Local History/Newburgh Free Library: Local History Room
Pictures and Post Cards
Liberty Street and Courtney Avenue
One Room Library in Old Academy
Broadway and Grand Streets
AME Zion Church
Newburgh Railroads on the Hudson
Local History Resource Center Open for Researchers
The Newburgh Enlarged City School District has opened for the Fall term. Welcome back to all our students and staff!
The Local History Resource Center has moved into its new space on the second floor. The first part of the build is complete.
Please be aware that books that state "Ask a Librarian" in the Location Field in the OPAC record are in storage and continue to be unavailable for use at this time.
Please call ahead to make an appointment at 845-563-3617.
We will try to accommodate walk-ins, but may not be able to do so.
The Main branch of the Newburgh Free Library that houses the Local History Room is located at 124 Grand Street, Newburgh, NY. Patrons can make appointments to view materials by calling the Local History Librarian at 845-563-3617. Please be sure to talk to the local history staff before making the trip into the library. Please call the main library number at 845-563-3600, if you have difficulty reaching the local history staff. They may be doing other tasks.
We hope to see you soon.
The Newburgh Free Library's school year hours are in effect. Local History Room is open for some Saturday hours during the school year.
The Local History Resource Center hours of operation include some evening hours.
We try to accommodate walk-ins who have not made an appointment with their questions, but it is not always possible.
The Local History Librarian must also provide service at the public reference desks, requiring schedule changes without notice.
Call ahead at 845-563-3617 to make an appointment.
Before you come or contact us:
- Please be aware that only articles in the information files are permitted to be copied by patrons. There is a charge of 10 cents per black & white photocopied page or 50 cents per color copied page. Oversized items are an additional charge. There are also charges for e-mailed and additional charges for mailed or faxed items. Please be sure provide your contact information.
- As a result of damage to irreplaceable books, periodicals, maps, and photographs, the photocopying of these rare reference materials by patrons is prohibited. In case the copying is of extreme importance, staff may be available to assist you at the time of your visit. However, if we cannot help you at the time of your visit, please provide as much information as possible of the item you need copied. In the case of a book for example, please provide the title, author, call number and page numbers of the book needed. Postage fees will also be charged. If you have any questions, please contact the local history librarians Heather H. Georghiou through her e-mail at hhgeo@rcls.org or call her direct lines at 845- 563-3617.
OBITUARY REQUESTS:
- If you are calling or e-mailing the local history librarian at hhgeo@rcls.org about an obituary lookup in the Newburgh Evening News OR Middletown Times Herald Record, please provide the following: the individual's name, date of death (month/day/year), and your name and address. We will mail you a copy of the obituary if we find one. If you can provide us a month, day, and year of the person's death we charge $2.00 for the search. If you can only provide us with the month and year, we charge $5.00 for the lookup. You can wait to receive the obituary to send the fee. Please send the fee in a check made out to the Friends of the Newburgh Free Library, att: Heather H. Georghiou, 124 Grand St., Newburgh, NY 12550. We cannot guarantee an obituary was written for any individual. We charge the search fee regardless of whether or not we find an obituary. Please limit your obituary requests to up to three per envelope.
Thank you for your patience and consideration.
Mission of the Local History Room
The Purpose of the local history collection is to collect and preserve materials relevant to the history of Newburgh and New Windsor, NY. These materials are available to students, researchers and the general public. The Library holds these materials in trust for future generations, and therefore they can be examined in the local history room only. Historical records have been called the building blocks of history. By saving them, we are helping to preserve the collective memory of our community. We cannot fully understand who we are as a community if we don’t understand who we were as a community and what it once meant to be a member of that community.
Scope of the Local History Collection
The major emphasis of the Local History Collection is historical information about the geographical area encompassed by the Enlarged Newburgh City School District. The collection houses materials in a variety of formats including, but not limited to: books, pamphlets, local church records, local cemetery records, census records for Newburgh and surrounding counties, historic landmarks, land grants, maps, microform duplicated books, cd rom disks, photographs, post cards and scrapbooks. The collection does not house materials in the following formats: three-dimensional artifacts, original government or faith based records including marriage or death certificates, or posters. The Library also provides access to Ancestry Library Edition and HeritageQuest. Clients who wish to use either of these databases must have a valid Newburgh library card.
Access to the Local History Room
The 4,000-item collection is available for client use whenever local history room staff is available. The collection is housed in a secured room to which a client must ask to gain admittance. While a librarian is on duty at all times the library is open to answer your general questions about the local history room collection, local history room staff is not always available. If a client is traveling a distance, it is advisable to call ahead so local history staff can plan accordingly. Please call 845-563-3617 to make an appointment or check the staffing schedule. Newburgh Enlarged City School District classes are encouraged to use the facility. If the teacher expects staff to help with a program, prior arrangements must be made.
Gift Policy
Purchases, Gifts and Loans
The Library Director approves all materials purchases. Donations will be accepted as an unrestricted gift. Donations must be accepted by the Library Director or Local History Librarian by prior arrangement. Items will not accepted on deposit except by a separate signed agreement that is approved by the library board. The only exception is the temporary loan of items for exhibition. Under special circumstances, items from the Newburgh Free Library will be loaned to the other institutions for exhibition.