Women's History Month 2019: A Quick Look at City Directories

City directories at the Los Angeles Public Library.

City directories aren't just for our more modern-day ancestors. Published lists of community members began hundreds of years ago, but they didn't always name women. City directories began in London as early as 1595 and Paris in 1691. The first city directory in the United States was published in 1785 in Philadelphia and New York had a directory by 1786. By the mid to late 1800s they became more commonplace in the United States. 

City directories provide an alphabetical list of names for  those in a community and were often published annually. At the very least, city directories provide an address for a person but they may also supply a woman’s marital status and an occupation. They serve as a great way to reconstruct her community with information about local churches, organizations, businesses, and community members. Make sure that you read the beginning of the directory you are searching for a key to abbreviations used as well as any historical information provided.

Detroit City Directory 1879

Use city directories to follow your female ancestor through time. Don’t assume that a disappearance from the directory means she died. Remember that moving or remarriage may cause her to not appear in the place where you expect her to be. City directories can be a hit or miss proposition and in some cases married women may not be listed at all.

The book Development and Growth of City Directories by A.V. Williams provides information about city directories, when they first started being printed, and by whom. This might assist you as you search for the availability of directories.


Have you searched through city directories for your female ancestor or her family?