 * Toledo-Lucas County Public Library catalog online search by keyword, title, subject, or author. Also in WorldCat.
 * Local History and Genealogy collection, government records, newspapers, Special Collections, yearbooks, and the Blade Rare Book Room.

Collection Description
The Toledo‑Lucas County Public Library is the place to come if you are looking for early Ohio settlers who entered Ohio via the Great Lakes and Toledo. They have a collection of Great Lakes boat traffic records, 60,000 books related to genealogy and Northwest Ohio history, county and local histories, federal censuses, genealogies, 100,000+ name index, OHS Surname Index, dozens of local newspapers, DAR books, genealogical and historical periodicals, Barbour Collection (CT), U.S. Revolutionary War bounty land warrants for Ohio, public lands claims, Ohio military rosters from the War of 1812 through World War I, Civil War Ohio regimental histories, published ship passenger lists and indexes, computer subscriptions to Ancestry Library Edition, Heritage Quest Online, and New England Ancestors.

The local government collections includes records of the Common Pleas Court, Supreme/District Court, and Probate Court. They also have Health Department records of birth indexes 1868-1933, marriages 1876-1892, and death indexes 1858-1990.

Special Collections includes city directories, school yearbooks, manuscripts, photos, maps, oral histories, jail registers, church records, and cemetery records.

TLCPL is also an affiliate of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, and can order most of their microfilms.

Alternate Repositories
If you cannot visit or find a source at the , a similar source may be available at one of the following.

Overlapping Collections


 * National Archives I, Washington DC, census, pre-WWI military service &amp; pensions, passenger lists, naturalizations, passports, federal bounty land, homesteads, bankruptcy, ethnic sources, prisons, and federal employees. Includes Northwest Territory (Ohio) papers.
 * National Archives Great Lakes Region (Chicago) old federal court and agency records for Ohio, U.S. federal censuses 1790–1940; military service and pension indexes, passenger lists, naturalizations, Ancestry.com, HeritageQuest, Fold3.
 * Allen County Public Library, Fort Wayne, Indiana, premier periodical collection, including Ohio genealogies, local histories, databases, military, censuses, directories, and passenger lists.
 * Newberry Library, Chicago, Illinois, a large repository with genealogies, local histories, censuses, military, land, indexes, vital records, court, and tax records mostly from the Mississippi Valley, eastern seaboard, Canada, and the British Isles.
 * Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, serves as a state archives. Excellent manuscript collection of government, land, and military records. Also, biographies, genealogies, and vital records.
 * State Library of Ohio, Columbus, has good records of Ohio, and of states like Pennsylvania, New York, and the states of New England which all contributed early immigrants to Ohio.

Similar Collections


 * Columbus Metropolitan Library Internet history and genealogy, Sanborn maps, newspaper indexes, Columbus Historical Society, and images. Genealogy section moved until Aug 2016.
 * Dayton Metro Library, the Dayton Room  has one of Ohio's best genealogical collections including books, periodicals, indexes, genealogies, and biographies.
 * Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, a top genealogy and local history collection of early Ohio sources. This includes the Inland Rivers Library  of the Ohio River and its tributaries (riverboat traffic between Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Louisville, Kentucky) in Special Collections.
 * Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County, a good solid genealogy collection with oral histories, state and county histories, biographies, and genealogies. Youngstown was a portal for immigrants from Pennsylvania and New England entering Ohio.

Neighboring Collections


 * Toledo-Lucas County Health Department birth and deaths since 1908.
 * Lucas County Clerk of the Courts, civil, and criminal cases.
 * Lucas County Recorder land records, DD-214 military discharges, veterans graves.
 * Lucas County Probate Court adoptions, birth, guardianships, mental commitments, name changes, probates and wills.
 * U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio, Toledo, recent civil and criminal cases.
 * Ohio Genealogical Society, Bellville, has the best collection of family folders in Ohio. They also have county record guides, biographies, genealogies and unique indexes to various Ohio records.
 * Toledo Area Genealogical Society research, publications, and surnames.
 * Lucas County Historical Society County government, Toledo War, Battle of Fallen Timbers, Civil War, and links.
 * Repositories in surrounding counties: in Ohio: Fulton, Henry, Ottawa, Wood; in Michigan: Lenawee, and Monroe.
 * Bowling Green State University Jerome Library local government records, and newspapers.
 * Erie Lackawanna Historical Society, Cleveland, history of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, Erie Railroad, Erie Lackawanna Railway, and related lines. No employee records.
 * Franklin County Genealogical and Historical Society, Grove City, research services, obituaries, and pioneer families.
 * Mennonite Historical Collections, Bluffton, local Swiss Mennonites and related groups, genealogies, histories of Bluffton and surrounding communities. By appointment.
 * Ohio University Alden Library, Athens, their excellent manuscript collection includes church records, and business records. They also have county histories, biographies, and newspapers. It is like a second state archives.
 * Palatines to America German Genealogy Society Resource Center, Columbus, has an extensive collection of German immigrant ancestor files. Their books are at the Columbus Metropolitan Library.
 * Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center, Fremont, is strong on Ohio history and genealogy, as well as Sandusky River and Great Lakes history, U.S. history and Black studies.
 * University of Akron Libraries Polsky Building one of six regional centers of Ohio records such as newspapers, printed materials, and local government records.
 * University of Cincinnati Blegen Library one of six regional history centers of Ohio for records such as newspapers, printed materials, and local government records.
 * Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, The Western Reserve was a large part of Ohio settled by Connecticut Revolutionary War refugees. This important collection includes original land records, as well as many genealogies, biographies, histories, and Bibles of Pennsylvania and New England.
 * Wright State University Dunbar Library, Dayton, one of six regional centers of Ohio records such as newspapers, printed materials, and local government records.
 * Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor one of six regional history centers of Ohio for records such as newspapers, printed materials, and local government records.
 * Repositories in surrounding states: Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, West Virginia; and in Canada: Ontario.
 * Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, millions of books, newspapers, periodicals, and photos about genealogy and family history, biographies, censuses, citizenship, immigration to and from Ohio and the USA, settlement, births, marriages, deaths, and divorces.