Finding aids provide further information for each of MGC’s archival collections. Each will include the following elements:
Collection Summary
Collection Inventory
Rights and Access to each archival collection
Name and folder indexes are available for some of MGC’s archival collections. Name indexes display first, maiden, middle, and last names as well as any notes that may help identify individuals. Folder indexes display the folder title and additional information.
This collection contains genealogical and family history information for the Mallicoat family. Alternate spellings of Mallicoat and families that intermarried with Mallicoats are included within this collection. In addition to the genealogical and historical information, the collection contains photographs, legal documents, military records, vital records, correspondence, probate documents, census information, and court records.
This collection consists of probate, ownership, and funeral information for the Edwards and Ailshire families, including: deeds, subpoena, tax statements, real estate contracts, receipts, leases, abstract of title, patriarchal blessings, property sale documents, obituaries, church records, wills, probate record, letters, zoning order, newspaper articles, proposal, review report, and photographs. Significant gaps exist from: 1924-1931, 1947-1958, 1966-1981, and 1981-1999.
The family record sheets located in the middle of the Bible contain four pages of family records with name, place of birth, date of birth, date of marriage, and date of death for family members listed. The information is written with various handwritings. The names listed in the record pages list the descendants of J.J. Bickerstaff and Harriet Lane and include the family names Bickerstaff, Lane, Evans, Mason, Marks, Grizzle, and Chism. Overall the Bible is in poor condition with the binding broken and some Bible pages missing, but the family record sheets are intact.
This collection consists of Civil War orders for the 5th Cavalry Missouri State Militia. These orders are photocopies. The supplemental materials include a transcription of the original orders and background history.
As I Live and Breathe and Okuna and the Kabuki Dance are both hand printed autobiography of Robert Brackenbury telling of his family history as well as his experiences growing up during the Depression, serving in the military in World War II, and his family life after the war. Other stories from his life are recorded in an oral history through the Tell Me A Story program at the Midwest Genealogy Center (http://content.mymcpl.org/items/show/10054).
The first page of records states, “Peter Akes his Bible May 2nd 1830.” The family Bible contains names and dates of births, marriages, and deaths of the Akes family. Several handwritings indicate different people recorded the dates in the Bible over time. The Bible is missing the front and back cover as well as many of the Bible pages. All of the family record pages between the Old and New Testaments remained intact.
This collection mainly contains photographs of the Roy and Cook families. Other photographs include ones taken by Herbert C. Roy, a professional photographer in the St. Louis area. One particular photograph of interest is one taken by Herbert C Roy of former President Harry S. Truman as he observed a photo of Winston Churchill in an exhibition case at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri. Harry S. Truman signed the photo taken in 1954. The collection also contains some genealogical information about the Roy family.
The collection includes research covering the genealogy of the Julian, Beach, Humphrey, and Marshall Families as well as Beatrice Julian Snapp’s photo albums, scrapbooks, and other ephemera.
This collection contains genealogical charts and research relating to the Rodgers and allied families. Many of the items are photocopies of correspondence, photos, vital records, and other genealogical research. One original photo taken inside the post office at Syracuse, Kansas shows Robert and Rea Rodgers sorting mail. The family lived in Ohio, Illinois, Kansas, and Missouri.
This collection contains a pedigree chart, family group sheets and documentation related to the Elliott family of Holmes and Jefferson counties in Ohio. The papers were found inside a book donation about a related family titled: Edward Kintner and Glada Snyder: Ancestral Genealogy and Tour Guide.
The collection consists of letters written back and forth between Mary McKim and Bill Ray while they were dating during World War II. The letters were kept in their original envelopes and later Mary or another family member made some notes on the envelopes. Additionally, the collection contains photos from both sides of the family dating back to the 1800s. Some of the photographs have been identified. Other family items in the collection include funeral cards, autograph books from the 1890s, cards, school grade cards, obituaries, and family heirlooms.
This items in the collection belonged to Lois Turner. Some items relate to her family while others are photographs collected by her. It is unclear as to whether the photos are related to the Allen family or just photos of unknown individuals collected by Lois Turner. Some photographs are identified but the majority of the photographs do not have names or dates on them. Other items include a memoir written in 1945 by an unidentified author, letters, newspaper clippings, a funeral book, and an autograph book.
The photographs pertain to the ancestors of Kenneth Savage. Family names include Chandler, LeRay, Gunsolley, Savage, and Tyrrell. The photographs date from the mid nineteenth century to the mid twentieth century. Additionally, a wooden family crest for the Savage family is included in the collection.
The collection consists headstone photographs taken by Bethel 29, Independence International Order of Job’s Daughters (Independence, MO) in 1992. The photographs are in color and a typed transcription of the information from the headstone is included. The photos are arranged by row and includes an index. The oldest date found on a headstone is from 1843 and the most recent date is from 1903. Family names inlucde Antle, Karns/Kerns, Kelley, Miller, and Schweedler.
The creator of the collection used the ahnetafel numbering system beginning with Jeffrey and Mark Drew each being number 1 and going back through the generations. The creator arranged the family group sheets numerically and added an alphabetically index. Family group sheets and document folders do not exist for every ahnetafel number. Each folder within the collection is numbered according to the system and includes documentation, photographs, correspondence, newspaper articles (copied) and other relevant materials relating to the particular individual.
This collection consists of the family Bible for Nellie Oleta Griffitts and Abner Jefferson Marks. The cover and some of the pages of the Bible are missing, but the family records sheets within the Bible are complete. This Bible contains some birth, death and marriage information for parents and grandparents as well as children. Dates were recorded in the family bible as late as the 1950. The names and dates were written at different times and in various handwriting.
The composition book contains transcriptions of church and bible records. Church records include the English Lutheran Church of Kansas City, St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, and Swedish Lutheran Church. Transcriptions of numerous family Bibles record births, marriages, and deaths. Notes detail the owner and location of the Bible. Many of the records relate to families in the Kansas City area.
This collection contains obituaries from the Des Moines Register from 1991-1993. Only those individuals who were born in Missouri and died in Iowa were included. The compiler arranged the obituaries by letter of the alphabet, and then chronologically by death date within the letter of the alphabet. Additionally, she created an index of maiden names and cross-referenced it to the married name.
This collection contains records for the Steinhauser and related families. Records include family Bible pages, funeral books, vital records, newspaper articles, genealogy, correspondence, probate records, wills, and photographs. The funeral books contain such items as obituaries, funeral programs, flower cards, condolences, and burial information. Originally, many of the photographs were in albums, but many of the photographs were removed, sorted by families, and labeled. Although some photographs remain unidentified, they were grouped in folders labeled by family surname. Many old photos have houses and people who lived in communities in Eastern Jackson County, Missouri, including Grain Valley, Oak Grove, Blue Springs, and Independence.
This collection contains research on the several family lines of the Seburn family. The research as well as charts and forms were compiled into comb bound books by family name or topic.
Shawnee Masonic Lodge #54 presented the family Bible to Maxine (McCollum) Treas on 20 April 1988. The family record pages are written in the same handwriting except for Maxine’s death date. The record pages include information on Maxine and her husband, her grandparents, child, and grandchildren.
The collection contains the genealogical history of the McCampbell family. Within this work are genealogy charts, family history, and transcribed records. Also found within this collection are photographs, correspondence, Bible records, genealogy charts, and miscellaneous family histories. The folders are arranged alphabetically by family name. The collection also contains Michael McCarty and Margaret Hunger’s family Bible.
The collection is arranged alphabetically in folders by family surnames. Each surname contains narrative about the family, personal recollections by the compiler, photos, charts and forms, and genealogical documents. Documents include copies of vital records such as birth, marriage, and death certificates, Census records, obituaries, land records, and others.
This collection contains genealogical information and photographs relating to the Allison family collected by Betty (Allison) Dagenais. Items include family histories as well as genealogical documents. Some of the family photos date back to the nineteenth century including one unidentified tin type. Most of the photographs have been identified and several have descriptions of the event or location of the photograph. Fred, Zetta, Ed and Velma kept an album of photos taken on a trip to Yellowstone Park including one of Zetta standing next to a bear.
All the items in the collection were donated together, but relate to the Guthrie, Sherman, and Grindley families. All are from the Kansas City area, but the connection between the families is not clear from the items. Some of the photographs in the collection are identified. Several school photographs from Ravenwood Elementary in North Kansas City School District and Chrisman High School in Independence, Missouri have the names of those in the group photographs identified. One folder contains memorabilia from Chrisman High School such as a school pennant, student council campaign signs, and a school newspaper. Other donated items include clippings from newspapers, Retail Credit Association of Kansas City newsletters, and a flag of Scotland.
