SmallTownPapers

I saw this online resource mentioned on Google+

You can read the details on Randy Seaver's blog:
http://www.geneamusings.com/2012/05/small-town-papers-now-free-to-access.html

Genealogy Magazines

For many years I have subscribed to all of the U. S. genealogy magazines. I was sad when Ancestry ceased publication in 2009. They are available for reading online at Google Books.

I often use the gen mags when trying to come up with topics for our society programs.

Kansas Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps

I have no Kansas roots, but my husband does, so this is a nice online resource.

The Kansas Collection, Kenneth Spencer Library, University of Kansas, houses and provides access to an extensive collection of Sanborn maps for 241 Kansas towns and cities covering a period from 1883 through the 1930s. With funding from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, the maps from 1883 – 1922 are now digitally available to researchers everywhere through this website.

History of the Maps

The Sanborn Map Company, of Pelham, New York, began surveying the business districts of cities and towns across the United States in the late 1860s. Their intent was to provide insurance underwriters with detailed information about the locations of businesses, the structures they were located in, and any information needed to assess their liability for insurance purposes.

Surveyors noted the size, shape, and construction of homes, commercial buildings and factories, the location of windows and doors, the existence of sprinkler systems and fire walls, the types of roofs, the widths and names of streets, property boundaries, building use, and house and block numbers.

Love of Cemeteries

I didn't always enjoy spending time in cemeteries. Genealogy came first. Visits in those early years were to find a specific person, take a photograph for my records and leave. Somewhere along the way that all changed.

Cemeteries can offer an afternoon of discovery. There is beauty and art to be found in the old stones and epitaphs. Stop by and visit me.

Digital Cemetery Walk