Blog: local history

Toledo Loves Its Library!

Joe Boyle, Toledo Public School Educator and soon to be published author, shares his experience finding this 1940s era photograph of a Toledo family outside our own Main Library.

Helping You Meet Those Reading Goals

Have you started a reading challenge yet this year? Maybe you need a little inspiration to log a few more books for TLCPL’s Winter Read. Maybe you want to challenge yourself to “read harder” this year. No matter what, the team at Kent Branch has you covered! We have curated a list of challenges to diversify your reads this year, and our staff has provided suggestions of some of their faves to match!

The Enduring Influence of Rance Allen

Just as Thomas Dorsey, “the Father of Gospel,” merged jazz and blues with gospel to mesmerizing effect, Rance Allen used the music he was exposed to during his youth – rhythm & blues, jazz and rock & roll – to shape a style that was the foundation for contemporary gospel music.

Cards of Yesteryear

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, the Winter Solstice or any combination of the winter holidays, it's a great time to reach out to family and friends with warm wishes. Please enjoy this small sample of cards created by a group of Toledo area residents of yesteryear.

The Digital Public Library of America

Learn more about a wonderful free resource for finding more ebooks, helpful school resources, improving your genealogy ability, and just exploring what libraries across America have to offer for free.

Exploring Toledo Through Its Architecture

"Architecture of Northwest Ohio," a digital library devoted to sharing and preserving Toledo's rich architectural heritage, hit a milestone of uploading its 100th unique commission.

Join Us In Celebrating The 419!

Join the Library, WGTE, Friends of Sidecut Metropark, the Maumee Valley Historical Society and others in celebrating 419 History Day for 2019.

New Options for Interacting With Our Digital Content

The Local History and Genealogy department of the Toledo Lucas County Public Library has loaded a number of digitized books onto Internet Archive as an alternative means of accessing them. We also shared all the metadata about our digital collections as open data, which is now accessible through GitHub.

Become a Part of Toledo’s History!

The Toledo Lucas County Public Library has launched a program to collect photos from the public to be preserved as part of our local history collections. Contribute your photos (physical or digital) to become a part of Toledo history.

Toledo Streets Newspaper Archive Now Available

The Local History and Genealogy department of the Toledo Lucas County Public Library has partnered with Toledo Streets, the local nonprofit news organization that helps those experiencing poverty with the opportunity to economically empower themselves. The first 74 issues of the newspaper are now available online through the Library.

New Digital Photos and How to Decorate With Them for Cheap

The Local History and Genealogy department of the Toledo Lucas County Public Library works to make our materials available as widely as possible by scanning books, maps, architectural drawings and photographs. They are made available through our partnership with Ohio Memory - here are some photo collections added in August.

Ohio Wetlands

Learn about the plants, animals and habitats found in local wetlands.

5 Day Summer Itinerary for Toledo, Ohio

Are you visiting Toledo, Ohio this summer and wonder what to do and where to go? Or, are you a native Toledoan looking for something different? Check out these unique ideas for this summer!

National Day of Listening

The National Day of Listening is an opportunity to sit down to have a face to face conversation - and really listen.

Preserve Your Personal Story: Veterans

Do you have analog photos, letters, and documents that you wish were digital? We’re here to help! Bring your materials and Preserve Your Personal Story here at TLCPL. Continue reading to learn more.

Digitizing Local School Yearbooks

Think you escaped your bad yearbook photos? Think again! Many library and archives are digitizing school yearbooks, TLCPL included, and even if you do not want to see your yearbook photos ever again, they are a great resource for genealogy research.

How the Library Helped Me Find My Family

For most of my life, I've know little about my "Grandma Bootsie," whom I lost too soon. I'd always wanted to learn more about this woman so many said I reminded them of, and her Irish family. The Library finally helped me find what I'd been searching for!

Get to Know Glass City

Ever heard of the Toledo War? Find out how a border dispute between Ohio and Michigan gave the buckeye state its fourth largest city and spawned the fiercest rivalry in college sports. Want to know how the Glass City got its name?