Genealogy and Local History Library

The Historical Society of Kent County collections includes thousands of items pertinent to regional history, including reference works, manuscript collections, documents, ledgers, maps, genealogies, cemetery records, photographs, and oral histories.

The Historical Society Research Library includes books and reference materials that are accessible for research purposes. The HSKC Archives is a separate collection, currently being inventoried and catalogued in a process that is expected to continue through at least 2025. For this reason, materials from the archives may not be available for research before that process is complete. 

Library Hours

Appointments are available to visit the library for research. Contact: director@kentcountyhistory.org to inquire.

Research Services

Our Librarian responds to research requests and assists with independent research on topics related to any aspect of Kent County History. Inquiries are answered as efficiently as possible, but due to the volume of requests and limited staffing, response times may take up to several weeks. If your research is time-sensitive, please try to contact us as early as you can. Research results are provided in the form of black-and-white paper copies or digital files. 

Research Fees

There is no charge for research requests requiring less than 15 minutes of staff time. 

Historical Society Members

– The first 30 minutes of staff research are free (limit of four requests per year). 

– After 30 minutes: $20 per hour.

Non-Members

Staff research services are $30 per hour. 

All

– Copy/Scan fees: $10 service charge plus $1 per page. 

– Paper copies are sent by USPS or picked up on-site by appointment. Digital scans are sent by email. 

Payments are accepted via cash, check, or credit card. 

Inquire about membership to save on research fees:

Individuals: $25 per year

Families/Couples: $40 per year

Student memberships are always free! 

General Search Suggestions

Please use the following link to search our collection

http://kentcounty.pastperfectonline.com/

• Search terms are not case sensitive.
• To conduct a simple search, use the keyword method.
• To search for several keywords, enter all words and records containing all of those words (in any order) will be returned.
• To search for keywords in a particular order, surround the exact term with quotation marks.
  Example: American Revolution (without quotes) will give you all the records containing those two words in any order and even if they are not related to each other.  “American Revolution” (with quotes) will give you all the records with those words in that exact relation to each other.
• To choose which content and records are to be searched, click the appropriate box under the heading “Content [Records] to Search.”
• To browse records by letter of the alphabet, use the “Click and Search” option at the top of the Search page.
• To search for keywords in specific fields, use the “Advanced Search” option at the top of the Search page.

 

Books

Books in the Library collection are in the process of being cataloged using a unique system. The library contains both published and unpublished books and booklets, with a focus on local and regional history, Maryland and Kent County genealogical resources, and family histories.

• You may do a keyword search for a title of a specific book by typing in that title. It is suggested you type the main words or phrase in the title so that the search is not too specific. For example: Kent County wills. This will return a search for the book titled: “Abstracts of Kent County Wills” as well as the search term/subject “Wills-Kent County.”
• A keyword search for subjects or search terms may also be effective. Try a general search, such as: American Revolution. You can then narrow your search if necessary.

Maps

The map collection contains original maps, as well as copies of historic maps primarily of Kent County and its towns and Maryland. Select images of our maps can be found on the “Maps” section of this website.

• To find a listing of all maps, type HSKC Maps Collection using
  a keyword search.
• Use keyword search to find a map of a specific place or town. For example: Chestertown map.

Documents

The Society holds collections of documents, as well as miscellaneous documents, grouped by categories and subcategories. The miscellaneous document categories are: Architecture and Engineering; Business and Industry; Culture; Education; Ethnic and Cultural Groups; Family/Genealogical History; Government; Legal Records; Maps and Atlases; Maryland; Military and War; Natural History; Oral History; Organizations; and Religion. Miscellaneous documents have been categorized as of January 2010; Schedule a visit to the Library to view these documents.

Photographs

The Society holds collections of photographs, as well as miscellaneous photographs grouped by categories and subcategories. The main categories are: Architecture and Engineering; Business and Industry; Culture; Education; Ethnic and Cultural Groups; Family/Genealogical History; Government; Legal Records; Maps and Atlases; Maryland; Military and War; Natural History; Oral History; Organizations; and Religion. Distinct collections of photographs will be cataloged together, then identified and inventoried individually when possible. This is a time-consuming process, undertaken solely by volunteers. (The Usilton/Kent County News Collection contains over 5,000 images, for example.) Eventually, other images may be available online. Currently, only the Society’s African American collection is available online, in cooperation with the Smithsonian’s Heartland Project.

Historic Sites

The Society maintains files for all historic structures in the Kent County Historic Sites Inventory originally conducted by the Maryland Historic Trust. Additional sites and structures will continue to be added to this “K-file” listing. The files contain the inventory form, photographs, and additional documentation collected by the Society.

• To find a listing of all files, enter a keyword search: Historic Sites Inventory
  *To search for a house or street name, enter that term or phrase in a keyword search. For example: Queen Street or Middle Hall.
• The K-files will eventually have multiple subjects listed under search terms, which can be found using a keyword search. For example: African-American.

Oral Histories

The Society has a small collection of oral histories, with a goal of expanding these holdings in the future.

• To find a list of all oral histories, use the keyword search: Oral history collection.
• To locate a specific interview, try searching by surname or first name.
• Search terms for the subject(s) of the interviews will eventually be added. For example: agriculture.

Vertical Files

The vertical files are collections of newspaper clippings, articles and copies of documents organized into a system of categories and subcategories. The main categories are: Architecture and Engineering; Business and Industry; Culture; Education; Ethnic and Cultural Groups; Family/Genealogical History; Government; Legal Records; Maps and Atlases; Maryland; Military and War; Natural History; Oral History; Organizations; and Religion.

• You may find a list of all vertical files in our holdings by doing a keyword search for: “Vertical file” (singular, no “s”). Then, browse all file titles; there are over 1000.
• You could search for all of the vertical files in a main category by searching the keywords in each category. For example: Maps atlases vertical file.
• Vertical file titles are designed to be descriptive of the contents. Therefore, browsing may be helpful, along with a simple keyword search of the subject and the term vertical file. For example: Revolution vertical file.

Finding Aids

Denning Collection 2017.001

Fairlee Grange Collection 2017.002

Bottomley Collection 2017.003

Almshouse Collection 2017.004

Pearce Collection 2017.005

Wethered Collection 2017.006

Smythe-Willson Collection 2017.007

Richard Bennett Collection 2017.008

Chambers, Ezekiel F. Collection 2017.009

Wallis Collection 2017.010

Wickes, Joseph Collection 2017.011