Most public records reside with the government agency of the relevant city, town or hamlet. Records such as births and deaths, marriage licenses, burial permits, land deeds, building permits, cemetery records, and court records can be found by contacting your local town or city clerk’s office.
Governmental Records, either county, city or town, are where you will find:
- Birth
- Marriage
- Death records
- Burial permits
- Deeds
- Building permits
- Cemetery Records
- Court records
- And more
Although some records may not be available or may be duplicated elsewhere, it is best to start there. For an index of Oswego County government repositories, click here.
Newspaper searches
Fulton History is one of the most often used references for history researchers. This one man effort by Tom Tryniski is one of the best collections of Oswego County newspapers.
NYS Historic Newspapers is another great resource for old newspapers. This repository compiled by the Northern New York Library Network is organized by county, then by publisher.
City Directories
Starting in 1852, Oswego and later Fulton had directories of businesses and individuals published in an era before phone books. They often included a person’s work and home address as well as their occupation. The Oswego County Historical Society and Oswego Public Library have worked to digitize all of the Oswego directories from 1852 to the 1990s. Most of these directories can be found at NYHeritage.org.
City directories can also be accessed in person at the County Historian’s office in the Oswego County Records Center, located at 384 East River Road in Oswego, NY. It is the same building as the Oswego DMV. The Records Center is open to the public Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Please call 315-349-8461 for any questions.
Please note that in 1881, the City of Oswego changed street numbering on the West side of the city. Numbers were expanded and flipped odd and even, so every street address was different.
Census Records
Copies of Oswego County censuses can be accessed at the County Historian’s office in the Oswego County Records Center, located at 384 East River Road in Oswego, NY. It is the same building as the Oswego DMV. The Records Center is open to the public Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Please call 315-349-8461 for any questions.
Census records are also available online at archives.gov and through many membership online websites and services including ancestry.com.
Cemetery Records
Found in many places, including at the cemeteries themselves, a complete record will be in the county historian’s office at 384 East River Road in Oswego, NY..