Genealogy and Local
History
Library
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General Search Suggestions
- A Keyword search is the easiest way to search our catalog. The search link above automatically takes you to a keyword search.
- Search multiple keywords, ALL of which you would like to find in a single entry, by entering the words in a single search without quotation marks. For example: Kent war. The search will return all records containing both of those words.
- You may search for a phrase in a keyword search by surrounding the phrase with double quotations. For example “Civil war.” This search method is not always productive. If results are limited or unhelpful, try the same search without quotations. This may help in the case of misspellings. Search terms are not case sensitive.
- Search only one part of the catalog by clearing check marks in all of the boxes under “Content to search” except for the desired area, such as library or archives.
- Use the “Click and Search” option at the top if you want to browse for a title, publisher, etc. by letter of the alphabet.
- Use “Advanced Search” option at the top if you want to look for keywords in specific fields only, such as title, publisher, author, etc.
Books: Books in the Library collection are in the process of being cataloged using a unique system; the process is about 25% complete as of January 2010. The library contains both published and unpublished books and booklets, with a focus on local and regional history, Maryland and Kent County genealogical resources and family histories.
- You may do a keyword search for a title of a specific book by typing in that title. It is suggested you type the main words or phrase in the title so that the search is not too specific. For example: Kent County wills. This will return a search for the book titled: “Abstracts of Kent County Wills” as well as the search term/subject “Wills-Kent County.”
- A keyword search for subjects or search terms may also be effective. Try a general search, such as: American Revolution. You can then narrow your search if necessary. TOP
Maps: The map collection contains original maps, as well as copies of historic maps primarily of Kent County and its towns and Maryland. Select images of our maps can be found on the “Maps” section of this website. About 95% of the current holdings are online as of January 2010.
- To find a listing of all maps, type HSKC Maps Collection using
a keyword search. - Use keyword search to find a map of a specific place or town. For example: Chestertown map. TOP
Document and Archival Collections: The Society holds both collections of documents, as well as miscellaneous documents grouped by categories and subcategories. As of January 2010, the miscellaneous documents have not been entered into the database. Approximately 50% of the document collections (14) have been entered with a general description. Eventually, each item in the collection will be listed individually. The miscellaneous document categories are: Architecture and Engineering; Business and Industry; Culture; Education; Ethnic and Cultural Groups; Family/Genealogical History; Government; Legal Records; Maps and Atlases; Maryland; Military and War; Natural History; Oral History; Organizations; and Religion. Miscellaneous documents have been categorized as of January 2010; visit the Library to view these documents. TOP
Photograph Collections: The Society holds both collections of photographs, as well as miscellaneous photographs grouped by categories and subcategories. As of January 2010, the photo collections are not available online. The main categories are: Architecture and Engineering; Business and Industry; Culture; Education; Ethnic and Cultural Groups; Family/Genealogical History; Government; Legal Records; Maps and Atlases; Maryland; Military and War; Natural History; Oral History; Organizations; and Religion. Distinct collections of photographs will be cataloged together, then identified and inventoried individually when possible. This will be a time-consuming process. The Usilton/Kent County News Collection contains over 5,000 images, for example. Eventually, select images may be available online. TOP
Historic Sites Inventory: The Society maintains files for all historic structures in the Kent County Historic Sites Inventory originally conducted by the Maryland Historic Trust. Additional sites and structures will continue to be added to this “K-file” listing. The files contain the inventory form, photographs and additional documentation collected by the Society. All of the current holdings are online as of January 2010.
- To find a listing of all files, enter a keyword search: Historic Sites Inventory
*To search for a house or street name, enter that term or phrase in a keyword search. For example: Queen Street or Middle Hall. - The K-files will eventually have multiple subjects listed under search terms, which can be found using a keyword search. For example: African-American. TOP
Oral Histories: The Society has a small collection of oral histories, with a goal of expanding their holdings in the future. This collection is not completely online as of January 2010.
- To find a list of all oral histories, use the keyword search: Oral history collection.
- To locate a specific interview, try searching by surname or first name.
- Search terms for the subject(s) of the interviews will eventually be added. For example: agriculture. TOP
Vertical Files: The vertical files are collections of newspaper clippings, articles and copies of documents organized into a system of categories and subcategories. The main categories are: Architecture and Engineering; Business and Industry; Culture; Education; Ethnic and Cultural Groups; Family/Genealogical History; Government; Legal Records; Maps and Atlases; Maryland; Military and War; Natural History; Oral History; Organizations; and Religion. All of the current holdings are online as of January 2010.
- You may find a list of all vertical files in our holdings by doing a keyword search for: “Vertical file” (singular, no “s”). Then, browse all file titles; there are over 1,000.
- You could search for all of the vertical files in a main category by searching the keywords in each category. For example: Maps atlases vertical file.
- Vertical file titles are designed to be descriptive of the contents. Therefore, browsing may be helpful, along with a simple keyword search of the subject and the term vertical file. For example: Revolution vertical file. TOP