OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — From 1915 yearbooks to obituaries of loved ones lost over the years: this hub of knowledge holds materials from across the U.S and other countries to help neighbors discover their history.
- Jess Vermeulen, a genealogy librarian showed us how to use some of these materials.
- Vermeulen says a lot of their visitors are older neighbors but she's hoping to attract younger folks through virtual events that can teach them how to use the library.
- "I think it really helps people understand where they come from and kind of validates their identity in some way."
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
While the internet is a common place to go to google whatever we need there's just some things you can't find online. At Omaha Public Library's Genealogy and Local History Room you’ll find a collection of Omaha's history and more to help you discover who you are.
From yearbooks dating back to 1915 to obituaries of loved ones lost over the years: this hub of knowledge holds materials not just for people who live and grew up in Nebraska but across the U.S. and other countries.
We spoke to Jess Vermeulen, a librarian here who showed me how to use some of these materials.
"These are city directories. We have the full run of Omaha City directories going back to 1866,” said Vermeulen.
Vermeulen says city directories are a great tool to use to look up where people lived over time.
"If you just bought a home and you want to learn more about who might have lived in the home or in the area, you can look up places by street address and do reverse lookups by name or street address,” said Vermeulen.
“And if you're researching an ancestor who lived in Omaha, you can really just track them every year through their lives and see, like, maybe they got a promotion this year, maybe they didn't, like how that information is listed changes over time."
Right now, Vermeulen says a lot of their visitors are older neighbors but she's hoping to attract younger folks through virtual events that can teach them how to use the library.
"Sometimes people don't get that interest in their family history until they reach an older age, and they want to learn all these things about their family that might not be so easy to do now that many of those family members have passed on,” she said.
Vermeulen has even used the library to discover more about herself and wants to help others do the same.
"I think it really helps people understand where they come from and kind of validates their identity in some way."
All these resources are free with a library card and soon will be relocated to the new Central Library when it opens.
