library and archives

Please only bring what you need for research into the Library.  Lockers are available for bags, purses and other personal items.  We allow pencils, papers, notebooks and folders.  We encourage you to bring a personal laptop since there are a limited number of public computers available.  Cell phone photography of documents and books is also allowed.  Your gracious cooperation with the Library Rules & Policies will help us protect our collections for many, many generations to come.

For information on donating to the Library & Archives, please contact Nicole Smith at 717-848-1587 x225.

Services update: As we prepare to move to the new History Center, the last day to donate artifacts and archival collections will be Aug. 1.  Donations will resume in spring of 2024.

Research orders will also be unavailable after August 1st until the spring.  However, the Library Reading Room will remain open until December, and staff and volunteers will still be available to answer any research or reference questions.

Online Resources

This website has a number of online resources including Online Research Request ordering, genealogy and property research resources and collections databases.  To access these resources, see EXPLORE on the main menu or click a link below.

Genealogy Resources and South Central Pennsylvania Genealogy Society

Property Research and Hively Land Records books and maps

Library and Partner Programs – South Central Pennsylvania Genealogy Society, York Civil War Round Table and ALLVETS

 

Library & Archives News:

The York County History Center is now a FamilySearch affiliate research center

This agreement allows members and visitors to the Library & Archives greater access to genealogy resources on the FamilySearch.org website.  For more information, please visit https://www.familysearch.org/blog/en/familysearch-affiliate-libraries/.

African American Collections

There is a new regularly-updated guide to African American collections at the History Center on this website.  See Special Collections and Finding Aids.

 

In our Reading Room, we offer extensive collections of family genealogies; books on local, state and regional history, with a focus on York County history; York City and County directories; York County high school yearbooks; historical atlases and maps; and local and regional periodicals and newsletters covering a wide range of topics. The York County History Center’s Library & Archives is also one of the only repositories in Pennsylvania that offers the two major York newspapers and their predecessors on microfilm. For more information about the York County History Center’s holdings, please see our list of the Library & Archives Resources.

All library users, whether members or not, have on-site access to the Library Edition of Ancestry.com. Included with this subscription is Fold3 and Newspapers.com/Pennsylvania Edition. Fold3 provides access to US military records and Newspapers.com/Pennsylvania edition provides access to the growing number of digitized newspapers, which now include portions of the Delta Herald and the Gazette & Daily (now known as the York Daily Record).

We annually host visitors from all 50 states across the country, as well as several other countries. Visitors receive assistance in using the collection from well-trained staff and volunteers.

 

library

Visiting the library

Admissions, daily rates, and hours

Patrons are encouraged to visit and make use of the Library & Archives resources in genealogy, local history and other historical topics.  For more about our Research by mail service, please follow the link below.

Get Directions
Hours
  • Tuesday - Saturday 10:00 - 4:00
  • Reservation Required
Admission Rates
  • Non-Members: $8.00/day $4.00 1/2 day
  • Members: Free
  • York County K-12 Students: Free
  • York College & Penn State York Students (with ID): Free

Our Collections

The Library & Archives is located on the first floor rear of The Historical Society Museum at 250 East Market Street, York, Pennsylvania. These materials are accessible to the public through various catalogs and indexes located in the reference area. Trained volunteers, with the support of Library staff, are available to assist patrons in using the collection.

For more information about making a donation to the Library & Archives, please contact Nicole Smith at 717-848-1587 x225 or nsmith@yorkhistorycenter.org.  Digital donations can be made here.

We encourage you to visit the History Center to further your genealogical and local history research. For those unable to do so, we provide several research opportunities that can be ordered online or by mail for a modest fee, payable in advance and non-refundable regardless of the outcome of the search.