Local History & Genealogy

Access to Ancestry.com is available from within the Library. Contains billions of names from census records, passenger immigration lists, vital records (birth/marriage/death), war and muster lists, court/land records, images, indexes, narratives and much more.

*Remote access to Ancestry Library has ended as of 12/31/21. Ancestry Library can be accessed inside any Tacoma Public Library Branch during open hours, opens a new window. Please consider using Heritage Quest, opens a new window, as an alternative to Ancestry Library, for those who wish to do genealogical research from home.

• Tutorial

Access to scanned images of the U.S. census records, Periodical Source Index (PERSI), Freedman’s Bank Records, the U.S. Serial Set, Revolutionary War records and more!

• Tutorial

A collection of over 50,000 digitized historical images (1870s-1980s) of Tacoma and surrounding areas, scanned from the Tacoma Public Library’s photography collections. Detailed captions accompany photos that vividly depict people, events, places, and snapshots of everyday life.

Search by name or keyword to find references to articles, book chapters, and other resources containing information on the people and events that have shaped our local history. All sources referenced in the index are available in the Northwest Room at Main Branch.

A collection of essays about the fascinating people who explored, settled and developed Tacoma and the Puget Sound region. The stories were selected by librarian Gary Fuller Reese from more than 30 years of newspaper & magazine articles, books, radio broadcasts and other writings by the distinguished historian, author and educator Murray Morgan.

Northwest ORCA (Online Records and Collections Access) is a digital discovery database for the Northwest Room , opens a new windowand Community Archives Center , opens a new windowat Tacoma Public Library. Materials from the City of Tacoma Office of the City Clerk , opens a new windoware also available. Explore collection descriptions and access digitized and born digital content. New content is added regularly. 

A digital collection of postcards depicting scenes and slices of life from Tacoma and the Northwest. All original content has been transcribed, and both sides of the cards digitized. Browse by topic or search by keyword.

A guide to more than 13000 ships which passed through the Port of Tacoma, with details on the names (and former names) of vessels, their builders, careers, and history.

Indexes home construction news in Tacoma newspapers from 1883 through 1950. Lists architects, contractor and building style, if known. Indicates whether architectural plans are known to exist. Includes many photographs and indexes over 200 books related to Tacoma architecture or history. Nearly 50,000 addresses included.

An index of obituaries published in the Tacoma News Tribune / Morning News Tribune. (Microfilm of the original obituaries available at the downtown Main Library.) Complete coverage from 1980 to the present, partial coverage pre-1980..

The Thomas Schofield Handforth Collection comprises the art output of Thomas S. Handforth and related items in the collections of the Tacoma Public Library. The Tacoma Public Library received the Handforth collection in a number of increments from the Handforth family and a number of his friends and associates along with a small collection from Caroline Schneider of Seattle in 1982.

True-life tales which chillingly capture the dark side of our State's history - battles, crimes, natural disasters, ghost stories and more!.

Learn the who, what, when and why about thousands of place names throughout Washington.

This collection of photos covers the entire span of time since the Puyallup Fair’s inception in 1900. While over a century has passed, the solid foundation developed by the Fair’s forefathers remains steadfast. Animals and agriculture are cornerstones of our history -- and our future. Today, the Puyallup Fair features those age-old favorites, plus new trends and activities.