Lake County Historical Resources

 Lake County Historical Resources

This page describes Lake County’s historical resources which are located in various collections around the county. No single repository owns “all” of Lake County’s historical information, and researchers might not know what is available where. The sections below will describe briefly what is in each collection, where the collection is located, and how to contact the agency or organization that owns it. (Special thanks to Pomo Bulletin editor Jan Cook for compiling this list!)

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Microfilmed Lake County newspapers in Lake County Library collection

Collection Details

Lake County newspapers, microfilmed and filed at the Lake County Library, hold the foundations of many Lake County history stories. The collection contains newspapers that cover nearly all of Lake County’s existence, but there is no complete run of all issues of all newspapers published in Lake County. See the list below for details. Much of the early microfilming was done by the California State Library, and the Lake County library now routinely microfilms all Lake County newspapers.

Lakeport Library houses most of the microfilmed newspapers. Redbud Library in Clearlake has a smaller collection than Lakeport does, but Lakeport Library will loan its films for use at Redbud.

Each library has a microfilm reader-printer machine. These high-tech machines combine reader-printers with computers that allow direct printing, scanning and saving images and e-mailing images.

Lakeport’s machine is available on a first-come, first-served basis, while at Redbud the machine must be reserved. Call the libraries for more information.

California Indian Library Collections in Lake County Library

Collection Details

The University of California collected thousands of documents, photographs and audio tapes on California’s tribes to create the California Indian Library Collection. In the late 1980s copies of these materials were placed into county libraries throughout California to put the information close to the tribal locations.

Lake County received materials on the Huchnom, Lake Miwok, Patwin, Pomo/Kashaya Pomo, Wappo and Yuki history and culture, as all of these tribes had been in what is now Lake County, although the extent of their presence may have been very small.

All of the Lake County documents, photographs and tapes are housed at Lakeport Library and are library-use only.

Space prevents printing extensive background on the CILC here, so interested readers can learn more about the history of this project can be found at www.mip.berkeley.edu/cilc/bibs/preface.html

Miscellaneous government-generated documents in the Lake County Library

Collection Details

Census microfilms

Federal Census. 1860, Clear Lake Township of Napa County

Federal Census. 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930 Lake

County. [most of the US 1890 census burned.]

Microfilms, other.

US National Archives. M756. Assessment Lists for CA. Sonoma,

Marin, Napa, Lake & Mendocino 1862 – 1866

Board of Supervisors. Proceedings. Lake County; February 6,

1905 – July 9, 1918

Great Register of Voters. Lake County. 1900 – 1944

Other documents:

Environmental impact reports & other documents, including:

Sulphur Bank Mercury Mine Superfund Site

Homestake McLaughlin Mine project

Lake County Transit ADA plan

Geothermal projects

Water systems

Redevelopment plans

Lake County General Plan

Residential developments

Regional Transit Plan

New Lakeport courthouse

Konocti Regional Trails

Wastewater projects

Lakeport Town Center

Integrated Aquatic Plant Management Plan

Lake County Library

County librarian Christopher Veach can be reached at 707-263-8817 ext. 17103

Contact

Lakeport Library, 1425 N. High St, 95453, 707-263-8817

Redbud Library, 14785 Burns Valley Rd, Clearlake, 95422, 707-994-5115

Website

http://library.co.lake.us.

Click on “Local Genealogy and History.”

E-mail

Library@lakecountyca.gov

OR

christopher.veach@lakecountyca.gov

Hours

Lakeport & Redbud Libraries

Wednesdays, Noon-8:00 p.m.

Tuesdays and Thursdays – Saturdays 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

This information is subject to change without notice. Contact the library for current information.

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Lake County Genealogical Society

Contacts

Anita Crabtree; 707-275-2144; anitajc@pacific.net

Kathi Alvey; 707-279-8003; kmagene@yahoo.com

Rose Davidson; 707-263-5874; knedert@sbcglobal.net

Mailing Address

P O Box 1323

Lakeport CA 95453

Website

www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~calcgs/index.html

Hours

Thursday 1 pm – 3 pm

Friday 10 am – 2 pm

Saturday (2nd Sat. only)

10:30 am – 3 pm

Call ahead to confirm that a volunteer will be on duty. This information is subject to change without notice. Contact the genealogical society for current information.

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Collection details

The Lake County Genealogical Society’s Lenore Clark Memorial Library is housed in the Lake County Visitors Center at 6110 E. Hwy. 20 in Lucerne. The library is named in honor of LGCS founder and first president Lenore Clark (1922-2003). The LCGS was founded in 1977.

Volunteers work in the library several days a week. Call ahead to verify that someone will be on duty. See Contact Information for details.

The collection includes

Family tree information on many Lake County families.

Lake County obituary file

Cemetery transcriptions from around Lake County

Lake County Death Binders: contain information from numerous death-related sources such as cemetery records, probate records and mortuary records. Each page lists one person and all such known sources for that person.

Lake County phone books: 1940s—current

Some Lake County high school yearbooks

Lake County Schools Directories

LCGS members will perform limited research in response to queries.

Researchers can also make appointments to use the library. Contact the society for more details.

The LCGS collection also includes books relating to other locales, since not every Lake County resident was born here.

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Lake County Museums

Linda Lake, curator

Dwain Goforth, assistant curator

Courthouse Museum

255 N. Main St.; Lakeport CA 95453; 707-263-4555

Hours

Wed.-Sat. 10:00—4:00

Sun. 12:00-4:0

Schoolhouse Museum

16435 Main St.; P O Box 1762; Lower Lake; 707-995-3565

Hours

Wed.-Sat. 11:00—4:00

Website

co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Museums.htm

Email

museum@lakecountyca.gov

This information is subject to change without notice. Contact the museums for current information.

Collection details

Photographs, many digitized

Postcard collection

Mauldin’s notes and part of his book collection

Mauldin’s inventory of historic sites

Pomo Bulletins

Birth, Marriage and Death index

Oral histories

Historic documents

Court record books and various county department record books from 1870 to about 1970

Plat Maps

Aerial Maps from 1940’s and 1950’s

Miscellaneous maps

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Lake County Visitor Center / Chamber of Commerce

875 Lakeport Blvd,

Lakeport, CA 95453

707-263-5092

Monday – Friday 9 am – 5 pm