Welcome to the Herrin History Room
Use of the Herrin History Room is by appointment only. Please email (herrinhistoryroom@gmail.com) or call ahead @ 942-6109.
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Introduction: The north wing of the Herrin City Library is now home to a museum. Browse our memorabilia, artifacts and displays related to the History of Herrin, Illinois.
Also, in the history area, you’ll find our growing collection of archival information about Herrin and Williamson County. The local history research shelves house books about history, genealogy research and Herrin High School yearbooks.
Need to do online research? The history area has a dedicated Genealogy Research Computer. Use of the Genealogy Research Computer is both first come first serve and by reservation. Please call the library if you would like to book a time to use the Genealogy Research Computer @ 618-942-6109. Use of the Genealogy Research Computer is also independent research. If you would like assistance getting started, you must book a librarian ahead of time. Please email (herrinhistoryroom@gmail.com) or call the library at @ 618-942-6109 to request an appointment.
The Genealogy Research Computer has access to:
· Ancestry Library Edition
· Familysearch.org – Affiliate Library
· Computer Scans of our collection of microfilm of Herrin News & Herrin Daily Journal from the 1800s to about 1945.
·Coal Mines of Illinois – Williamson County
·Illinois Mining Accidents
·Find a Grave
The history area is also home to the Linda Jennings Banks History Room. Available to researchers by appointment only, The History Room houses the bulk of our historycollection including previous research, old documents, paper copies of the Herrin Spokesman, and historical photographs. Some genealogical documents are also in our collection. Please contact Lisa Carnaghi – Herrin History Room Researcher by email at (herrinhistoryroom@gmail.com.) Or you may call Herrin City Library (618) 942-6109 to leave a message.
Submit a research request to Herrin City Library:
Useful websites and library resources:
The Digital Public Library:
Discover 35,456,977 images, texts, videos, and sounds from across the United States
Genealogy and Local History
Resources on doing genealogy research; such as, finding an obituary, requesting information from researchers in the History Room, using Herrin City Library’s Genealogy Research Subscription Resources, and suggestions for free research.
Herrin Yearbooks
Click here to be directed to the Yearbook Virtual Book Shelf.
Illinois Digital Archives
The Illinois Digital Archives (IDA) was created in 2000, as a repository for the digital collections of the Illinois State Library as well as other libraries and cultural institutions in the State of Illinois.
What can you find in the Illinois Digital Archives?
- Photographs, slides, glass negatives
- Oral histories
- Manuscripts and letters
- Federal government documents
- Postcards
- Posters
- Videos
- Newspapers
- Maps
Genealogical Research Illinois State Archives
Researching your ancestors and the history of your community can be fun and rewarding. By learning more about your family’s history, you will have a better understanding of who you are and your heritage. You can begin by viewing, printing, and entering information on the Record of Ancestry chart. You can verify your entries by consulting the original records of these events. Contact your local library for books about the fundamentals of genealogy, and the names and addresses of local genealogical and historical societies.
Genealogical Research at the Illinois State Archives
Genealogical Research Series Pamphlets
Veterans’ Homes, Pension, and Burial Records
World War I Draft Registration Records
Newspaper Navigator
Search 1.56 million historic newspaper photos. Newspaper Navigator is a project by Benjamin Charles Germain Lee as part of the 2020 Innovator in Residence Program at the Library of Congress.
Laws of Illinois Research Page
Useful online resource for researching the history of Illinois territories and state from Western Illinois University, The Library of Congress, Cornell University, the University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign, Google Books and the Hathi Trust Digital Library.