Free Genealogy
I’m interested in researching my family history. Where is the best place to go for that?Outside Resources Available Through the Library:
Ancestry Library Edition:Accessible free only at a library branch. This database of genealogical resources includes the complete U.S. Census, a multitude of city directories, Find-A-Grave records, military records such as draft registration cards and muster rolls, immigration records such as passenger lists and naturalization records, the Social Security Death Index, and birth, marriage, and death records (coverage varies by state). Available at all Doniphan County library branches. Temporary access at home with current Library District 1 card.
Heritage Quest:Accessible at home or at the library with Kansas Library Card. HeritageQuest offers access to federal census records and city directories, U.S. Indian Census Rolls, slave schedules and Freedman’s Bank records, mortality schedules, agricultural and industrial schedules, and a variety of published family and local histories.
In addition to the newspapers that we hold in microfilm (see below), there are several possibilities for accessing Doniphan County newspapers online: Newspaper.com:Offers free access to Kansans through the Kansas State Historical Society and makes available several Lawrence and Douglas County newspapers dating from the mid-1850s through 1922. Enter your name, Kansas DL or ID number, and your birth date for access to this archive. The Kansas State Historical Society also offers a searchable database of the newspapers in its collection.
Chronicling America:A project that offers a searchable U.S. Newspaper Directory which can be narrowed by geographic coverage, date, language, ethnicity, and labor press (i.e., published for readers of a particular occupation or political philosophy, such as coal miners, dairy farmers, and/or socialists).
Local Resources from the Library
Local Digital Resources:
I addition to the information and files below, we have created our own Genealogy Website. Access to genealogy information including family histories, obituaries, and local cemetery information. Bear with us as we continue to add items. General Historic Documents Family Files (sorted by last name) Doniphan County Churches Brenner SchoolBendena High School:
Bendena High School Yearbooks Doniphan West High School:
Doniphan West High School Yearbooks
Highland High School:
Highland High School Yearbooks
Midway High School:
Severance School: Severance Grade and High School YearbooksSparks School:
Troy High School:
First Graduate Class of Troy High School
Wathena High School:
Doniphan County Cemetery Inventory – by Speedy and Gail Stewart Doniphan Town Site Elwood City Historical Documents Fanning Historical Documents Highland Historical Documents Jackson County, Kansas Schools Whiting Rural High School YearbooksJackson Heights High School Yearbooks
Leona Historical Documents Troy City Historical Documents Wathena City Historical Documents Vertical Files- Newspaper clippings about the history of Doniphan County
- Many donated family files.
Local Physical (nondigital) Resources:
These are hard-copy resources available only at the Library branches. They are not available for check-out. The bulk of our physical collection of newspapers, birth and death announcements, military service records, etc. are at the Troy Library. The other branches also have small local genealogy collections that may help you research your family history. The Doniphan County Courthouse is just across the street from the Troy Branch, so it is very convenient to do research in Troy. Microfilm – The following are available at the Troy Branch:- Federal and State Census records for Doniphan County from 1854-
- Various Doniphan County Newspapers Centennial State 1881 Coffeyville Earth 1913 Denton Journal 1897 Denton Wheel 1895 – 1896 Doniphan County Hustler 1898 Doniphan County Hustler 1906 – 1908 Doniphan County Hustler 1924 – 1928 Elwood Inquire 1965 Elwood Inquire 1967 Highland Vidette 1893 – 1898 Highland Vidette 1900 – 1973 Highland Vidette 1986 – 1994 Highlander 1924 Highlander 1950 Kansas Chief 1919 Kansas Chief 1920 – 1925 Kansas Chief 1927 Kansas Chief 1929 – 1993 Leona Sun 1896 Newspress 1877 – 1878 Severance News 1883 Severence News 1889 Severence News 1900 – 1906 Severence News 1908 – 1909 Severence News 1910 – 1926 Telephone 1906 – 1907 Troy Times 1886 – 1901 Wathena Advance 1878 Wathena Republic March 1900 – Dec 1900 Wathena Republic 1901 – 1906 Wathena Republic 1908 – 1910 Wathena Republic 1912 Wathena Republic 1914 Wathena Republic 1917 Wathena Star 1896 – 1897 Wathena Star 1899 – 1900 Wathena Times 1902 – 1907 Wathena Times 1930 – 1991 Wathena Times 1993 – 1993 Wathena Times 1995 Wathena Weekly Gazette July 1889 – Sept 1890 White Cloud Chief 1920 White Cloud Globe 1892 – 1921 White Cloud Review 1881 – 1885 White Cloud Review 1896 – 1897 White Cloud Review 1949
Photos donated to the library. Contains photographs of Doniphan County people, businesses, and events.
Local Cemetery Information
- Doniphan County Cemeteries 2 Volumes completed and donated by Speedy and Gail Stewart.
Local Obituaries
Funeral Home Records
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1918-1925 (Index)
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1918-1925 pg.1-72
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1918-1925 pg.73-92
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1918-1925 pg.1-99
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1918-1925 pg.100-175
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1918-1925 pg.176-235
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1918-1925 pg.236-300
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1925-1930 (Index) pg 1-75
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1925-1930 pg.76-150
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1925-1930 pg.151-225
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1925-1930 pg.226-300
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1931-1933 (Index) pg.101-148
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1931-1933 pg .149-198
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1931-1933 pg.199-233
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1934-1936 (Index) pg.234-281
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1934-1936 pg.282-329
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1934-1936 pg.330-357
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1937-1939 (Index) 358-404
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1937-1939 pg.405-454
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1937-1939 pg.455-482
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1940-1942 (Index) pg.483-530
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1940-1942 pg.531-579
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1940-1942 pg.580-614
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1943-1945(Index) pg.615-662
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1943-1945 pg .663-710
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1943-1945 pg.711-723, 1-14
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1946-1948 (Index) pg.15-61
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1946-1948 pg.62-111
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1946-1948 pg.112-152
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1949-1951 (Index) pg.153-200
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1949-1951 pg.201-234
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1949-1951 pg.235-263
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1951-1953 (Index) pg264-311
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1951-1953 pg.312-357
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1954-1957 (Index) pg.358-405
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1954-1957 pg.406-452
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1954-1957 pg.453-480
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1954-1957 pg.481-507
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1958-1961 (Index) pg.508-555
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1958-1961 pg.556-604
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1958-1961 pg.605-653
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1958-1961 pg.654-690
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1962-1965 (Index) pg.691-738
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1962-1965 pg.739-787
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1962-1965 pg.788-824
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1965-1968 (Index) pg.1-48
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1965-1968 pg.49-97
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1965-1968 pg.98-146
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1969-1973 (Index) pg.147-194
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1969-1973 pg.195-243
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1969-1973 pg.244-292
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1969-1973 pg.293-341
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1973-1976 (Index) pg.342-380
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1973-1976 pg.381-417
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1973-1976 pg.418-453
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1976-1979 (Index) pg.454-501
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1976-1979 pg.502-546
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1976-1979 pg.547-570
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1979-1983 pg.1-40
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1979-1983 (Index) pg.41-160.
Harman-Rohde Funeral Home 1984-1987 (Index) pg.1-167
Other Helpful Resources
A History of Doniphan County Schools (from a book written in 1893)
Bureau of Land Management General Land Office Records: The Bureau of Land Management has original land patents which can be searched online by state and name. You can view or order a copy of a patent online.
Cyndi’s List of genealogical sites on the internet: The largest and best known list of Genealogy websites
Find a Grave: Search over 70 million grave records, some of which include pictures of headstones and cemeteries and other information on your ancestors.
Immigrant Ships Transcribers Guild
Kansas Memory: Accessible anywhere. This database offers a broad, statewide selection of digitized Kansas maps, photographs, and other primary documents from the collections of the Kansas State Historical Society.
K. Roger Pyle’s Doniphan County 1882 Plat book
LDS Family Search: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saint’s online research website. Their three big resources – International Genealogical Index, Ancestral File and Family History Library Catalog are all available here.
Soldiers and Sailors Database: Accessible anywhere. The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System (CWSS) is a database containing information about the men who served in the Union and Confederate armies during the Civil War. Other information on the site includes histories of Union and Confederate regiments, links to descriptions of significant battles, and selected lists of prisoner-of-war records and cemetery records.
The USGenWeb Project: An outstanding volunteer effort to provide information on all the states and counties in the US. The sites vary but at a minimum have query pages and volunteer lookups. Also worth a visit is the USGenWeb Project Archives.
William G Cutler’s History of the State of Kansas
-Doniphan County section
Genealogy Libraries
National Archives–Kansas City: The Kansas City branch of the National Archives offers free access to a variety of databases. NARA holdings include census, immigration, military, naturalization, and land records.
State Archives & Library, Kansas Historical Society, 6425 SW 6th St. Topeka, KS. Open 9:00-4:30 T-F. Kansas newspapers on microfilm, Kansas history, some genealogical materials from other states, free access to ancestry.com. www.kshs.org
Midwest Genealogy Center, 3440 Lee’s Summit Rd, Independence, MO. Part of Mid-Continent Library system, a 52,000 square-foot free-standing facility dedicated to genealogy. Strong Missouri collection, resources from all states. www.mymcpl.org/genealogy (816) 252-6272