Rhode Island Archives and Libraries

United States Rhode Island  Archives and Libraries

Wiki Articles on Major Repositories in Rhode Island
Rhode Island State Archives (Wiki Page)·Rhode Island State Archives (Online Catalog)· Rhode Island Historical Society· Newport Historical Society· Brown University Library· Providence Public Library· Archives at the Judicial Records Center· National Archives Northeast Region (Boston)· New England Historic Genealogical Society

The following archives, libraries, and societies have collections or services helpful to researchers of Rhode Island families:

National Archives Northeast Region (Boston)
National Archives Northeast Region (Boston) 380 Trapelo Road Waltham, MA 02452-6399 Telephone: 781-663-0130 Fax: 781-663-0154 Website: NARA Northeast Boston

American-French Genealogical Society
P.O. Box 2010 78 Earle Street Woonsocket, RI 02895 Telephone: 401-765-6141 Fax: 401-765-6141 Website: American-French Genealogical Society

Rhode Island State Archives
Rhode Island State Archives 337 Westminster Street Providence, RI 02903-3302 Telephone: 401-277-2353 Fax: 401-277-3199 Website: Rhode Island State Archives

Rhode Island Historical Society
Rhode Island Historical Society 121 Hope Street Providence, RI 02906 Telephone: 401-331-8575 Fax: 401-351-0127 Website: Rhode Island Historical Society

Rhode Island Genealogical Society
P.O. Box 433 Greenville, RI 02828 Telephone:   Website:Rhode Island Genealogical Society

New England Historic Genealogical Society
New England Historic Genealogical Society 101 Newbury Street Boston, MA 02116-3007 Telephone: 617-536-5740 Fax: 617-536-7307 Website:New England Historic Genealogical Society

Newport Historical Society
Newport Historical Society 82 Touro Street Newport, RI 02840 Telephone: 401-846-0813 Website: Newport Historical Society


 * The Library dates to the founding of the Newport Historical Society in 1854 and includes works on the history of Newport County and the surrounding area. The collection contains approximately 12,000 volumes reflecting the settlement and development of Newport County. Because Rhode Island was established by settlers and refugees from other colonies, the collection includes works on early Southeastern New England families and governments that contributed to the history of Rhode Island and the Providence Plantations. Also included are general reference works.

An important inventory of manuscript records of the state, county, and town archives is Clarence S. Brigham, Annual Report of the American Historical Association for the Year 1903, Volume 1 (Washington, D.C.: American Historical Association, 1904)

Websites
You can find computerized research tips and information about ancestors from Rhode Island in a variety of sources at local, state, national, and international levels. The list of sources is growing rapidly. Most of the information is available at no cost. Addresses on the Internet change frequently. The following sites are important gateways linking you to many more sites:

The USGenWeb Project A cooperative effort by many volunteers to list genealogical databases, libraries, bulletin boards, and other resources available on the Internet for each county, state, and country.

Roots-L A useful list of sites and resources. Includes a large, regularly-updated research coordination list.

FamilySearch™ FamilySearch is a collection of computer files containing several million names. FamilySearch is a good place to begin your research. Some of the records come from compiled sources; some have been automated from original sources.