Resources Available at SLCHA

• Manuscript Materials – This collection includes diaries, account books, correspondence, school records, legal documents, and ephemera.
• SLCHA Quarterly – Back issues are available and are indexed on this site.
• Vertical Files – Contains the St Lawrence County town files, which include clippings, articles, letters, research notes, programs, pamphlets, advertisements, certificates, and other materials pertaining to each of the towns in St Lawrence County. The files are also arranged by various subject areas.
• Photographs – Photographs of people are arranged alphabetically by surname. Photos of places and buildings are separately arranged by township.
• Maps – collection includes maps of cemeteries, towns and villages within St Lawrence County, county maps (early 1800s to present), and New York State maps. A finding aid is available in the Research Room.
• Genealogical Information – Includes cemetery records (up to the late 1950’s), U.S. census records (on microfilm), a card file, a family file, and miscellaneous church records.
• Artifact Collection – We have an extensive collection of 3 dimensional objects including textiles, furniture, toys, clothing, equipment, art and more. A small sampling of our collection can be found online at New York Heritage Digital Collections.

Collections of Note

• Macomb Purchase Papers – Original legal documents between Alexander Macomb and the State of New York for the purchase of the land which became St Lawrence County. Most of the documents date from the late 18th century.
• Silas Wright Collection – Wright (1795 – 1847) was a figure of national prominence who served as U.S. Senator, NY Governor, and in a variety of other state and local posts. The Archives holdings include personal and professional letters from Wright, as well as his books from when he served in the NY State Senate.
• J H Rushton Collection – Rushton was a renowned canoe and boat builder whose business was located in Canton during the late 19th and early 20th century. The collection includes material collected by Rushton biographer Atwood Manley. The Rushton materials collected by Manley are located in a display case in the History Center.
• Walter B Leonard Collection – Leonard was a vaudevillian, composer, and writer from Canton. The Archives contain original manuscripts, music, playbills, ephemera, photos, correspondence, and posters from the early 20th century.
• Alcoa 25-Year Club – records dating from the early 1900s through 2008. Many of these records contain a considerable amount of family data including birth, marriage and death dates, names of spouses, children and immediate family members, and country of origin for 1st generation Americans.