Why Would I Use City Directories?
City Directories can be a good source for locating...
- Addresses (and other details) for local businesses
- Addresses for specific individuals
- Occupations of specific individuals
- Lists of local organizations, officials, etc.
- (In some cases) other general information about the area.
Suggested Resources for City Directories
The Worcester DirectoryCall Number: F74.W9 A2 - In Library Use OnlyDinand Library owns hard copies of the Worcester Directory for most years between 1872 and 1937 (some volumes are missing). Please do not remove these from the library! .
Some older iterations of the Directory are available for 1844-1865 (in the Archives), 1859 & 1863 (in the Stacks), 1866-1868 & 1871 (in the Stacks).
- Worcester City Directories (Museum of Worcester)Worcester Historical Museum / Museum of Worcester's page on city directories, with links to selected directories which have been digitized.
- Online Books Page: Worcester (Mass.)A list of digitized (mostly historic) books relating to Worcester, which you can browse by subtopic (for example: buildings and structures; description and travel; etc).
- HeritageQuest This link opens in a new window
Ancestry® genealogical database which also includes census records and other historical documents from the U.S. and other countries.
- HathiTrust Digital LibraryHathiTrust is a repository of digitized books drawn from major research libraries in the United States. The library contains millions of books of all different dates and subjects. Certain parts of the collection are restricted, but many books are free online.
Suggested Resources for Maps & Mapping
- Sanborn Maps Online [Library of Congress]Digitized historic fire insurance maps from various cities in the US.
- Massachusetts Real Estate AtlasesDigitized 19th and 20th-century real estate atlases from the State Library of Massachusetts, covering 12 counties and 80 municipalities across the state.
- Real Estate Atlases of Worcester (Museum of Worcester)Worcester Historical Museum / Museum of Worcester's collection of digitized city atlases. Their collection includes atlases from 1870, 1886, 1896, 1911, and 1922.
- Maps from the City Directories (Museum of Worcester)Worcester Historical Museum / Museum of Worcester's online exhibit of maps scanned from Worcester City Directories. Maps range from 1844 to 1869.
- A History of Worcester in 10 Maps [City of Worcester]A collection of maps, with historical notes, collected for the Worcester tercentennial in 2022.
- Digital Commonwealth (Massachusetts Collections Online) This link opens in a new window
Historical sources owned by libraries, museums and other institutions in the state of Massachusetts, browsable by topic, institution, format or location.
Lord's indexed street atlas of the Worcester-Fitchburg areaCall Number: Vis Arts ReservePublication Date: 1976- Lord's indexed street atlas of the Worcester-Fitchburg areaCall Number: Vis Arts ReservePublication Date: 1985
