House History ResearchResearch LibraryCynthia Van Ness, MLSDirector of Library & Archives

Our BuildingDesigned by George Cary in 1901, for the Pan-American Exposition, a National Historic Landmark since 1987

How to visit us1 Museum CourtNorth of Rt. 198 off Elmwood Ave.Free parking & bike rackOn #20 bus line

AdmissionFree to Museum membersMembership starts at $45/year, exceptStudent membership $15/year$7.00 for all othersVeterans and active service members of the U.S. armed forces are admitted free

Library HoursWednesdays through Saturdays1-5 pmNo appointments necessaryPlus evening hours, 6-8 pm on Wednesdays starting January 2017

Professionally StaffedProfessional librarian on duty during all public service hoursReady to assist with house research!

A Few Rules

Purses, bags, backpacks & briefcases are kept in lockersLibrary materials may not be borrowed or removed from roomWell retrieve the books, pictures & manuscripts you needOversized material is stored off site. Retrievals are scheduled once a week.

Touch Screen Sign-InWe ask for name, address, phone or email, and what youre researching today

Please, No Food or Drink

We all love our phones, but please turn them off or set on vibrate

No PensWho wants to guess why?

Technology on SiteFree Wifi! Laptops & tablets welcomeOne online catalog/internet workstationTwo microfilm reader-printers, $.25/pageTwo microfilm readersPhotocopying done by staff if size & condition permit, $.25/page

We have lots of these!

Library Collections by the NumbersCollecting since 186220,000+ books200,000 photographs3,000 manuscript collections7,000 microfilmsVertical/Pamphlet fileClippings fileAbout 10,000 maps, plans, prints & drawings

Gentle reminder about historical research

Top 5 House History QuestionsA. When was my house built?B. Who was the first owner?C. Was it designed by a name architect?D. Who lived in it?E. What did it look like?

F. Bonus question: Is any of this stuff online?

Architectural Research Sources

The First Questions We AskIf your house or building in the City of Buffalo?Or is it in one of the towns, villages or suburbs?

There is just more documentation of Buffalo houses & buildings.

The First Questions We AskIs your house or building wood frame?Or is it brick or stone?

In Buffalo, it appears that building permits were not required for brick, stone, or masonry buildings until some time in the 20th century

The First Questions We AskIf your house is in Buffalo, which neighborhood?

With apologies to everyone on the east side, Buffalo middle & upper-income neighborhoods have a convenient starting point: Social DirectoriesWhich we will come back to shortly

The First Questions We AskDo you have a deed or abstract of title?Or are you working without a deed or abstract?

If you have the abstract of title, your research will be easier

For Best ResultsBring your deed or Abstract of Title if you have one

Abstract of TitleOften acquired as part of the closingMight go all the way back to the Holland Land Company

True or False?Millard Fillmore lived in my house. It says so on my deed.FalseMy house was built in 1804. It says so on my deed.False

Social DirectoriesDaus Buffalo Blue BookOmitted immigrant & working class neighborhoods such as the East side

Daus Buffalo Blue BookPublished 1898-1940Available only in hard copy, not online or microfilmedHas an address sectionLook up your street!

1903

Buffalo Address Book & Family DirectoriesOnline at http://tinyurl.com/BHM-addressbooks

Buffalo Address Book & Family DirectoriesPublished 1880-1916Has an address sectionOn microfilm & online, hard copies are too deteriorated for handing

Buffalo City DirectoriesWe have 1828 to 2001 in hard copyOnline versions are collected at BuffaloResearch.com/onlinedirectories.html

Sample City Directory PageLast name, first name, occupation, addressWomen rarely listed until the 1920sChildren not listed until around age 18No photocopying from directories

Special Feature in City DirectoriesReverse address section: look up a street and see each business or residentThis feature did not begin until 1929

Suburban DirectoriesErie County & Suburban: 1927, 1929, 1931, 1949, 1959-2001Almost no village, town, or rural directories prior to 1959

Telephone Directories1900 to presentRemember, not every household could afford a phoneNot onlineAbout half are in poor condition

Buffalo Common Council ProceedingsBuilding permits!

Common Council ProceedingsInclude building permits!1854-1996 hard copy1832-1899 on microfilmPermits are listed by name up to 1907Listed by address starting in 1908

Common Council ProceedingsLook up the names on your deed or titleAbout 20 editions are online here:https://delicious.com/BufHistory/Buffalo-Common-Council-Proceedings

Common Council Proceedingshttps://delicious.com/BufHistory/Buffalo-Common-Council-Proceedings

Buffalo Atlases

1866 Emslie AtlasOnly at TBHM6 vols. arranged by wardShows land owner names more than building footprintsNot online

1868 Buffalo Sanborn AtlasShows individual buildingsShows only the downtown coreThis volume is only at TBHMMore Buffalo Sanborns, 1880-1950Not online

1872 Hopkins AtlasFirst atlas to show individual buildings for entire city of Buffalo. Good starting point!Online at http://tinyurl.com/Buff1872a and

http://tinyurl.com/Buff1872b

1884 Hopkins AtlasShows individual buildingsNot online

1894 American AtlasOnline at http://tinyurl.com/Buff1894

1894 American AtlasCity of BuffaloThree volumes

Erie County Atlases

1866 Stone & Stewart AtlasErie CountyShows property owner namesShows buildings as tiny black squaresGives only a street map for BuffaloOnline at http://tinyurl.com/Erie1866

1880 Beers AtlasErie CountyShows property owner namesShows individual buildings as tiny black squaresOnline at http://tinyurl.com/Erie1880a and http://tinyurl.com/Erie1880b

1909 New Century AtlasErie CountyShows property owner namesShows buildings as little black squaresOnline at http://tinyurl.com/Erie1909

1915 Buffalo SuburbanAmherst, Blasdell, Cheektowaga, Grand Island, Lackawanna, Tonawanda, West Seneca, WoodlawnShows individual buildingsOnline at http://tinyurl.com/Buff1915v3

Census Records

Erie County 1810-1930Arranged geographicallyOurs are on microfilm1850 was the first to name everyone in the household1880 was the first to give addresses for households

1940 Census OnlineReleased to the public in 2012Go to National Archives website:http://1940census.archives.gov/1950 will be released in 2022

Federal Census Indexes1790-1850 New York State1850 Black Rock1860 Erie County & Upstate NY1890 NY State VeteransIn print, not online

Records from Architectural FirmsOnly at TBHM

Plans & DrawingsThe good news is we have records from:George Cary, pre-1945Esenwein & Johnson, 1882-1942Green & Wicks / James, Meadows & Howard, 1893-1971Duane Lyman, 1923-1975North & Shelgren, 1909-1994John A. Ort, 1950-1967

Plans & DrawingsThe bad news isMost architectural firms, like most businesses, come and go without their records being savedMost of the plans & drawings we have are for offices, churches, schools, etc., and not private residences

Plans & DrawingsThe few house drawings we have are for a few upscale residences99% of the time, we do not have your house plans

ObituariesSometimes they are the only available biographical information about a homeowner

Obituary Index 1811-200199,000 names!Name, date of death, occupationNewspaper where obituary is foundDoes not list everyone who ever lived or died here

NewspapersBuffalos first newspaper began in 1811We have local newspapers 1811 to about 2012 on microfilmPlus two machines to read & print from film

Newspaper IndexBuffalos 19th century newspapers are mostly unindexedWe have a mid-20th century newspaper indexThe Local History File at Central Library is usually more comprehensive

PhotographsOnly at TBHM!About 200,000 images in 100 distinct collectionsAbout 30,000 house & building pictures, city & townMost date from 1870-1970We do not have every single house/building

Using Our PhotographsPhotocopies are $.25We scan only for publication, exhibition, or academic useRate sheet is downloadable from our websitePlus we have an agreement form for publishing our stuff

Bonus: A Cool BookIndex to RecordsCity of Buffalo, 1896Has the history of your street

Bonus: A Cool BookIndex to RecordsCity of Buffalo, 1896Every microscopic bureaucratic action taken on every City streetIncludes canals, & railroads

New online storefront offers museum-quality reproductions for home or office dcorwww.BuffaloHistoryStore.org

Major Online Sources

www.buffalohistory.orgClick on Research Library under our slide show

Our Online CatalogFRANK*, our online catalogLists 27,000+ distinct workshttp://tinyurl.com/FRANK-catalog

*Find Resources And New Knowledge

Buffalo Architecture Index1200+ buildings and their architects in address order. Online at http://tinyurl.com/BECHS006

Buffalo Architecture Map1200 addresses Google-mapped & color-coded by architect. At the Librarys Online Collections page.

TBHM on Delicious1200+ links sorted into categories (tags)http://delicious.com/BufHistory

BuffaloResearch.comBuilt in BuffaloBuffalo MapsAn on-my-own-time project

Sanborn Maps at BECPL www.buffalolib.orgClick on ResearchEnter library card # at top of pageScroll down to Sanborn Maps

One question we cant answerDid something bad happen in my house?Crime stories are usually indexed by the names of victims, not by address

Questions?library@buffalohistory.org(716) 873-9644 x 305For best results, call Wednesdays through Saturdays, 1-5 pmwww.buffalohistory.org

Research LibraryThe Buffalo History Museum1 Museum CourtBuffalo, NY 14216