The Kentucky Room
The Paris-Bourbon County Public Library is proud to have a room dedicated to the history, literature, and some unique artwork you can only find in Bourbon County.
The Kentucky Room is a great source for your genealogy research because it contains many documents that aren’t available online. While genealogy materials are reference only and may not be checked out, you may copy or print pages from microfilm.
Research Assistance
We have experienced researchers on staff to help with your genealogical and local history inquiries. If you plan to visit the library, please call 859-987-4419 to ensure that one of our researchers will be available during your visit. If you’re unable to visit in person, you may send an inquiry to sdungan@bourbonlibrary.org and we will do our best to help!
African-American Heritage
African American Heritage is a groundbreaking digital resource exclusively devoted to African American family history research. This collection was created in partnership with leading African American genealogists and recognized leaders in genealogical information to develop a comprehensive mix of resources, records, and tools specifically pertaining to African Americans.
Ancestry Library Edition
— Available only inside the library
Ancestry Library Edition is a leading tool for genealogical research. Resources include U.S. federal census records, military records, the Social Security Death Index, immigration records, vital and legal documents, directories, photos, maps, and so much more!
Bourbon County Digital Library
The Paris-Bourbon County Digital Library’s is a collection of historical photos, audio, video, and documents that describe and portray the history of Bourbon County — its settlers, economy, land use, geography, geology, and more.
Digital Sanborn Maps
Detailed maps of Kentucky properties, showing city plans, property boundaries, and building use between the late 1800s to the late 1900s.
Fold3
Discover your family’s past through millions of military and genealogical records. Fold3 is an exclusive collection of archives that provide details of U.S. military veterans, their stories, photos, and personal documents.
Heritage Quest
A comprehensive mix of resources, records and tools geared to African-American genealogy. Use Heritage Quest Online to search for family history; including books, census records, local histories, U.S. federal census documents, and more. Records are included for 60 countries, with coverage dating back as early as the 1700s.
Newspapers.com
Access to historical issues of hundreds of Kentucky newspapers, including The Bourbon County Citizen, with searchable articles, advertisements, editorials, classified ads, and obituaries.
Notable Kentucky African Americans
A continuously updated reference tool for studying African-Americans Kentuckians, dating back to the 1700s. This database focuses on prominent people, places, and events that were relevant to people in and from Kentucky. There are reference statistics, newspaper articles, biographies, and more that can be searched within this database.