City and business directories are available online from all over the U.S. and are what I consider another important set of information that can assist you in advancing your family history and genealogy research.
This activity of presenting links is a collaborative effort between The Ancestor Hunt and Miriam Robbins, who for years has made available the Online Historical Directories website, which presents links to directories of all types that are available online, including free collections as well as those available only via subscription. I wish to thank Miriam for her help in launching this category of records at The Ancestor Hunt.
So, what kinds of directories are available to the researcher? Naturally city and business directories, but also telephone directories, and alumni, farm, lodge, rural, and social directories.
What can you find in these records? How about:
- Full names, including middle names
- Spouse name
- Occupation
- Widows, working women, and adult children at home.
- Maps
- Businesses (and index to advertisers).
- Addresses and maps of churches, schools, funeral homes, cemeteries, post offices, courts, hospitals, benevolent associations, newspapers.
- Whether a woman is a widow (including name of husband).
- List of marriages and deaths of previous year.
- Death date.
- etc.
Here are a few good primers on the benefits of searching historical city and other directories:
- FamilySearch - United States Directories
- How to Use City Directories In Your Genealogy Research
- What's In A City Directory? (a 10 article series about City Directories)
Note: Some of the links listed below take you to a FamilySearch Collection of digital images. Near the bottom of the page under Film/Digital Notes is the name of each sub-collection. If there is a camera icon at the right of the name (in the Format column) then the collections' images are browsable. If there is a camera with a key icon, it is only available at a Family History Center or affiliated library. If there is a film reel icon, then it is only available in microfilm format, not digital.
(Updated July, 2020; recently added links are in BOLD)
Links to these free collections are presented initially with statewide collections, followed in alphabetical order by city or county. Generally, the publishing company is included in the reference to the collection, along with the collection title, and the date(s) of the directory:
Statewide
- Biographical directory of the Kentucky General Assembly
- Business and professional directory of Louisville, Ky., New Albany and Jeffersonville, Ind., and Lexington and Frankfort, Ky.
- Directory of Federal and State departments and agencies in Kentucky, 1937
- Directory of Federal and State departments and agencies in Kentucky, 1939
- Directory of Federal and State departments and agencies in Kentucky, 1941
- Directory of the physicians, dentists and druggists of Cincinnati, 1889 : including Covington, Newport, Bellevue, Dayton and Ludlow
- Farmers' Educational and Co-operative Union of America Directory, Four States Press, 1913
- Kentucky Almanac, 1847
- Kentucky directory for the use of courts, state and county officials and General Assembly of the State of Kentucky - 1928
- Kentucky directory for the use of courts, state and county officials and General Assembly of the State of Kentucky - 1938
- Kentucky directory for the use of courts, state and county officials and General Assembly of the State of Kentucky - 1950
- Kentucky directory of manufacturers - 1975
- Kentucky Industrial Directory, 1946
- Kentucky Industrial Directory, 1949
- Kentucky Industrial Directory, 1953-1954
- Kentucky Official Manual and Educational Directory, 1914
- Kentucky Political and Business Directory, Shaffner, 1847 - Free (Don's List)
- Kentucky state gazetteer and business directory, 1876-1877
- Kentucky state gazetteer and business directory, 1883-1884
- Physicians', dentists', and druggists' directory of Indiana & Kentucky, 1893
- R. L. Polk & Co.'s Kentucky state gazetteer and business directory for 1895-96
- Young & Co.'s business and professional directory of central Kentucky, 1901
Barbourville Bellevue
- Bellevue City Directory 1872-1873
- Bellevue City Directory 1878-1879
- Bellevue City Directory 1880-1881
- Bellevue City Directory 1882-1883
- Bellevue City Directory 1897
- Covington and Newport City Directory 1856
- Covington City Directory 1834
- Covington City Directory 1869
- Covington City Directory, Deming, 1834
- Covington City Directory, Williams, 1860
- Covington City Directory, Williams, 1861
- Covington City Directory, Williams, 1866-7
- Covington City Directory, Williams, 1869
- Covington City Directory, Williams, 1872-3
- Covington Kentucky City Directory 1931-1932
- Williams' Covington, Kentucky directory pt. 1-2 (1931-1932) - 1931-1932
- Shaffer's advertising Directory for 1839-40 Cincinnati, Covington, and Newport
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1856-1857
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1861
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1869
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1880-1881
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1882-1883
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1884-1885
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1886-1887
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1888-1889
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1890-1891
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1892
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1894
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1895
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1897
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1898-1899
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1900-1901
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1902-1903
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1904-1905
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1906-1907
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1908-1909
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1910-1911
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1912-1913
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1914-1915
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1916-1917
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1918-1919
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1920-1921
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1923-1924
- Williams' Covington and Newport Directory 1928-1929
- Dayton City Directory 1872-73
- Dayton City Directory 1878-79
- Dayton City Directory 1880-81
- Dayton City Directory 1882-83
- Dayton City Directory 1890
- 1838 Fayette Directory
- 1912 Fayette County Rural Directory
- 1940 Fayette County Rural Directory
- Directory of the City of Lexington and County of Fayette for 1838 and '39
- 1806 Lexington City Directory
- 1859 Lexington Directory
- 1923 Lexington Cross Directory
- 1933 Lexington Telephone Directory
- 1942 Lexington Business and Professional Directory
- 1942 Lexington Street Directory and Map
- City Directory of Lexington, Ky. 1888
- City of Lexington Directory, Prather, 1895
- Emerson & Dark's Lexington Directory (illustrated) 1898-9.
- Lexington (Kentucky) Directory 1921
- Lexington City Directory 1904-1905
- Lexington City Directory 1908
- Lexington City Directory 1909
- Lexington City Directory 1911
- Lexington City Directory, Maydwell, 1867
- Lexington Directory, 1890.
- Lexington Directory, Polk, 1921
- Lexington's First City Directory Published by Joseph Charless for the Year…
- Lexington's Second City Directory Published by William Worsley and Thomas…
- Maydwell's Lexington city directory, for 1867: to which is appended a list…
- Polk's Lexington City Directory 1912
- Prather's Directory of the City of Lexington, Kentucky. August, 1895.
- Prather's Lexington City Directory for 1875 and 1876, Containing a Complete…
- R. L. Polk and Co.'s Lexington City Directory 1914-1915
- R. L. Polk and Co.'s Lexington City Directory 1916-1917
- R. L. Polk and Co.'s Lexington City Directory 1919
- Sholes' Directory of the City of Lexington, and list of business…
- The Lexington City Directory and Rural Postal Delivery Routes for 1902-1903
- The Lexington City Directory and Rural Postal Delivery Routes for 1902-1903.
- Townsend & Co.'s Lexington city directory for 1883-84.
- Williams' Lexington City Directory, for 1881-82.
- Caron's directory of the city of Louisville - v. 75 (1951)
- John B. Jegli's Louisville, New-Albany, Jeffersonville, Shippingport and Portland directory 1845-1849
- Louisville city directory, business mirror - 1858-1859
- Louisville directory, 1832
- Louisville, Directory and Business Advertiser, Haldeman's 1844-1845
- Western Address Business Directory, Robinson, 1837
- Western Address Business Directory, Robinson, 1837
- Western Address Business Directory, Robinson, 1837
- 1839-1840 Shaffer's Advertising Directory
- 1860 Business Mirror
- 1878 Newport Business Directory
- 1878 Newport City Government
- Newport City Directory 1834
- Newport City Directory 1840
- Newport City Directory 1856-57
- Newport City Directory 1867-1868
- Newport City Directory 1869
- Newport City Directory, Deming, 1834
- Newport City Directory, Williams, 1860
- Newport City Directory, Williams, 1861
- Newport City Directory, Williams, 1866-7
- Newport City Directory, Williams, 1869
- Newport City Directory, Williams, 1872-3
- City directory and history of Paducah, Kentucky 1894=1895
- Jno. B. Gaines, Paducah City directory - 1881-1882
- Ohio River Directory, Wiggins & Weaver, 1871-2
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!
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