Through the years, I’ve needed to do some research in Ohio so I thought it was time I created a list of resources for this state. Many of these links are combos of some free access and some membership or subscription required. Many of these sites have online digital collections. Cyndi’s List has tons of Ohio links covering about every category you could think of.
As always, be sure to check for local genealogy and historical societies in towns of interest and don’t forget to contact the local public library there to inquire about unique holdings that they might have.
The links are strictly in ABC order, so you’ll need to scan the titles to find sites of interest. These should help get you started with your Ohio research!
Bluffton University Musselman Library – Mennonite Historical Collections
Bowling Green State University Libraries – Collections
Cincinnati – Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County
Columbus Metropolitan Library
Cyndi’s List – Ohio
FamilySearch Wiki – comprehensive set of links to all things Ohio
Franklin County Genealogical & Historical Society
Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives
Lake County Genealogical Society – on Facebook
Lawrence County Ohio Genealogical Society
NorthEast Ohio Computer-Aided Genealogy Society (NEOCAG)
Oberlin African-American Genealogy & History Group
Ohio History Connection – links to free info, but this is a membership organization
Ohio State University Library Digital Collection
Ohio Vital Records Indexes – links to both free and paid sites
Ohio Memory – Ohio’s digitized newspaper collections
Ohio University – Alden Library collections
Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library and Museums
Tom Caulley’s Lawrence County, Ohio Genealogy Site
Warren County Genealogical Society
Western Reserve Historical Society
Wright State University – Special Collections
Wonderful list, all in one place. Since my husband has lots and lots of Ohio ancestors, I’ve used some of these resources but not others. Gonna be a lot of clicking going on this weekend, thanks to you!
Wow, I’d love a list like this for Michigan! Great job pulling this together.
I’ll work on that next! I’ve had a few people wander through Michigan. 🙂
This is a great list, Linda. It’s hard to get them all for the whole state, though, isn’t it?!
The State Archives Library is in the same building with Ohio History Connection and while the OHC is a membership organization, there is no charge to go up to the Archives Library. Catalog and information here: https://www.ohiohistory.org/learn/archives-library.
Also, for many years, the State Library of Ohio had a genealogy section. They closed that section and sent most of the books to the Columbus Metropolitan Library. However, the SLO continues to have some of the special censuses (agricultural, etc.) including, surprisingly, for other states.
Columbus Metropolitan Library has resources for many other states, too, as well as other countries.
Impossible, but there is at least a starting point. There are a lot of counties in Ohio!
My paternal ancestry has had me buried in Ohio research. This is a great list with several new-to-me resources. Thanks for compiling, Linda.
I have Ohio ancestors, too. Thanks for the list of resources!