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Local History News Files

Local history from our microfilm and vertical file collections

A view of the crowd assembled on the courthouse lawn, listening to Gen. Dwight D

Charlie Halleck Day - Sept. 13, 1962

Coverage from the Rensselaer Republican newspaper of the visit of former president Dwight D. Eisenhower to give a political endorsement of his friend Charles A. Halleck. Halleck was running for re-election to the U.S. Congress.

Char Groet of DeMotte was a torch bearer in DeMotte.

Olympic Torch Visits Jasper County - 1996

Olympic games are times of International celebration. In 1996, Jasper County Indiana got to share a little bit of that spirit as the torch relay passed through DeMotte, Rensselaer and Remington, on its way to the opening of the Atlanta games that July 19.

What's a Vertical File?

In each library we keep records about important local places and people, usually hanging vertically in file folders. These files might contain news clippings, program fliers, photographs, hand-written notes and other items. These are valuable original-source documents that patrons can use to learn about local history. Check with a librarian to see if these records might help you with a research project.

Jasper County History

B064_Rensselaer_Central_High_School_Golf_Team_1967

Rensselaer Central’s 1967 Golf Team included, from L to R, seated: Edrington, S. Beaver, Mackey, Dumas, Martin, Greene, Anderson. Standing, L to R: D. Beaver, Mr. Herod, Mr. Baumann, L. Beaver. Photo from yearbook. Rensselaer Republican 11/27/00

See more Jasper County History photos at our Flickr site.

Help with research

Ancestry - Library

Included in Ancestry Library are the digitized images of the U.S. Federal Census from 1790 forward, Passenger and Immigration Lists index, and much more. This database can only be accessed while inside the library.

More information

Heritage Quest

A resource for census data, family records and local histories, this collection contains U.S. federal census, banking and military records, genealogies, primary source materials, and more.

More information

For other history and research databases, check out our online resources collection.