The Search Continues - New Acquisitions

By Nettie Oliver
Genealogy Specialist

The Filson Historical Society continues to actively add to our genealogical collections to meet the demand of our many research patrons. The interest in discovering where our ancestors came from seems to be a continuous undertaking. Hands-on primary resources, instead of online searching, still seem to be the desired tools for gathering information.

In the past year we have purchased transcribed Kentucky County court records that have been offered to us by local genealogy societies and individuals. Those items added are Butler County Kentucky Will Book I,
1813-1853, Logan County Kentucky County Court Order Book A, 1810- 1853, Logan County Deed Book A, 1810-1814, Abstracts of Deeds of Nelson County, Kentucky, 1785-1808, Green County Kentucky Abstracts of Circuit Court Records 4 volumes, Russell County Kentucky Wills, 1826- 1854, Russell County Kentucky Guardian Bonds, 1830-1909, Lee County Kentucky Marriages, 1870- 1903, Muhlenberg County Kentucky Deed Books, 1813-1853, and Vital Records from Newspapers of Paris, Kentucky, 1813-1870.

For those who have trouble reading microfilm, as an alternative, we have added to our Kentucky census data in book form when it becomes available. This year we have added: Adair County, 1870 and 1880, Muhlenberg County, 1910, Lee County, 1910, Powell County, 1910, Graves County, 1910, Christian County, 1870 and 1900, McLean County, 1880, Todd County, 1880 and 1920, Butler County, 1870, Nelson County, 1910 and 1920, Ballard County, 1880, Trigg County, 1900 and 1920, Simpson County, 1860, 1870, and 1880, Floyd County, 1900, Special School Census for Logan County, 1895 and 1905 and the school census for Todd County, 1895.

We are very grateful for those who have generously given us the results of their research and have published family histories and have placed them here. Now cataloged and added to our collection are: The Sullivan Family by Don Perkins, Hammon Ancestors by Neal Hammon, Riddell Family History by Elizabeth Dick, Early Ward Families Volume 3 by Ralph Smith, Auxier Family by Joan Auxier Keller, Descendants of Henry Smith of Logan County Kentucky by Presley Smith, Baker-Ross-Smallwood Family History of Kentucky by Mary Carver, The Hancock Family of England & America by James R. Hancock, The Overtons 700 Years by Nan Overton West, The Herrolds by Donald Herrold, Now & Then Updated: The Story of the Family of William Henry Lyon by Margaret Mary Lyon, The Huffstutter family by Ray Huffstutter, Overstreets in Virginia, 300 years of Bedford County by Bob Overstreet, Descendants of Richard Major of Virginia by John K. Major, Parish Family Records by Charles William Parish, History of the Duff Family by William H. Young, Thomas Watts of Stafford County Virginia and his Descendants by Edward Watts, The Hurst and Finn Families of Nelson County Kentucky by Katherine L. House, and Edward Willet, his Ancestors and Descendants by Mary Louise Donnelly.

We are also happy to announce that we have purchased and brought up to date Filby's Passenger and Immigration Lists Index through 2001, as well as Filby's Germans to America, Volume 64, 1893.

We are now looking to the future and anticipate purchasing materials offered on CD-Rom format once we are able to provide more computer terminals in the library for patron use.

If you are now preparing a family history or have some gathered information or bible records that you would be willing to share with us, we would be glad to have these to add to our collections.

The Filson Historical Society
1310 South Third Street - Louisville, KY 40208
Phone: (502) 635-5083 Fax: (502) 635-5086