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Tag: Genealogy

Cropped spread from Ruralite magazine, titled "At Home"
Kittitas Ruralite Magazine provides a glimpse into the past

Kittitas Ruralite Magazine provides a glimpse into the past

Ruralite Magazine was first published in 1954 with “a spirit of public service and forward-looking sensibility.” But the magazine was not exclusive to Kittitas County as it was published by public utility districts across Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California, Nevada, Montana, and Alaska. Each state had multiple Ruralite versions specific to particular counties or regions, and by 1977, there were about 38 different editions going out to 157,000 households across the Northwest. This personalization of the magazine provides a unique window…

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Wherefore telephone books?

Wherefore telephone books?

It wasn’t that long ago that telephone books played a fairly significant role in our daily lives. Whether you used one as a booster seat at dinner, or you were looking up the number of a neighbor or local business, telephone books were an incredibly handy tool. One could argue that they were the single most important resource about a local community before the internet. To preserve the wealth of information contained in old telephone books and the precise “moment…

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Browse and search historical publications with the new Washington Digital Newspapers website

Browse and search historical publications with the new Washington Digital Newspapers website

The Washington State Library, a division of the Office of Secretary of State, has launched a new website for the Washington Digital Newspapers program at Washingtondigitalnewspapers.org. The site features new titles in the State Library’s digital newspaper collection, with full-text article search of more than 400,000 pages from the State Library’s collection of historic Washington newspapers. Visitors can interact with the site with the help of text correction features to improve search results on dark or damaged pages, by attaching subject…

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Newspapers on a computer
Washington State Library brings NewsBank access to home users

Washington State Library brings NewsBank access to home users

Thanks to a partnership with NewsBank, the Washington State Library is now able to provide access to the Access World News and America’s GenealogyBank databases from anywhere with an internet connection. If you have a library card or e-card from the Washington State Library, you can search or browse NewsBank’s collection of world and U.S. newspapers as well as take advantage of the America’s GenealogyBank collection of obituaries, historical books, and historical documents. Just go to Newspapers at the Washington…

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Want to dig into your family roots? Go to Ancestry Day Sept. 24

Want to dig into your family roots? Go to Ancestry Day Sept. 24

Interested in learning more about your family’s history? Whether you’re a genealogy expert or just starting to dig into your family’s roots, you’re encouraged to attend Ancestry Day in Tacoma Saturday, Sept. 24. The event is co-hosted by Ancestry, the Washington State Historical Society,  and the Office of Secretary of State’s Washington State Archives, Washington State Library and Legacy Washington . “This will be a great event for many people in Washington and the Northwest who want to learn more…

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Ancestry Day in Washington State

Ancestry Day in Washington State

SAT, SEP 24 AT 8:00 AM, TACOMA, WA * Greater Tacoma Convention & Trade Center * Tickets $15 – $35            Join Ancestry, Washington State Archives, Washington State Library, Legacy Washington and the Washington State Historical Society as they present Ancestry Day in Washington State, Sept 23-24, 2016. Both novice and experienced genealogists are welcome at this event. Registration for the Ancestry Day on Saturday, Sept 24 is $35.00 and includes admission to all Saturday classes presented by Ancestry….

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Digital Archives milestone: 150 million records!

Digital Archives milestone: 150 million records!

Since opening in 2004, the Washington State Digital Archives has been a source of pride for our office, as it is the nation’s first archives dedicated specifically to preserving electronic records from state and local government agencies that have legal, fiscal or historical value. The Digital Archives recently hit a major milestone: it received its 150 millionth record! The landmark document is an appointment of successor, a type of land record, that was filed in King County earlier this year….

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Spotlight on Staff: Kathryn Devine

Spotlight on Staff: Kathryn Devine

Spotlight on Staff: Kathryn Devine When you think of detectives you may think of the hardboiled Sam Spade or perhaps Sherlock Holmes with his deerstalker hat, but working behind the scenes at the Washington State Library is a detective extraordinaire — Kathryn Devine. Kathryn is one of our Public Services Librarians and an expert at deep genealogical research. As her supervisor Crystal Lentz says, “Kathryn has solved many a genealogical mystery for us.” She has a BA in History from…

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What can you find in a city directory?

What can you find in a city directory?

Do you know what you can find in a city directory? If you want to research your home, your family history, or local history you’ll want to use city directories. They are similar to telephone books in that they were published every year, and they list the people living in a city….but city directories have so much more information. You can find out the name of a spouse, both living and deceased.   You can find out someone’s profession.  …

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Get a free State Library e-card!

Get a free State Library e-card!

As times have changed, the State Library has changed, too, offering many collections, items and services on its easy-to-navigate website. Now the State Library is offering another helpful, cutting-edge tool for Washington patrons: a State Library e-card. An e-card allows you access to a free obituary lookup service and the ProQuest database of Washington newspapers, making it ideal for history buffs, genealogists and others who need an obit or article but don’t have time to travel to the State Library’s…

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