Digital Collection

We've been adding new photographs and documents to the Mary Talmage Local History Room Digital Collection.

This photograph taken by Benjamin S. Conklin captures the first bridge over a creek

near New York Avenue in Huntington, c. 1895.

Visit the collection at http://cdm15218.contentdm.oclc.org/ or use the link in the sidebar.

Digital Sanborn Maps

Just a reminder that Huntington Public Library is proud to announce the acquisition of Digital Sanborn Maps for use within the library. Over 100 years ago, the maps were created for assessing fire insurance liability in urbanized areas across the United States. Today they are a valuable source of historical information. The maps include street names, building numbers with physical descriptions, street widths and more. Their research potential is endless and for genealogists and local historians they can be used to locate ancestor's homes and neighborhoods.
HPL's collection includes many urban areas throughout New York State including maps of Huntington in the following years: 1886, 1892, 1897, 1902, 1908, 1914, 1922 and 1930. The map above displays a section of Main St., Wall St. and New York Ave in 1902.
Come visit the library and browse this wonderful new resource. It can be accessed within the library through our homepage, click on Our Databases and scroll down to the link for Sanborn Maps. If you would like instruction on how to use the digital collection, stop by the Mary Talmage Local History Room during the designated hours (listed above), call (631-427-5165 x261 or 251) or email history@thehuntingtonlibrary.org to make an appointment.

Genealogy TopicGuide

SuffolkWeb offers you online research assistance, great websites, and useful resources compiled by Suffolk County librarians. They've compiled a an in-depth site for genealogy research. It's a great place to begin searching your family roots.

Some of the topics covered are, Getting Started, Vital Records, Immigration/Naturalization, and New York Genealogy Resources. The Guide list great websites, books, agencies and more.

Huntington's Entrepreneurs Exhibit

"The Business of Doing Business in Huntington" is the theme of the the exhibit at the Huntington Historical Society's David Conklin Farmhouse Gallery.

The exhibit focuses on several businesses in Huntington from the expected to the somewhat unusual. They highlight the collections of the Society's archives, including family papers, photographs, ledgers and personal collections.

Among the featured businesses are the Funnell and Son Drug Store, the Crossman Brickyards at West Neck, Lockwood Marble Works, Paulding Cider, several diaries, Hartmann's Department Store, and Peggy's Fabric Outlet.

The David Conklin Farmhouse is located at 2 High Street Huntington, New York 11743, at the corner of New York Ave. and High St. in the Village. Call ahead to confirm exhibit hours, 631-427-7045.

NEXTREADS- Local History and Genealogy Newsletter

The library provides a wonderful Reader's Advisory service that is emailed directly to our patrons. It's an email newsletter subscription service that provides for all ages in more than 20 reading interest categories. Title selections are made by professional librarians using the same sources libraries use for collection development, ensuring that selected titles are ones that the library owns and ones that our patrons will enjoy reading.

The staff of the Local History Room has customized a Local History and Genealogy newsletter for our patrons. Subscribe now. It's easy, convenient and free. It's delivered bimonthly right to your inbox and linked to the library's catalog. Contact the Adult Services Desk with questions at 631-427-5165 x251.

Calling All Genealogy Enthusiasts

Visit the Patchogue-Medford Library for a special genealogy research night on Saturday, November 14th from 5-9 p.m.

The guest speaker will be professional genealogist Daniel M. Lynch, author of Google Your Family Tree. The Library's entire Genealogy Collection will be available for research including access to all databases, NYS Vital Records Index, City Directories, 1890 NYC Police Census and more.

Registration is Required. In person, by phone at 631-654-4700, or online at http://www.pmlib.org/. All participants must arrive before the Library closes at 5:30 p.m. Check in at the Reference Desk.

Patchogue-Medford Library

54-60 East Main Street

Patchogue, NY 11772

Getting the Most out of Ancestry.com

Getting the Most Out Of Ancestry.com workshop, is presented by Huntington Public Library and the Genealogy Workshop of the Huntington Historical Society on Wednesday, November 11th at 7:00 pm in the main auditorium of the library.

Loretti Dennis Szucs, Vice President of Community Relations and Executive Editor for Ancestry magazine discusses the "Ancestry World Archives Project." Ms. Szucs brings a wealth of experience as a former member of the advisory board of the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation and as a current board member of the Federation of Genealogical Societies. Open to all. Registration is recommended. Call 631-427-5165 or register online at http://alpha2.suffolk.lib.ny.us/programs~S30.

Genealogy Workshop

On Saturday, October 24th from 10-11:30 a.m., the Genealogy Research Group from the Patchogue-Medford Library is holding a workshop entitled: Family Research Using footnote.com. Footnote.com is a place where original historical documents are combined with social networking in order to create a truly unique experience involving the stories of our past. Our library has recently added this subscription based website to the Suffolk e-Resources.

Getting started Help Session from 9:30-10 a.m.

Registration is required. Sign up at the Patchogue-Medford Library's Main Desk in-person, by phone or online @ http://www.pmlib.org/.

Patchogue-Medford Library

54-60 East Main Street

Patchogue, NY 11772

631-654-4700

Oral Histories of Life In Huntington

The library's oral history project was launched in September and thus far we've conducted and recorded four oral histories depicting life in Huntington through the years.

Do you or members of your family have stories to share about life in Huntington that encapsulate a period of time or a way of life here? If so, the library would like to preserve them as part of the collective memory of our town. We are interested in the following topics:

• Memories of Main Street


• Memories of the library


• Summers in Huntington


• Recreation or Entertainment


• School Days


• Town Events, Festivals, Parades, etc...


• Farming


• Memories of Huntington During War


• Family Business in the Town


• Transportation


• Occupations

If you are interested in submitting your story to our oral history project, please contact Teresa Scwhind or Lori King at 631-427-5165 x251 or history@thehuntingtonlibrary.org. We look forward to adding to our growing collection.

Fashion Accessories from Huntington's Past

Throughout the month of October the Huntington Historical Society has a wonderful display of women and men's fashion accessories from the 19th and early 20th centuries on the main floor of the library. It consists of various handcrafted artifacts such as shoes, hairpins, gloves, jewelry, parasols, purses and more from their unique collection.

FOOTNOTE.COM

We are excited to offer our patrons free access to footnote.com, an excellent resource for genealogists, historians, students, teachers and many others. Footnote Inc. has partnered with the National Archives, the Library of Congress and other institutions to make over 56,000,000 historical images available for the first time. Highlights of the collection include, Revolutionary War, Civil War, WWII, Vietnam and the new Holocaust Collection.

The site can be accesses here at the library or remotely with a valid library card and password from the Suffolk e-Resources page. To access the Suffolk e-Resources from the link to Our Databases from the library's homepage. Contact the Adult Services Desk at 631-427-5165 with any questions.

Local History Roundtable

Please join us for our second meeting of Huntington Public Library's Local History Roundtable on Wednesday, October 3rd at 3pm. New members welcome.
For more information, contact Teresa Schwind or Lori King at 631-427-5165 ext.251.

A Pictorial History of Fire Island Lecture

Smithtown Public Library, Long Island Room presents a lecture on the history of Fire Island.

A Pictorial History of Fire Island - a talk by Frank Turano will take place on Monday, Sept 21 7pm at the Smithtown Library (Main Bldg), 1 North Country Rd. Smithtown, New York 11787, (631)265-2072.

Join the library for an informative evening as Frank Turano, an environmental historian who has been researching Fire Island and its history and inhabitants, presents a pictorial view of the island in its boardinghouse era, the mid-19th century through the 1930's. Dr. Turano has many photographs to show and vignettes to share about happenings along the barrier beach communities that will delight and enlighten us all. Note; The library will display an exhibit in the LI Room cases through September showing their holdings on this interesting place. Call Cathy Ball 265-2072 x243 for information or registration.

GENEALOGY WORKSHOP OF THE HUNTINGTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY

At 7:00 pm, September 23, 2009 at the Conklin Barn at 2 High Street in Huntington, NY, the Huntington Historical Society presents an excellent genealogy workshop. The speaker is Maira Liriano, Manager of the Milstein Division of U.S. History, Local History and Genealogy at the Stephen A. Schwarzmean Bldg of the New York Public Library.

The New York Public Library, one of the world's largest and most accessible genealogical collections just got even bigger. Last summer the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society's extraordinary collection of genealogical and biographical materials focused on "families, persons and citizens associated and identified with the State of New York" was donated to the New York Public Library. Joining the Library's already rich and heavily used genealogical and manuscript collections the merged materials of the NYPL and the G & B will create an unparalleled, publicly accessible resource. This lecture will provide an overview of the G & B collection and highlight other exciting developments at the New York Public Library.

Huntington's Collective Memory

In recognition of American Archives Month in October, Huntington Public Library welcomes the community to join us in two projects that celebrate our town’s past and present, and document it for future generations.

Oral Histories of Life in Huntington
Do you or members of your family have stories to share about life in Huntington that encapsulate a period of time or a way of life here? If so, the library would like to preserve them as part of the collective memory of our town. The newly-formed Local History Round table met for the first time in May 2009. With much interest and enthusiasm, they agreed to pursue recording oral histories of Huntington residents.


Documenting Contemporary Huntington: Got A Favorite Spot?
Huntington Public Library is making a digital archive of images,video, and word that represents Huntington today.As community members, you are invited to use your creativity and a method of your own choice to document something you value in present day Huntington.Capture it in a photo, a painting, a drawing, a video,an essay, a recording of your thoughts, etc.Include a brief commentary of your work.We will create the archive and make it available to the public on the Internet.


For further information or questions, please contact Lori King or Teresa Schwind at (631) 427-5165 or email history@thehuntingtonlibrary.org.

City Directories at Patchogue-Medford Library

We are happy to announce that the Patchogue-Medford Library has expanded their collection of city directories. They are wonderful research tools for genealogists. Although they are similar to telephone directories in providing the viewer with surnames and addresses, they often provide more information. They list names and addresses of hospitals, asylums, cemeteries, churches, newspapers and schools. Females who are widowed are listed with a (W). They show whether a person owns or rents their home. City directories also list a person's occupation, expanding the social history of a family.

The collection includes:

• Brooklyn, from 1822 through 1913, and 1933-34
• Manhattan, from 1665-1934
• Queens, from 1902-1912, and 1933-34

The format is either microfilm or microfiche, and are available for use in their Periodicals Room whenever the library is open. All are welcome. Visit their website: http://www.pmlib.org/ or call the Reference Desk with any questions: 631) 654-4700.

Where Family Memories Live On

arcalife.com website is designed to help you search for ancestors, record family history share and preserve this record for your family and future generations. It is a user friendly environment for social networking, scrapbooking, and organization. The site is free of charge, but you must register and become a member to search and create. Visit arcalife.com and begin your family tree today.

MANNAHATTA

(photo: Markley Boyer/Mannahatta Project, Wildlife Conservation Society)

Ever wondered what New York like before it was a city? Welcome to Mannahatta, 1609: http://www.themannahattaproject.org/

The Wildlife Conservation Society embarked on a decade of research to uncover the original ecology of Manhattan and constructed an interactive website Stated on the site: "the center of one of the world’s largest and most built-up cities was once a natural landscape of hills, valleys, forests, fields, freshwater wetlands, salt marshes, beaches, springs, ponds and streams, supporting a rich and abundant community of wildlife and sustaining people for perhaps 5000 years before Europeans arrived on the scene in 1609."

Visit the site and you can explore Mannahatta through a virtual map, and learn what natural resources and wildlife existed on the island, block by block. Included in the site are wonderful resources for educators, students and researchers.

175th anniversary journal : Long Island Rail Road April 24, 2009

175th anniversary journal : Long Island Rail Road April 24, 2009

Shared via AddThis

The library has just acquired this title published by Long Island Sunrise Trail Chapter, National Railway Historical Society, c2009. It provides great insight into the history and evolution of the oldest railway in the United States operating under it's original name and charter. LIRR still uses two words for "railroad", that being the common usage in 1834.

Visit LIRR's website to learn more about th 175th Anniversary Getaway this Saturday, July 25th. As a LIRR passenger hop on board and follow the original route of the LIRR from Penn Station, Jamaica, Mineola or Hicksville to beautiful Greenport Village. Knowledgeable docents will be on board to guide the way.

Long Island Ruins

Check out this interesting site created by the Long Island Ruins Team who presented a great program at the library last night. http://li-ruins.com/. If you missed yesterday's program and are interested in this topic, they will be presenting at other public libraries in the near future.

Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers

The Library of Congress and the National Endowment of the Humanities have launched a website of America's historic newspapers.
"This site allows you to search and view newspaper pages from 1880-1922 and find information about American newspapers published between 1690-present. Chronicling America is sponsored jointly by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Library of Congress as part of the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP). "

The New York newspapers available are: The Evening World (1887-1931), New York Tribune (1866-1924), and The Sun (1833-1916).

It is a long term project to develop Internet based, searchable historic newspapers from the U.S. Visit the site at http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ and check back often for added contact.

Suffolk Web Genealogy Guide

Suffolk County librarians created a genealogy web guide as part of the SuffolkTopicGuides. It is well organized guide that highlights genealogy resources available to the public. It is a good starting point for anyone interested in starting or expanding their genealogical research. While you are viewing the genealogy guide, check out the other available topic guides. Subjects range from astronomy, career to travel.

Nextreads

The library has just added a new Local History and Genealogy newsletter to our NextReads service. NextReads is an e-mail readers' advisory service that allows you to receive via e-mail, a list of new and upcoming books in the genre(s) of your choice. Choose from a listing of over 20 different topics and genres and enter your e-mail address; you'll begin receiving monthly or bi-monthly e-mail newsletters listing your featured books along with a synopsis of each one. You can subscribe to as many newsletters as you would like!

Check out Nextreads at:

http://www.nextreads.com/join.aspx?SID=866bc6af-df30-4a43-98ec-9e90e437f0e3

Local History Program

On July 14th at 7:00pm, we are proud to present Long Island’s Ruins, a presentation by John Leita and Kevin Vagle. John and Kevin are passionate about their work and have spent much time documenting our local ruins and reminders of the past. Through pictures, videos and discussions, they will weave a tapestry of Long Island’s history including old military fortifications, ruins from industries past, the Guilded Age and more! Come and see the amazing ties to our past right in our own backyards! All welcome. Visit their site at: http://www.li-ruins.com/.
Register for this program here: http://alpha1.suffolk.lib.ny.us:2081/search~S83/?searchtype=L&searcharg=hma902&searchscope=83&SORT=D&extended=0&searchlimits=&searchorigarg=tnew+york+researcher

Social Networking for Genealogists

The library has added the book Social Networking for Genealogists by Drew Smith to our collection. Using genealogy-related examples, Smith demonstrates how many social networking and Web 2.0 sites and services can be used to share resources and communicate with other genealogists. Some examples of these resources are blogs, genealogy-specific social networks, Facebook, podcasts, wikis, photos and video sharing and much more.

It is a great resource for keeping up with an ever changing World Wide Web.

"The Legacy of the Revolution in Huntington"

Huntington Town Clerk's Archives

Jo-Ann Raia, Town Clerk/RMO

Official Opening of the exhibit

"The Legacy of the Revolution in Huntington"

Huntington Town Hall

100 Main Street

Huntington, NY 11743

Tuesday July 7, 2009

Program

4:00-6:30pm- Huntington Town Clerk's Archives Open House

6:00pm- Lobby- Colonial music and guided viewing of the display cases by the Order of the Ancient and Honorable Huntington Militia and Huntington Town Clerk's Archives staff.

6:30pm- Town Board Auditorium

Presentation of the Colors- Order of the Ancient and Honorable Huntington Militia

Pledge of Allegiance- Town Board Members

Welcome- Jo-Ann Raia, Town Clerk

Presentation of Proclamation: Supervisor Frank Petrone, Mark Cuthbertson, Councilman, Susan A. Berland, Councilwoman, Stuart P. Besen, Councilman, Glenda A. Jackson, Councilwoman.

The Exhibit will feature documents, and military equipment from the Revolutionary War era. It can be viewed during normal business hours from now through December 31st to view the displays, which are located on all floors of Town Hall.

The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record

The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record was founded in 1870. With its long history of scholarly publication, the Record is an essential New York source for genealogists, historians, and biographers. Here at Huntington Public Library we have the Record from 1872(volume 3)-present. It's published quarterly and most articles focus on families that lived in New York State. Contact us or stop by the local history room to explore this resource.

Display of Revolutionary War Resources at the library

Displayed here is a scanned image from the book, Bi-centennial Celebration Commemorating the Two Hundreth Anniversary of the Birth of George Washington. (1932)

In conjunction with the present exhibit "The Legacy of the Revolution in Huntington" at Town Hall, Revolutionary War reference sources from our local history room are on display on the first floor of the library. Highlights from our collection include:

• A Letter From Lieut. Gen. Sir Henry Clinton, K.B. to the Commissioners of Public Accounts : relative to some observations in their seventh report, which may be judged to imply censure on the late commanders in chief of His Majesty's army in North America. (1784)
  


• Bi-centennial Celebration Commemorating the Two Hundredth Anniversary of the Birth of George Washington. (1932)
  


• New York in the Revolution as Colony and State / a compilation of documents and records from the office of the State Comptroller. (1901-1904)

Town Clerk's Archives Presents:

"The Legacy of the Revolution in Huntington"

The Town of Huntington played a significant role in the defence of liberty and independence. Almost a quarter of the town's male population volunteered to serve the patriot cause.
Numerous documents and artifacts survive to verify our legacy.

The descendants of these patriots, Sons of the American Revolution, Daughters of the American Revolution, The Ancient and Honorable Huntington Militia, organized themselves to promote the principles of the Revolution and to preserve our history.

To honor these organizations, the Huntington Town Clerk's Archives will have an exhibit, "The Legacy of the Revolution" .

The Exhibit will feature documents, and military equipment from the Revolutionary War era.

Contact person:

Antonia S. Mattheou, Huntington Town Archivist

100 Main Street

Huntington, New York 11743 (631)351-3035

amattheou@town.huntington.ny.us

Genealogy Federation of Long Island

The Federation encourages the study of family history with an emphasis on Long Island. It's comprised of fifteen local genealogy organizations and aim to educate the community of available resources. Here is the link to the L.I. Genealogy Calendar for the month of June. The Federation presents many informative programs in libraries throughout Long Island. For more information visit their website at: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~gfli/ or call 631-724-4162.

LOCAL HISTORY ROOM CLOSED

FYI, the local history room will be closed until Wednesday, May 27th. Feel free to contact the Adult Reference Desk with any questions. They may be able to assist you. (631)427-5165 x251.

Local History Roundtable

A reminder that on Tuesday, May 19th, join the staff of the Mary Talmage Local History Room and members of our community for our very first local history roundtable. We will give you an overview of our collection and suggest possible topics for future meetings.For more information, contact Teresa Schwind or Lori King at427-5165 ext.251 or register here at: http://alpha1.suffolk.lib.ny.us/iii/calendar/month/C&M=5-2009&R=30;jsessionid=BC02D3005562920D6DE343BE120D4C06?lang=eng&suite=def

Wardenclyffe in Shoreham, NY

Roughly 30 miles east of Huntington lies Wardenchlyffe in Shoreham, NY the site of the Nikola Tesla's only surviving research and experimental facility. William J. Broad has written an article entitled "A Battle to Preserve a Visionary’s Bold Failure" for The New York Times about the battle ensuing in regards to this historic site. Read and discover more about this famous scientist and his work performed on Long Island.

NYPL Digital Gallery

New York Public Library has created an excellent digital gallery that is well worth browsing through. Out of curiosity I searched Huntington, NY and was pleasantly surprised to retrieve some great images.

Displayed here is a map of Huntington, West of Nassau Avenue (1915-1917) published by E.B. Hyde and Co.

Visit the collection at: http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/index.cfm.

Local History Lovers Wanted

Join the staff of the Mary Talmage Local History Room, on Tuesday May 19, 2009 at 7pm for the first local history roundtable. We will give you an overview of our collection and suggest possible topics for future meetings. There are 5 seats remaining so register today for an evening of discussion. You can register through our program calendar at: http://alpha1.suffolk.lib.ny.us/iii/calendar/month/C&M=5-2009&R=30;jsessionid=BC02D3005562920D6DE343BE120D4C06?lang=eng&suite=def

For more information comment here or contact Teresa Schwind or Lori King at 631-427-5165 ext.251. We look forward to sharing our resources with you.

World War II Collection

Visit http://go.footnote.com/wwii/

and view the largest interactive WWII collection on the Internet. The Collection is a collaborative effort between the National Archives Administration and footnote.com. It includes an interactive version of the USS Arizona Memorial, WWII Hero Pages and WWII photos and documents previously unavailable online. The collection adds a new dimension to the history of those involved in this war and is available for free, for a limited time.

Director of Access Programs at the National Archives James Hastings states, "We can’t afford to forget this period in our history. Our ongoing partnership with Footnote.com helps ensure that the stories contained in these photos and documents are accessible to everyone, particularly those who cannot travel to our facilities to study the original records. This partnership complements our mission of making National Archives holdings as widely available as possible."

The Collection is a wonderful resource for genealogists with ties to those who were a part of WWII. Footnote.com invites those who were impacted by this war to create a Hero Page to add to the collection.

About Footnote, Inc. Footnote.com is a subscription website that features searchable original documents, providing users with an unaltered view of the events, places and people that shaped the American nation and the world. At Footnote.com, all are invited to come share, discuss, and collaborate on their discoveries with friends, family, and colleagues. For more information, visit http://www.footnote.com/.

Baseball and Other Sports in the Town of Huntington Display

The Huntington Historical Society joins the library and the Long Island Reads program to exhibit sports that were played by local families of the early 20th century. The Huntington Historical Society has a wonderful collection of artifacts that represent the rich heritage of the Town.

The display consists of sports memorabilia that has been donated by town residents over the years. Among the items are antique baseball equipment, golf clubs and ice skates that illustrate various sports that were played throughout the community.


The Huntington Historical Society's mission is to preserve the heritage of the town. and they accomplish this through public education programs, the maintenance of two house-museums, collections of costumes and artifacts, genealogy meetings, the research center of and the preservation of five historic buildings.


Stop by the reading room on the first floor of the library to view this timely display.

HeritageQuest Online

HeritageQuest Online is an essential research tool that often gets overshadowed by Ancestry.com. It's wonderful collection of unique material for genealogists and the historical researcher. It's comprised of census records, more than 20,000 book titles (both family and local histories), primary documents, including city directories, tax lists, probate records and more. Military records are also part of the collection, dating back to the American Revolution and the Freedman Bank Records, is considered on of the most important resources for African-American genealogical research.

Best of all, you can access this database from the comfort of your own home. Visit our library's homepage at: http://www.thehuntingtonlibrary.org/, click on our databases, than click on Suffolk e-resources. Scroll down and click on HeritageQuest. With your valid library card number and password you can begin your research.

GENEALOGY RESOURCES ON DISPLAY

Genealogy resources from our collection are on display on the main floor of the library. Stop by and check out a sample of these wonderful and unique items.

We have Huntington and Long Island family genealogies in our collection that may be a valuable asset to your genealogy research.

In the digital age, print sources often get pushed aside in favor of online resources. However, thoroughly researched and compiled books may provide previously undiscovered information.

Visit our library's catalog to search for specific titles: ttp://alpha2.suffolk.lib.ny.us/search~S30 or stop by the Local History Room for assistance.

Researching the History of Your House

Discovering the history of your house can be fun and exciting, but often a difficult task that takes time and perseverance. Library patrons have many reasons for researching the history of their house, from learning of the people who lived their before, determining the age and architectural style, or perhaps to discover historical events associated with one's home. The research and discoveries are countless.

If your interested in tackling the history of your house, below is a guide for the process. It provides an idea of how to begin your research. Stop by the library and the staff of the Mary Talmage Local History Room will be happy to assist you.

Researching the History of Your House

The Office of the County Clerk holds land records dating from the mid-1600’s. These do not always contain descriptions of the house or other buildings found on the land. Even so, a deed is a good place to begin researching the history of your house. The following steps should start you on your way.

1. Read your current deed. Make a note of the Liber (book) and page number which is listed on the upper right hand corner of the deed. At the end of the description of your property, you may find references to the prior deed and the Liber and page number where it was recorded. Make a note of those numbers as well.
2. Go to the Records Room in the Office of the Suffolk County Clerk at the County Center in Riverhead.
3. Go to the rows of numbered Deed Libers and find the lowest numbered Liber you found on your deed. This deed may refer you to an earlier one. Work your way backward through earlier deeds.
4. If you have no Liber numbers on your deed, you can still research your property. Begin with the last name of the person from whom you bought your house and look that name up in the indexes in the Record room. If you bought your home after 1969, you will need to use the terminals in the Public Access Room to look up this information. Land records before 1969 are indexed by both Grantee (buyer) and Grantor (seller) in large index books in the Records Room. These volumes are located on opposite sides of the room. The aisle containing the Grantor indexes that reference the oldest of the deeds are not indicated by a sign, go to the Historic Documents Library and the archivist will show you where to find those books.
5. The Grantee/Grantor indexes are organized as follows: From 1660-1950, all of Suffolk County is indexed in one set of books, arranged alphabetically by the first letter of the last name, inside each volume, the records are arranged by the first letter of the first name. Beginning in 1951 and continuing through 1969, the records are divided by town and within each town they are arranged as described above.
6. There are also Mortgage Libers in the Record Room. Many times the mortgage on a property is referenced in the deed. In the cases of earlier deeds, this may sometimes be a good indication of when a house was constructed on a piece of land.
7. As you work your way backward, you may come to one that is deeded to someone as the heir of a deceased person. Make a note of that person’s name in order to look up the will at the Surrogate’s court. Many times wills are more descriptive of houses than are deeds.
8. Building permits were not issued before the early 1920’s, but you may find reference to a “date of origin” for a house on early permits. These will be on file at your Town Clerk’s Office or in the Building Department. Keep in mind that this date was given by the person applying for the building permit and may be an approximate date.

Other Helpful Records

Records in the Historic Documents Library include several large bound atlases of various portions of Suffolk County. The earliest one is dated c. 1873. Many of these include the property owners’ names. Buildings and houses are also indicated on several of the atlases, sometimes with numbers that signify the number of stories in the house.

There is also a collection of Sanborn Company maps. This company, started in 1867 by D.A. Sanborn was the major provider of maps to the insurance industry for more than one hundred years. Although the collection here does not cover all of Suffolk County, the entire collection of Sanborn maps for the state of New York can be found online here at Huntington Public Library. These maps show buildings and are coded to indicate the type of construction such as wood or steel frame.

One may also want to check the SPLIA (Society for the Preservation of Ling Island Antiquities) list of surveyed historic houses all over Long Island. Patchogue-Medford Library, the central reference library for Suffolk County, has an inventory list located in their local history room.

Family History Center Affiliate Library

We are excited to announce that SCLS (Suffolk Cooperative Library System) has been designated a Family History Center Affiliate Library. Prior to this designation, researchers would have to visit the Family History Center in Plainview or the Family History Library in Salt Lake City to conduct research. Now our patrons can request most microfilm and microfiche listed in the Family History Library Catalog, from the comfort of one's home.

The Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah is operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It was founded in 1894 to help members of the LDS church research their family history and genealogy. The Library has grown tremendously and today it's the largest of its kind. Researchers from across the globe visit the Library and the Centers to conduct wide-ranging research. The collection includes over 2.4 million rolls of microfilmed genealogical records; 727,000 microfiche; 356,000 books, serials, and other formats; over 4,500 periodicals; 3,725 electronic resources.

For library members the fees are as follows: microfilm loan charges are $6.00 per reel. The loan time is 60 days which includes shipping time to and from the Family History Library. This assumes 15 days shipping time each way, so the patron will have about 30 days to view the microfilm. There is a $6.00 charge for renewal of the microfilm for an additional 30 days. Microfiche are available for loan at the rate of $1.00 per fiche card. The patron may use the fiche for 60 days.

This is an amazing resource and SCLS is thrilled to be designated an Affiliate Library. The procedure for requesting microfilm is tricky so let a librarian walk you through the process. However, do visit the site and explore the vast array of historical information the Family History Library holds. Feel free to contact the Adult Services Department with any questions, 631-427-5165.

A Celebration of Abraham Lincoln's Birthday and President's Day at HPL

In honor of Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday and President's Day on February 16th, the library is displaying treasures from the Mary Talmage Local History Room on the main floor of the library. Stop by the periodical room and see the exhibit of wonderful resources from our collection. The following are several titles featured in the display:
Memorial Address on the Life and Character of Abraham Lincoln by George Bancroft (1866),
Nation’s Loss: A Discourse upon the Life, Services and Death of Abraham Lincoln, Late President of the United States by Hiram P. Crozier . Delivered at Huntington, L.I., April 19, 1865., Public Papers and Addresses of Franklin D. Roosevelt Vol. I-V (1938), The Writings of Washington Vol I-XII (1846).

For more information call (631)427-5165 x261 or email huntingtonhistory@gmail.com.

HPL's History Program - Abe Lincoln in the 21st Century

On Sunday, February 8, 2009 at 3pm in the main auditorium, Huntington Public Library will celebrate one of America's greatest president's 200th birthday! We welcome David Houston, the popular and versatile actor, in this original portrait of our most literary president, Abraham Lincoln. The script is adapted from Lincoln's writings and speeches - which reveal a witty and wise statesman who speaks to us as if he lives today and understands our most pressing, confusing, and amusing concerns. You will be touched and enlightened by what you hear.

In addition to this wonderful program, visit the Abraham Lincoln display on the main floor in the periodical room. We will showcase unique items from the Mary Talmage Local History Collection. It will be on display throughout the month of February.

If you have a question regarding the program or exhibit, feel free to call the Adult Reference Desk at 631-427-5165 x251.

NARA

The National Archives and Records Administration, also known as NARA is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for preserving and documenting both government and historical records and making those records available to the public. They offer insight into the lives of people, their families and our history. Because the records at the National Archives come from every branch of the Federal government, almost all Americans can find themselves, their ancestors, or their community in the archives (NARA).

NARA has a well organized page for genealogists and family historians. It's arranged by research topics or types of records. The most commonly used records for research are military, census, immigration, naturalization and land records. Visit the website, http://archives.gov/ and explore the wealth of information available to you. Start your research online, or visit the Northeast Regional Archives in New York City at 201 Varick Street, New York, NY 10014.

Digital Sanborn Maps

Huntington Public Library is proud to announce the acquisition of Digital Sanborn Maps for use within the library. Over 100 years ago, the maps were created for assessing fire insurance liability in urbanized areas across the United States. Today they are a valuable source of historical information. The maps include street names, building numbers with physical descriptions, street widths and more. Their research potential is endless and for genealogists and local historians they can be used to locate ancestor's homes and neighborhoods.

HPL's collection includes many urban areas throughout New York State including maps of Huntington in the following years: 1886, 1892, 1897, 1902, 1908, 1914, 1922 and 1930. The map above displays a section of Main St., Wall St. and New York Ave in 1902.

Come visit the library and browse this wonderful new resource. It can be accessed within the library through our homepage, click on Our Databases and scroll down to the link for Sanborn Maps. If you would like instruction on how to use the digital collection, stop by the Mary Talmage Local History Room during the designated hours (listed above), or call (631-427-5165 x261 or 250) or email huntingtonhistory@gmail.com to make an appointment.