Frequently Asked Questions

The phone number for the local history room desk is 269-553-7808. You may also send us a request by mail at Kalamazoo Public Library, Local History Room, 315 S. Rose Street, Kalamazoo, MI 49007, or use our online contact form.

The Local Information Database is a resource that is available through the library’s website. It contains an index of local publications as well as information from some of the Local History Resources such as files and books from the collection.  The Local Information Database also includes historical photographs, information on local organizations and more.

We have copies of the Kalamazoo Gazette going as far back as 1834 with a gap in the collection during the Civil War years from 1862-1870.

The Kalamazoo Public Library’s Local History Room maintains an index of Kalamazoo Gazette articles. The focus of the index is on vital statistics (births, deaths and marriages) but there are also common interest articles starting in 1969 and moving toward the present such as sporting events, local politics and more. Click here for specific searching instructions. 

We do not index every article that appears in the Kalamazoo Gazette. Our focus is on local stories that impact the community. This means that we do not index stories such as sporting events unless they are for a championship game even if a photo is included with the story. Click for more indexing criteria.

Yes, we mail copies out to people who request them for a fee. We try to fill orders promptly, but sometimes we have a backlog of requests, so your order may not be sent by return mail. To learn more about how to order copies, click here.

The charge is one dollar ($1.00) per citation, up to three pages. For citations that contain more than three pages, additional pages will be charged at twenty-five cents ($.25) per page. The fee includes postage. We will include a bill for amounts under five dollars but for amounts over five dollars, we request payment in advance in the form of a Visa or MasterCard, check or money order. For more information please see How to Order Prints.

Our Local Information Database contains about 3,000 photographs of Kalamazoo and its former residents that are owned by Kalamazoo Public Library, WMU Archives and Kalamazoo Valley Museum. These photographs are available online and can be searched through the Local Information Database. Due to the large volume of photographs it is easiest to search for a specific subject such as the name of a building. If you would like suggestions of searchable items you can look through the web pages  and photo galleries regarding local people and places that have been put together by KPL staff members.  Photograph scans must be requested from the facility indicated on the picture’s citation. For more information on requesting scans please see How to Order Digital Copies of Photographs.

Yes.  We have copies of Birth records, Death records and Marriage records.  They are all kept on microfilm in the Tech Center which is located on the second floor of Kalamazoo Public Library’s Central Library at 315 S. Rose Street.

• Kalamazoo County Vital Records:
• Births: 1867-1903
• Marriages: 1831-1950
• Deaths: 1867-1997
• Foreign Deaths: 1931-1989
• Poorhouse Records: 1885-1941, 1950 

The indices for Births and Marriages continue through 1975, even though the corresponding records have not been filmed. The index to Foreign Deaths continues through 1998. There is no index to the Poorhouse Records.

The Local History Room sponsors a wide variety of programs both at the library’s central location as well as at branches.  These events include book signings, genealogy workshops, genealogy lock-ins, guest speakers discussing local history topics and more. 

Upcoming local history programs are listed in the library’s LINK newsletter and in the online local history calendar. This calendar lists a variety of events of historical interest held in Michigan but concentrating on southwest Michigan. The Local History events at Kalamazoo Public Library are listed here as well.