Local & Family History Services
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Digital Collections & Databases


available anywhere image1875 St. Joseph County Atlas Database link
    • 1875 Illustrated Historical Atlas of St. Joseph County, Indiana
    • Searchable, browsable digital version
    • Plat maps, biographies, engravings





available anywhere image1910 South Bend and Mishawaka Elks Convention Book Database link
    • 1910 Official Souvenir, 9th Annual Convention, Indiana State Association, B.P.O.E., South Bend, Indiana
    • Searchable, browsable digital version
    • Text & illustrations
    • People, businesses, & the community



available anywhere imageca. 1910 South Bend YMCA Book Database link
    • 1910 A Manhood Factory in the Center of South Bend's Greatest Industries
    • Searchable, browsable digital version
    • Text & illustrations
    • People, the YMCA, and the community



available anywhere image1936 St. Joseph County Platbook Database link
    • Searchable, browsable digital version
    • Landowners in the unincorporated areas of the county at that time






in the library imageAmerican Ancestors database link
    • Over 250 databases related to New England
    • Town, church, family, Bible, vital, land, tax records
    • Includes New York, Ireland, England, & Eastern Canada





in the library imageAncestry Library Edition Database link
    • Federal and state census images
    • Military records
    • Immigration and passenger list records
    • Indexes of vital statistics
    • How To Use(PDF)



library card imageThe Chicago Tribune (historical) database link
    • Articles/clippings 1920s-1984
    • Front Pages 1900-1984
    • Obituaries & Death Notices 1860-1984





library card imageFold 3 database link
    • Historic newspapers
    • Civil War records
    • Historic photo collections
    • Historic military records




library card imageHeritage Quest Database link
    • Revolutionary War pension files
    • Freedman's Bank records
    • Searchable genealogy & history books
    • PERSI: The Periodical Source Index
    • Many federal censuses
    • How To Use(PDF)


in the library imageIndiana Genealogical Society database link
    • Over 40 databases related to Indiana history
    • Indexes to county, church, military, and school records
    • Accessible at any SJCPL branch with username/password from library staff



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Links to the Past database link
    • Links to the Past: Michiana History
    • Images and historical background
    • People, places, buildings, businesses
    • St. Joseph County, Michiana area, and Indiana




in the library imageNewspaper Archive database link
    • Articles & images
    • Millions of U.S. newspaper articles
    • Multiple geographical areas and time periods
    • Search Tips




available anywhere imageThe New York Times (current) database link
    • New York Times newspaper articles
    • Years 1981-Present
    • Search Tips





available anywhere imageThe Chicago Tribune (historical) database link
    • New York Times newspaper articles
    • Years 1851-1980
    • Years 1851-1922 can be viewed at no cost
    • Search Tips




available anywhere imageObituary Index database link
    • Index to obituaries that appeared in the South Bend Tribune
    • For people with ties to St. Joseph County
    • From 1913-Present
    • How To Use(PDF)




library card imageDigital Sanborn Maps 1867 - 1970 Database link
    • Historical birds'-eye view maps of Indiana
    • How To Use(PDF)






library card imageHistoric Map Works Database link
    • Local, national, and international maps
    • Rural, urban, & suburban areas
    • PCs preferred for printing





in the library imageSouth Bend Tribune Online Archive database link
    • South Bend Tribune newspaper articles
    • Years March 1994-Present
    • Search by date, headline, & section




available anywhere image
Subject Guides database link
    • Genealogy resources
    • Selected by SJCPL librarians






available anywhere imageService Notes Index database link
    •Index to Service Notes printed in the South Bend Tribune
    • World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam War eras






available anywhere image
Available on any computer anywhere. Available on any computer with a valid St. Joseph County Public Library card
 Available at all branches of the St. Joseph County Public Library
Programs & Classes

Discussion Group
  • Our Genealogy Discussion Group meets in Local & Family History Services the first Thursday of each month at 12:00 p.m. All are welcome.

Upcoming Programs

Past Programs
  • Finding Your Ancestors Online (October 2006)

  • Limburger & Lace: Belgians in St. Joseph County (November 2006) Program Slides (pdf):

  • Genealogy 101: Beginning Family History Research (March 2007)

  • Journeys & Journals: Indiana Immigration & Writing Your Family History Memoirs (April 2007)

  • Genealogy 101 (August 2007)

  • So You Want to Join a Lineage Society? (March 2008)

  • Where Our Grandparents Walked: Finding Our Ancestral Homelands (May 2008)

  • Archives Alive! (October 2008)

  • Local & Family History Services Open House (October 2008)

  • Your Indian Ancestors: How to Research the Native Americans in Your Family Tree (April 2009)

  • American Stories: African American Life and Roots; the History Behind To Kill a Mockingbird (May 2010)

  • Who Do You Think You Are? Uncover Your Family's History (November 2010)

  • All About Ancestry.com (November 2011)

  • 1940 Census Party (April 2012)

  • Solve Family Mysteries with Ancestry.com (April 2012)

  • A Case of Identity: Or Who is Hilda Johansson? (April 2012)

  • After Ancestry.com: What Genealogical Sources Should I Use Next? (November 2012)