Look to the library for local history

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January 28, 2010

Tim Sheehan

Many area libraries and historical societies have local history collections containing useful resources for people interested in learning more about their community's past or about their family's connection to the community.

The one flaw in these collections is that people are unable to borrow items, due to their value and their fragile conditions. Local history collections can only be used when the archive is open. These restrictions have hindered access to these collections. Fortunately, items that once could only be viewed in the library may now be viewed online.

The Internet Archive (www.archive.org) is a nonprofit digital library that archives Web sites, sound recordings, videos and texts.

Many local history and genealogy items found at your local library may be found within this resource, giving you online access to entire documents. A search box at the top of this Web site allows you to search the collection. Once you open the title, you may also search within the title for information you are seeking.

For those interested in Derry history, type in "Derry New Hampshire." Search results bring up many past Derry town reports. Town reports give readers a glimpse of past issues the town encountered. They also record births, deaths and marriages that occurred within Derry for the year.

Willey's "Book of Nutfield" is another local history item that appears with this search. This valuable resource, published in 1895, provides historical information about the times when Derry was part of Londonderry. Those researching their local roots may find the Shipley Graveyard and Forest Hills Cemetery inscriptions listed within this book a worthwhile read.

The same type of search can be done for locating Londonderry and Chester history. For Londonderry, type in "Londonderry New Hampshire." Items from such a search include "Vital Records of Londonderry New Hampshire," a title providing birth, marriage and death listings up to 1910. Several genealogies of Londonderry families are also listed within the search results.

Chester items found within The Internet Archive include town reports. Birth, marriage and death records may be found for some of the years available within Internet Archive.

Benjamin Chase's "The History of Chester" from 1719 to 1869, and John Carroll Chase's 1926 supplement to "The History of Chester" are also available to view or download. Both resources are highly regarded histories of Chester. Some family history of Chester residents residing in town before 1869 may be found within the Chase titles.

Keep in mind that not all local histories and genealogies are available within Internet Archive, nor any other Web site. Most of the printed text that has been scanned and made available within Internet Archive are from large university collections, such as the University of New Hampshire. It will take time and money for all items from our local libraries and historical societies collections to be available on the Internet.

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Tim Sheehan is the librarian at the Chester Public Library. He can be reached at chesterpubliclibrary@gmail.com.