It is wise to acquaint yourself with any repository which you might visit by writing to the appropriate archive or library in advance. Every repository has published materials that introduce its collections and research policy. State archives and historical agencies also have Internet sites that provide the same information. Some even have downloadable databases for some or parts of their collections.
Kansas Public Libraries - In Kansas, within the entire library system, there is an interlibrary program that can be called upon for many printed materials. The reference librarian at the local library, for a small fee, can request assistance in locating a particular book through this system.
"Genealogists are generally positive and energetic, and most are ready to share their findings or research experience with anyone they can help. There are hundreds of genealogical societies at the grass-roots level. Knowledge of the genealogical community will place you in the midst of much activity, increase your productivity, and alert you to the importance of research standards and etiquette." Sandra Hargreaves Luebking,
Editor of FGS Forum, Co-editor of The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy
Because family history research relies greatly upon records found at the county level, many local societies represent counties. Organizations also form around shared interests. Ethnic or religious origins account for many groups, such as the Polish Genealogical Society of America and P.O.I.N.T. (Pursuing Our Italian Names Together). Societies also form around common locales of origin for members’ ancestors; hence, the Palatines to America and Germans from Russia societies. To locate these and other societies, consult Juliana Szucs Smith’s The Ancestry Family Historian’s Address Book. It lists addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and Internet addresses of thousands of organizations throughout the United States.
For almost every state there is a state genealogical society, a state genealogical council, or both. In addition to their own work, state-level groups sometimes help coordinate the efforts of local societies within the state. Their publications, newsletters and quarterlies, supplement those produced by the local societies.
Kansas State Historical Society, 6425 SW 6th Avenue, Topeka KS 66615-1099 The Center for Historical Research at the Society is comprised of three sections: Library, State Archives, and Manuscripts. The society also operates a museum at a different address. The society has published a listing of historical societies, genealogical societies, and museums throughout Kansas which includes their addresses, hours of operation, and general descriptions of their collections. Interested individuals may purchase a copy from the Kansas State Historical Society.
Most extant territorial records, including census enumerations, are retained here. The researcher should review the specific catagory of records of interest for exact information. Included are territorial records pertaining to John Brown, the New England Emigrant Aid Company, and territorial military records as well as information about early settlers and pioneers.
The Kansas State Historical Society publishes Kansas History: A Journal of the Central Plains, formerly called Kansas Historical Quarterly (1948–present). A directory to historical and genealogical societies is published annually indicating more than twenty genealogical periodicals published in the state.
Various local and county genealogical and historical societies publish excellent newsletters helpful in research.
While records of birth, marriage, and death are the most commonly sought and the most consistently helpful records, only the genealogist’s imagination and resourcefulness limit newspapers’ usefulness in supplying clues about historical events, local history, probate court and legal notices, real estate transactions, political biographies, announcements, notices of new and terminated partnerships, business advertisements, and notices for settling debts.
Newspapers can provide at least a partial substitute for nonexistent civil records. For example, a person’s obituary may have appeared in a newspaper even when civil death records for that person do not exist. And newspapers are an important source of marriage records, particularly in those states where civil recording of marriages was essentially nonexistent until the twentieth century.
Unlike official records, newspapers are not limited to a particular geographical area. They often include reports of the weddings of local citizens (even those that occurred in a neighboring county or another state), and they sometimes report visits of geographically distant relatives or the visits of former local residents. They often published death notices of individuals who had left the area long before but who still had local family or friends as well. In each case the newspaper account can identify the date and place of an event, thus opening the possibility of turning up additional documentation in other sources.
The first step in searching a newspaper is to identify those which served the area of interest and which have survived. The three most necessary tools are bibliographies (What was published?), inventories of library and depository holdings (Where is it?), and indexes (How do I find what I want in it?).
The Kansas Historical Society also have the largest collection of Kansas newspapers on microfilm in the state. The Kansas Historical Society was established by the state's newspaper editors in 1875. A virtually complete collection of all Kansas newspapers published from 1875 to the present is available on microfilm or in original form. The Society also acquired copies of Kansas newspapers published before 1875. Selected out-of-state newspapers in our collections include the New York Times (on microfilm up to 1991 only) and the Kansas City Star, Times, and Star and Times (selected dates only.) All newspaper microfilm circulates through interlibrary loan, and some may be purchased from the society.
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