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The Local History Room at the Harris-Elmore Public Library has been in operation for over 40 years due to the painstaking research of local historian Grace Luebke. Housed here are numerous historical documents that are helpful to the expert genealogist or the curious patron. Obituaries, naturalization records, photographs, and news articles, etc. can be found for Ottawa, Sandusky, Wood, Lucas, and Erie Counties in a range of dates.

​A complete list of holdings can be viewed on this site by clicking

the WORD icon.

This site holds a vast number of our collections in a searchable digital format. This is made possible by a grant in 2009, from the Ottawa County Community Foundation and a partnership with the Ohio History Connection's Ohio Memory Project.  This project was also funded in part by an LSTA grant that partners with 11 other Ohio Libraries through NORWELD.  All of our digital collections can also be found at Ohio Memory.

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Help Us Transcribe Archival Records from the Grace Luebke Local History Collection!

Handwritten materials like letters and diaries are much easier to search and discover online when they include transcriptions. By contributing your time to transcribe these historical documents, you’re directly helping us to share the ordinary and extraordinary experiences of the past.

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Transcribing is simple—just type what you see!

Visit https://transcribe.ohiohistory.org and click on our records to begin!

Browse Digital Collections

Search our Local History Dept. Digital Collections by Document Category.

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Ex: Photographs; Obituaries; Church Records

Search Digital Collections

Search our Local History Dept. Digital Collections on Ohio Memory by Search Term

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Ex: Person's Name, Town Name, Business, Event

Online Research Links

A list of the best genealogy/local history research links on the web according to category.

Oral History Interviews

Videos from Elmore & Genoa residents discussing various historical items and their lives in the area.

From the Archives

Videos of varying Local History topics from the area.

Contact Us

Find out how to contact the

Local History Dept.  

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Give us a call or send us an email with your research questions or general comments.

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