Missouri Digital Heritage

I mentioned in my list of Top Ten Genealogy Sites – Missouri Digital Heritage.

Through the Missouri Digital Heritage Initiative, the Missouri State Archives and the Missouri State Library, in partnership with the State Historical Society of Missouri, are assisting institutions across the state in digitizing their records and placing them online for easy access. We invite you to explore our website and to join with us in celebrating our collective past.

I mentioned that while the Missouri Death Certificate collection is perhaps the best known part of this collection, there is a whole lot more there. Following is a sample of some of the things you will find there of genealogical or historical interest

We will start with collections housed at the Missouri State Archives:

• Missouri Census Schedules from 1830-1930

Index to federal and state census records, 1830-1930, available on microfilm at the Missouri State Archives.

• Missouri Birth & Death Records Database Pre-1910

Abstracts of Missouri birth, stillbirth, and death records recorded before 1910.

• Missouri Death Certificates (1910-1958)

Index of death certificates, linked to digital images of the original death certificate. Updated annually.

• Missouri Judicial Records

These historic probate records offer insight into the lives of Missourians through wills, inventories, settlements, and guardianship records. Circuit court cases provide a wealth of information on everything from the fur trade to the Civil War, steamboats to McCormick Reapers, and agriculture to urbanization.

• Missouri Coroner's Inquest Database

Index of coroner records from seven Missouri counties and the City of St. Louis, dates range from 1842 to 1932.

• Missouri Local Records Inventory Database

This database, produced by the Missouri Local Records Preservation Program, is a compilation of inventories of local government records identified as having permanent or enduring value and housed primarily in county and municipal offices, but includes some libraries, museums, and historical and genealogical societies that maintain government records. Not all Missouri offices have been inventoried. This database is being updated periodically as additional inventories are completed.

• Missouri Naturalization Records Database (1816-1955)

Abstracts of citizenship records from 22 Missouri counties.

• Missouri Soldier's Database: War of 1812 - WWI

Database abstracted from the service cards of over 576,000 Missourians who served in twelve wars and military engagements. Includes those in the War of 1812, the Mexican War, the Spanish-American War, and World War I, as well as the Heatherly War (1836), the Mormon War (1838), and the Iowa (Honey) War (1839). Over 380,000 of the records are for Civil War soldiers.

• Missouri County & Municipal Records on Microfilm

Listing of microfilm reels, by county, office, and municipality, held by the Missouri State Archives.

• Missouri Mormon War

Gateway to state records concerning the Missouri-Mormon conflict, 1838-1841. Includes finding aids and some digitized records.

The Digital Heritage collections also includes links to collections elsewhere that have been ‘contributed’ by outside sources.

• University of Missouri Libraries Electronic Books

Contributed by: University of Missouri Libraries
Electronic books from University of Missouri Digital library. [Includes St. Louis Social Registers of 1916, 1922. 1924 and 1925, Missouri Plat books from 1930, Sanborn Maps, and more]

• Dred Scott Case

Contributed by: Washington University Libraries

Collection of one hundred and eleven documents, over 400 pages of full-text searchable resource that represents the full case history of the Dred Scott Case.

• Ozarks Digital Library - Greene County Missouri, Records

Contributed by: Springfield-Greene County Library District

Collection of full text indexes and abstracts to records including circuit court record books, coroner's records, alms house records, justice of the peace records and others.

• Polk City Directories 1859-1925, Hannibal, MO

Contributed by: Hannibal Free Public Library

Polk City Directories 1859 - 1925.

• Blue Springs Historical Society Archives Photograph Collection

Contributed by: Blue Springs Historical Society

Historical photograph collection depicting life in Blue Springs, Missouri.

• 1948 Presidential Campaign

Contributed by: Harry S. Truman Library & Museum

Collection of 90 documents of President Truman's 1948 Presidential Campaign covering years 1946-1968

This is still a small sampling, but should give an idea of the diverse materials available through this collection. I am hopeful that the initiative, the brainchild of our current Secretary of State Robin Carnahan, will continue expanding unabated if in 2010 she wins her Senate campaign.