Birmingham Public Library

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Contact Information
E-mail:


 * Genealogy and Local History
 * Birmingham Obituaries and Newspapers

Address:


 * Birmingham Public Library
 * 2100 Park Place
 * Birmingham, AL 35203-2744

Telephone: Genealogy, and Southern History 205-226-3665; Government Documents 205-226-3620.

Hours and holidays:


 * Central Library hours: Monday-Tuesday 9-8; Wednesday-Saturday 9-6; Sunday 2-6.
 * Hours of Archives Department: Monday-Friday 9-6.
 * Holiday schedule.

Directions, map, and public transportation:


 * I-59/20 to 22nd Street exit. Travel south to Park Place and turn right. Library on right.
 * Google Map
 * Only 4 or 5 blocks from the hub area of all buses, the closest stop to the Central Library is BJCTA Bus Route 23 North Birmingham.

Internet sites and databases:


 * Birmingham Public Library Internet site blog, location, events, books and materials, photos, services, programs, and digital resources.
 * BPL Catalog online search by keyword, author, title, subject, ISBN/ISSN.
 * BPL Genealogy webpage tips, databases, researchers, local indexes, family files, censuses and classes.
 * BPL Southern History webpage Birmingham, Jefferson County, Alabama, and regional history, geography, genealogy, folklore, maps, and newspaper clippings.

Collection Description
Genealogical databases, bibliographies, local indexes, obituaries, family files, federal-state-county censuses, cemetery transcripts, passenger arrival lists, classes, how to request copies by mail, pathfinder, African American genealogy, American Indians, heraldry and peerage, Southern history local, county, state and regional histories, genealogy, geography, newspapers, and folklore in manuscripts, books, periodicals, and databases including Caribbean, and map collections, and a rare book collections about early Americana, Civil War and other military records, Alabama county records, Alabama coal mine fatalities 1898-1938, Alabama Episcopal Church Registers, Alabama Jewish history, deed-will-administrations indexes, naturalization indexes, city directories, and researchers for hire.

Tips
Make an appointment and bring photo-I.D. to see rare books.

Guides

 * Genealogical Research - How to Begin.
 * Genealogy Pathfinder.
 * Tips for African-American Genealogical Research.
 * Birmingham Obituary Research Guidelines.

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


 * Alabama Department of Archives and History, Montgomery, local government files, newspapers, maps, church records, Civil War soldiers, photos, publications, historical quarterly, 1867 voter database, World War I Goldstar database, vertical files, personal history surname file, and AL city directories inventory.
 * National Archives Southeast Region (Atlanta) federal censuses, Ancestry.com, military, pensions, bounty-land, photos, passengers arrival indexes, naturalizations, Native Americans, African Americans, workshops.

Similar Collections


 * Family History Library, Salt Lake City, 450 computers, 3,400 databases, 3.1 million microforms, 4,500 periodicals, 310,000 books of worldwide family and local histories, civil, church, immigration, ethnic, military, Mormon records.
 * Dallas Public Central Library 111,700 volumes, 64,500 microfilms, 89,000 microfiche, and over 700 maps, marriage, probate, deed, and tax abstracts in book form, or microfilm of originals for some states, and online databases.

Neighboring Collections


 * Alabama Genealogical Society/Samford University Library Special Collections, Birmingham, Baptist and Alabama history, church records, current and old newspapers, manuscripts, books, and theses.
 * Mobile Public Library Index to Confederate Pension Records for AL and MS, Confederate soldiers, Mobile County Probate Court Index 1819-1964, Dawes Commission Indian Rolls.
 * Florence-Lauderdale Public Library, Florence, AL, good northwest AL local history collection.
 * Birmingham District Archives (incl. Jefferson County), Birmingham Public Library, government records, business records, maps, photographs, letters, diaries, scrapbooks, and other primary material documenting the history and development.
 * Bureau of Vital Statistics, Montgomery, birth and death certificates 1908-present, marriage certificates 1936-present, divorce records 1950-present.
 * Auburn University Libraries, Auburn, AL, federal depository library, genealogy websites, censuses, printed sources, manuscripts.
 * Alabama Historical Association news and events, Alabama Review, historical markers program, podcasts, and list of Alabama genealogical and historical societies. See also U. of W. Alabama Library.
 * Jefferson County Historical Association, preserving and publicizing local history through regular meetings, publications and events.
 * Birmingham Genealogical Society, blog, links to resources, queries message board, guest speakers, study groups, and researchers.