The California Genealogical Society and Library houses an impressive collection of genealogical research materials. Just down the hall from the library’s facility at 2201 Broadway, Oakland, CA, is Dr. Stephen G. Harris’ collection of over 5000 City Directories and Telephone Directories.
Steve Harris and His Collection of Directories
SOURCE: Steve Harris and His Collection of Directories. Photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 12 Jan 2008.
Steve’s collection of directories includes volumes from all across the United States. I found several geographic areas of interest to me in his collection, including Albany, New York;Â Worcester, Massachusetts; Woonsocket, Rhode Island, and New York City.
One directory of special interest to me was the 1949-1950 Telephone Directory for Albany, New York.
Cover of the 1949-1950 Telephone Directory for Albany, New York
SOURCE: Cover of the 1949-1950 Telephone Directory for Albany, New York. Photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 12 Jan 2008.
In this volume, I found a listing for the residential addresses of my father Frank, my uncle John, and John Danko’s Service Station.
Danko Entries in the 1949-1950 Telephone Directory for Albany, New York
SOURCE: New York Telephone Company . Albany telephone directory 1949-1950 (Albany, N.Y.: New York Telephone), 47.
Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Danko entries in the 1949-1950 Telephone Directory for Albany, New York .
My father is listed residing at 19 New Scotland Avenue in Albany. Uncle John is listed residing at 783 Park Avenue, an address at which my family lived between 1955 and 1961. Uncle John’s Service Station was at 90 Northern Boulevard. My dad worked as a mechanic at the service station for many years.
I didn’t have enough time to look through and photograph all the directories I would like. I’ll have to visit again in the near future and continue my research in city and telephone directories.
Steve Harris’ collection is open to members and guests of the California Genealogical Society the second Saturday and third Friday of each month . Members should check in at the main desk in the California Genealogical Society and Library and they will be directed to Steve’s collection.
Steve can be contacted at wizard848@earthlink.net.
Copyright © 2008 by Stephen J. Danko
Ancestry UK have put British phone books online (from the earliest phone directories to the early 1980s). This has proved quite helpful 🙂
Albany Directory 1950 – Hello, I am trying to determine my wife’s parents’ marriage in February 1950. (They wouldn’t tell my wife when their anniversary was because her mom was Catholic and her dad was Jewish and no one wanted them to marry.)
We are trying to determine if H. Doris Hyde or H. Doris Martin or Arthur Jack Martin lived in Albany at the time of their marriage. They may have lived with her parents, Phoebe and Judson Hyde. I would be happy to pay you a fee to see if they are listed in your directory. Thank you for your time.