Find your roots at Hoag.

'Tea with Dee' Monthly Lectures on Local History
Join Local History Librarian Dee Robinson the first Tuesday of the month at 2pm for a lecture on local history! Recording of the lectures are found on the Hoag Library YouTube page.
Start your research with us!

Books: Circulating and Reference

Section 929: Basic how-to genealogy books
Section 970: Local history

The Curtis Civil War Collection

Mr. William J. Curtis, Civil War history collector, donated his extensive collection to the library. The Curtis Civil War collection has a heavy emphasis on Confederate books. Mr. Curtis would vacation in the south and collect works with the southern viewpoint of the war.

Local History Room
This collection generally covers the history of Western New York and more specifically covers Orleans County history. It includes local histories written as early as 1874, which have indexes. It also includes gazetteers, directories, atlases, and phone books. In addition are a collection of Albion High School yearbooks from 1903 to present.

Microfilm
Included in this collection are microfilmed newspapers, census records, and some church records. The newspapers included are Albion papers from the 1820s to 2013, and the Holley Standard from 1886 to 1994. If you are searching for an obituary, you must know at least the month and year of death, as the newspapers are not indexed.

Oral Histories
In the 1970s and 1980s, the Orleans Historical Association conducted audiotape interviews of many Orleans County residents. These tapes have been transcribed and also been transferred to audio discs, which are both available along with an index.

State-of-the-Art Technology
ScanPro® 2500 All-In-One™ Microfilm Scanner: The versatile ScanPro 2500 All-In-One is both an on-demand reader, printer, scanner for research and a conversion scanner for roll film, fiche and jacketed fiche.  *In Memory of Roger LaMont*

CZUR M3000 Pro Book Scanner: Digitize books, photographs, and other delicate materials quickly and easily. *Generously donated by Sally Mathes*

Genealogy
Genealogical resources include basic information on New England families. Some of the genealogical records included are volumes of the Connecticut Nutmegger, Mayflower Families, Compendium of American Genealogy, The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, The Barbour Collection of Connecticut Town Records, and Vital Records for several towns in Massachusetts to name a few.

Local Genealogy
Local Genealogies completed by other researchers are included in this collection and include an index of names.

Orleans County History Sites
Orleans County, NY Genweb
Orleans County Almshouse Burials
Sampubco: Indexes, wills, naturalizations, and guardianships
for NY state and several other states. You can order copies.
Heritage Quest Online – link on home page
Historic Maps
Names listed on the Soldiers and Sailor Monument in Mt. Albion Cemetery

Other General Genealogical Sites
Slave Voyages 
Findagrave
Family Search
Rootsweb
Genforum: Forums for surnames, states, counties, etc.
Cyndi’s List: List of other genealogical sites online

Community Resources
Albion is the county seat of Orleans and offers other resources to researchers.

County Offices
Located on Courthouse Square are the County Courthouse and the County Clerk’s office. In the courthouse, you will find access to the Surrogate’s Office, which houses will and probate papers. At the County Clerk’s Office you have access to deeds, plat and survey maps, original census books, and more. The County Historian’s Office is located at 34 East Park St. and can be reached at 585-589-4174.

Historians
New York State has a unique network of appointed village, city, town, county, and borough historians. Orleans County’s list is available at the County Historians Website

Other Associations and Societies

The Orleans County Historical Association
P.O. Box 1285
Albion, NY 14411

The Cobblestone Society Museum
The museum has a library called the Cobblestone Resource Center located in the Brick House immediately west of the Cobblestone Church.
P.O. Box 363
Albion, NY 14411
585-589-9013

DAR
249 North Main Street
Albion, NY 14411

Out-of-Town Researchers
You can e-mail   Dee Robinson at  drobi@nioga.org
You can also mail questions to the Hoag Library, 134 South Main St., Albion, NY 14411, attention to Dee Robinson.

Genealogy How-To Resources for Beginners
Copyright Fundamentals for Genealogy
Cyndi’s List Beginners
Ancestry.com