Missouri Archives and Libraries

These archives, libraries, societies, and museums preserve sources, maintain indexes, and provide services to help genealogists document their ancestors who lived in Missouri.

Online Recorces

 * State Historical Society of Missouri Digital Collections, index

Wiki Articles on Major Repositories in Missouri
National Archives I, Washington DC· National Archives at Kansas City· National Personnel Records Center (NPRC)· Missouri Bureau of Vital Records· Missouri History Museum Library· Missouri State Archives· Missouri State Genealogical Association· State Historical Society of Missouri· Kansas City Public Library Missouri Valley Special Collections· Ozarks Genealogical Society Library· St. Louis County Library· St. Louis Mercantile Library· St. Louis Public Library· Springfield-Greene County Library Center· Wilson's Creek National Battlefield Library· Harrison County Historical Museum TX· Newberry Library, Chicago IL

National
Mid-Continent Public Library Midwest Genealogy Center 3440 S. Lee's Summit Road Independence, MO 64055-1923 Telephone: 816-836-5200 Fax: 816-521-7253 Website


 * One of America's most complete genealogical centers including censuses and indexes, 80,000 family histories, 100,000 local histories, 565,000 microfilms, 7,000 maps, and newspapers. Surrounding states are well represented. The Mid-Continent Public Library shares its genealogical materials through interlibrary loan.

National Archives I 700 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington DC Telephone: 1-866-272-6272 Fax:  301-837-0483 Website Email


 * Nationwide censuses, pre-WWI military service and pensions, passenger lists, naturalizations, passports, federal bounty land, homesteads, bankruptcy, ethnic sources, prisons, and federal employees. The National Archives Building in Washington, DC (Archives I), houses textual and microfilm records relating to genealogy, American Indians, pre-World War II military and naval-maritime matters, the New Deal, the District of Columbia, the Federal courts, and Congress.

National Archives at Kansas City 400 West Pershing Road Kansas City, MO 64108 Telephone: 816-268-8000 Website

The National Archives at Kansas City, Missouri has the records of regional federal offices for Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska, including the following:


 * Federal naturalization records including A-files
 * Bureau of Indian Affairs and other American Indian records
 * Copies of federal census, military, federal land records, and immigration records
 * Specialties include frontier and territorial history, and American Indians of the Northern Great Plains.

National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) 1 Archives Drive St. Louis, MO 63138 Telephone: 314-801-0800 Fax:  314-801-9195 E-mail: [mailto:MPR.center@nara.gov MPR.center@nara.gov] Internet: National Personnel Records Center


 * The National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis is part of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). It is the central repository for both the military and civil services personnel-related records. It maintains military personnel records for servicemen and servicewomen discharged from 1912 to 1952* (*i.e. 62 years after discharge). Use Standard Form SF-180 to order files. Records prior to WWI are in Washington, D.C.

State
Missouri Bureau of Vital Records 912 Wildwood (P.O. Box 570) Jefferson City, MO 65102-0570 Telephone: 573-751-6387 Website [mailto:VitalRecordsInfo@health.mo.gov/ Email]
 * Central registry of Missouri births and deaths since 1910; marriages and divorces since 1948.

The State Historical Society of Missouri Digital Research Centers: Cape Girardeau, Columbia, Kansas City, Rolla, St. Louis, and Springfield Website

They provide online access to journals, photographs, newspapers, and oral histories telling the story of Missouri’s history, people, and culture. Missouri History Museum Library 225 South Skinker Blvd (P.O. Box 11940) St. Louis, MO 63112-0040 Telephone: 314-746-4500 Fax: 314-746-4548 Website [mailto:library@mohistory.org/ Email] [mailto:archives@mohistory.org/ Email]


 * They have an excellent collection about early Missouri settlers and immigrants through Illinois, 90,000 books, periodicals, St. Louis newspapers, fire insurance maps, city directories, St. Louis people, western fur trade, and Missouri history. The library has an online genealogy index. Copies of records can also be ordered online.

Missouri State Archives 600 West Main Street (P.O. Box 1747) Jefferson City, MO 65102 Telephone: 314-751-3280 Fax: 573-526-7333 Website [mailto:archref@sos.mo.gov/ Email]


 * A "user-friendly" facility with originalcounty records on microfilm. Website

from all counties (61,000 reels), municipal records, 400,000 photos, 9000 maps, censuses 1752-1940, court, land, military, Missouri Mormon War, and penitentiary records. Additional databases include births/deaths pre-1910, coroners inquests, land patents 1831-1969, and naturalizations 1816-1955.


 * Note: Records kept at the state capitol were lost by fires in 1837 and 1911. Several counties in Missouri have also lost records due to fire, war, and other destruction.

Missouri State Genealogical Association P.O. Box 833 Columbia, MO 65205-0833 E-mail: [mailto:webmanager@mosga.org webmanager@mosga.org] Internet: Missouri State Genealogical Association


 * Sponsors events, conferences, Missouri First Families certificates, newsletters, a blog, MoSGA's Journal, researchers, speakers, research links, and annual awards. The MoSGA collection is part of the Mid-Continent Public Library Midwest Genealogy Center in Independence MO.

State Historical Society of Missouri University of Missouri Ellis Library 1020 Lowry Street Columbia, Missouri, 65201-7298 Telephone: 573-882-1187 Fax: 573-884-4950 E-mail: [mailto:shsofmo@umsystem.edu shsofmo@umsystem.edu] Internet: About SHSMO


 * Good genealogy collection with historic Missouri manuscripts and reference books, collection of 460,000 books, 500,000 manuscripts, 150,000 archival records, 2,900 maps, databases, art, census, digital collections, newspapers, oral history, and photographs. This Society has research centers at Cape Gerardeau, Columbia, Kansas City, Rolla, St. Louis, and Springfield.

Regional
Kansas City Public Library Missouri Valley Special Collections Central Library 14 W. 10th Street, 5th Floor Kansas City, MO 64105 Telephone: 816-701-3427 Fax: 816-701-3401 E-mail: [mailto:lhistory@kclibrary.org lhistory@kclibrary.org] Internet: Central Library


 * Great genealogy collection for the Missouri Valley with biographies, periodicals, genealogies, diaries, photos, scrapbooks, and newspapers of KC area.

Ozarks Genealogical Society Library 534 West Catalpa (PO Box 3945) Springfield, Missouri 65808 Telephone: 417-831-2773 E-mail: Contact Form Internet: Research


 * OGS has substantial genealogy for southern Missouri, Missouri in general, other states, a large collection of genealogical periodicals, maps, family histories, and over one dozen special collections compiled by area researchers. Special Collections records focus on family histories with an emphasis in the southwest Missouri geographical area.

St. Louis County Library Headquarters Tier 5 (top floor) 1640 South Lindbergh Blvd St Louis, MO 63131-3598 Telephone: 314-994-3300, ext. 2070 E-mail: [mailto:scollections@slcl.org scollections@slcl.org] Internet: St. Louis County Library History and Genealogy


 * Their collection includes holdings from the National Genealogical Society, St. Louis Genealogical Society, African American Research Collection, Jewish Genealogical Society, parish records from the Archdiocese of St. Louis, and the Archdiocese of Belleville, Illinois.

St. Louis Mercantile Library University of Missouri - St. Louis Thomas Jefferson Library Building One University Blvd. St. Louis, Missouri 63121-4400 Telephone: 314-516-7240 or 314-516-7247 Fax: 314-516-7241 E-mail: Research Assistance form Internet: St. Louis Mercantile Library


 * Early newspapers, railroads, inland waterways, county records, biographies, and genealogies. A premier library for Missouri research.

St. Louis Public Library (City) Central Library 1301 Olive Street St. Louis, MO 63103 Telephone: 314-241-2288 E-mail: [mailto:webref@slpl.org webref@slpl.org] Internet: Genealogy


 * They have an on-line Obituary Index for the years 1880–1927; 1942–1945; 1992–2006, family histories, passenger lists, Heritage Quest, and Gateway Family Historian publication.

Springfield-Greene County Library Center The Library Center 4653 S. Campbell Ave. Springfield, MO 65810-1723 Telephone: 417-616-0534 Fax: 417-883-9348 E-mail: Ask a Librarian form. Internet: Guide to Local History and Genealogy Department Collections


 * Substantial genealogy for southern Missouri. Censuses, religious and church histories, city directories, U.S. Civil War, online death certificates 1910-1958, births, marriages, land, probate, cemeteries, clippings, newspapers, American Indians, maps, and periodicals.

Wilson's Creek National Battlefield Library 6424 West Farm Road 182 Republic, MO 65738 Telephone: 417-732-2662 E-mail: Wilson's Creek Contact Us form Internet: The Hulston Library


 * This library can help genealogists find ancestors who served in the American Civil War, and learn more about that war in Missouri.

Outside Missouri
Harrison County Historical Museum Old Harrison County Courthouse 117 East Bowie (P.O. Box 1987) Marshall, Texas 75671 Telephone: 903-938-2680 E-mail: [mailto:info@harrisoncountymuseum.org info@harrisoncountymuseum.org] Internet: Harrison County Historical Museum


 * A key repository for locating selected early Missouri  and Texas  settlers. This was a center for Missouri Confederate soldiers during the Civil War. It has a great collection of family folders, books, letters, diaries, journals, and surname lists.

Miami, Oklahoma also has significant association with southern Missiouri heritage and genealogy.

Newberry Library 60 West Waltron Street Chicago, Illinois 60610 Telephone: 312-255-3512 E-mail: [mailto:genealogy@newberry.org reference@newberry.org] Internet: Newberry genealogy page


 * Over 17,000 printed genealogies. Their collection is strong for colonial America, especially New England, including local histories from all over the United States, Canada, and Britain. Outstanding county history collection for the Midwest  and Mid-Atlantic states. The Civil War collection is one of the best in America.