Genealogy and Local History at
Winnetka Public Library

(Also see the North Suburban Genealogical Society Page)

The Winnetka Library's Katharine Greeley Genealogical Collection has over 6,000 volumes that include manuscripts, magazines, microfilm, microfiche, CD-ROMs and computer databases. The collection contains information primarily about states from the Atlantic to the west bank of the Mississippi River, but also contains information from other areas.

The Genealogical Collection is located on the Lower Level of the Main Library and is open during the following hours:

• Monday - Saturday: 9:15 AM - 12 Noon and 1:15 - 4:00 PM
• Sunday (September - May): Hours Vary (Please Call)

The Genealogical Collection includes:

Computer Databases:

• AncestryPlus
• HeritageQuest Online

New England Resources:

• The Barbour Collection (Connecticut Vital Records)
• Early Vital Records of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to about 1850

Military Records:

• Records from early colonial wars through the Spanish American War
• Massachusetts Soldiers & Sailors of the Revolutionary War
• The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (Navy series available)
• Genealogical Abstracts of Revolutionary War Pension Files and Index to the War of 1812 Pension Files.

Lineage Books:

• Lineages of DAR members (also accessible through AncestryPlus)
• Lineages of other patriotic and hereditary societies such as Founders and Patriots, Huguenot Society, Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company and Society of Colonial Wars.

Census Records:

• Microfilm of the 1850 census for all states from the Atlantic to the west bank of the Mississippi River
• 1850 slave schedules
• 1850-1880 census on CD-ROM
• Images for portions of the federal census for 1790-1920 from AncestryPlus
• Census returns or records for 1790-1810 and 1870 from HeritageQuest Online

Census Indexes:

• Indexes from 1790 through 1850 for states from the Atlantic to the west bank of the Mississippi River
• Territorial census indexes
• 1860-1920 indexes for states and the nation

Local and Family Histories:

• Historical information about most Illinois counties and many New England towns.

Genealogical Magazines:

• The American Genealogist
• The New England Historical & Genealogical Register
• New York Genealogical and Biographical Record.

Obituary index:

• Index of obituaries published in The Winnetka Talk from 1917-present

Heraldry Collection:

• Information about on English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh and continental European heraldry.

British Peerage:

• Debrett's Peerage, Baronatage, Knightage, and Companionage
• Burke's Landed Gentry; Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Peerage, Baronatage and Knightage, Privy Council and Order of Precedence; Genealogical and Heraldic History of Landed Gentry Including American Families with British Ancestry; and General Ancestry of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales