The Bloomfield Public Library houses a variety of materials chronicling Bloomfield as well as New Jersey history and genealogy. Some of the material is in the Reference area and citations are accessible through the On-line Catalog. Other materials are located in the Special Collections Room. While there is a database of monographs in Special Collections, a variety of files and indexes must also be used for access to the materials in this area. Among these are:
The Bloomfield File, located in the Special Collections room, has numerous pieces relating to Bloomfield history. This file contains biography files, files relating to industries in town, information on notable local families, industries, religious institutions, organizations, history, schools, etc. It has an index to it's folders and some of the entries in the file.
The Bloomfield Obituary File gives citations for obituaries in the Independent Press and Bloomfield Life, the two Bloomfield weeklies.This card file, maintained by volunteers, indexes obituaries from the 60's to the near present. An invaluable source of relatives names and citations on people who lived in town or nearby.
City Directories of Bloomfield are a valuable guide to directory
listings in town. Located on
the main floor. First
edition in the Library's collection is 1903. These directories ceased
publication in 1971.
The Bloomfield Biography Card File contains citations to noted Bloomfield figures in both newspapers and its companion, the Bloomfield Biography Files located within the Bloomfield File.
Bloomfield Newspapers on microfilm are located on the main floor. These include the Independent Press, the Bloomfield Life and early publications such as the Bloomfield Citizen and Record. An index of the Bloomfield Independent Press, updated until 1990 is also on the main floor. The Star Ledger beginning in 1990 is accessible on the Internet within the Library only.
High School Yearbooks are located in Special Collections and begin in 1908. There are gaps in the collection. Call us if you find an old one you don't need!
Other sources on Bloomfield history can be found at the Bloomfield Historical Society Museum, located at the the Bloomfield Public Library above the Children's Division. Their address is 90 Broad Street, Bloomfield, NJ 07003, telephone number 973-566-6220. Follow the link for more information on the Historical Society Museum. Two other sources for Bloomfield history are the New Jersey Historical Society and the New Jersey Room of the Newark Public Library.
Research for residents who live outside of New Jersey is performed for a fee. The research fee is $5 and the photocopying fee is $.15. Additional amounts may be assessed depending on the complexity of the request (to be determined by the Supervisor of Public Services). Call the Information Desk at 973-566-6210 or 973-566-6211 or email the Head of Reference.
Donald Carlo 3/2001
LC 9/2002