Resources - Where To Find The Directories

Where To Find Town Directories

These have always been a great resource for genealogists, showing where families lived.  They are also a great resource when researching businesses, and they often include fun advertisements, photos and maps.  You really never know what you will find in a directory!  For instance, the 1890 Williamsport & Lock Haven Directory - approximately 600 pages - includes business listings for Milton and Watsontown, Some of Clinton County,  and Lycoming county "towns" that are no longer towns.  

Please note that this is VERY much "in progress".  I wanted to add my notes as I worked with the 1890 census today, but I am not taking the time to make a more comprehensive list right this minute.

U.S. City Directories 1822-1995 On Ancestry

Danville Directories

• 1928 List of Industries. Not a directory, but a listing of some    of the industries

Milton Directories

• 1913 Williams Directory of Milton
• Milton Business & Industries - Assorted sources I complied in various research

New Columbia

• 1913 Williams Directory of New Columbia

Sunbury Directories

• 1905

Watsontown Directories

• 1913 Williams Directory Of Watsontown
• Assorted Businesses & Industries - pages from directories and other sources that I compiled in various research

West Milton

• 1913 Williams Directory Of West Milton

Williamsport Directories

  Ancestry.com has Williamsport Directories from 1866-1934 (but not every year in between.  There are a LOT of them.) 

1890 Williamsport

• Title - 1890 Williamsport Directory - Names of the citizens, street and numerical directory, a map, compendium of the government, and public and private institutions - Together with Lock Haven City and alphabetical directories of the Principal Towns Surrounding, by Boyd.  Cost was 3.50.  [approx. 600 pages]
• On Ancestry
• Pages 554-587 - In a Facebook Album (Principal Surrounding Town Listings)
• Includes some businesses of Muncy, Montoursville, Watsontown, Milton..

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Don't Lend Your Directory

Almost every directory has this admonishment, in different forms, telling you not to share your directory!  Everyone should buy their own.  

$3.50 cents in 1890 is about the equivalent of $125 in 2026.

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Where To Look For Directories:

Industrial Directories

Ancestry.com

Family Search

Historical societies

Libraries

Google Books

Archive.Org