Century-Old Montclair 'Directories' Can Teach You About Your Ancestors

MONTCLAIR, NJ — To the untrained eye, the pile of old documents and dilapidated books in the possession of the Montclair History Center and the Montclair Public Library might seem little more than scrap paper.

But those in the know realize that the "phone directories" in the two organizations' possession can provide an invaluable snapshot into local history, as well as a person’s ancestry. And soon, the power of that knowledge will be at the fingertips of anyone with internet access.

The Montclair History Center (MHC) recently received a $4,188 grant to digitize several volumes of phone directories that date back to 1855. The directories are the most frequently used historical resource in the center’s archives, and are becoming “dangerously fragile with extended use,” the MHC stated.

Working with Montclair library staff, the MHC plans to digitize the directories of both groups – which contain information about decades of local residents and their homes - and make them available online at no cost.

Why should you be excited? Using the directories, researchers can get a snapshot into a person or house’s history at a particular moment in time, MHC Executive Director Jane Eliasof told Patch.

According to Eliasof:

“We would think of them as phone directories, but before phones, they would list a person’s name, address and sometimes occupation. They also might give limited information about the person, such as whether they are widowed, servants and/or renters. By following a name in subsequent directories, you can find out if they moved, were able to purchase a home, changed jobs, careers, etc. It also includes social directories and Who’s Who directories, that provide information about a person’s life or lifestyle. People use these when researching family members or their home. Some of the directories are reverse, which means you can look up an address and see who was living there at a certain time.”

Want a local example? Look no further than the Crane House and Historic YWCA.

“From 1920 to 1965, the house formerly owned by the Crane family was owned by and served as a YWCA for African American women and girls,” Eliasof explained. “We knew the Crane family occupied the house until at least 1902, but we didn’t believe they were there until 1920. Using both directories and census data, we were able to identify the family that rented the home begin around 1908. By looking up their name in each of the directories from 1908 on, we were able to see that they stayed there until the house changed hands and then moved to another rented home, about three blocks away. By 1930, they had left Montclair completely.”

The project is expected to be completed sometime in 2018, Eliasof said.

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Photos: Montclair History Center