Individual membership
Free museum admission, free research access and the quarterly journal by mail.
Founded in Carlisle in 1948
Where the county keeps its memory
A research library of 30,000 items, a museum in the 1836 Pitt Street building, and volunteers who will help you find your great grandmother's farm.
78 yrssince founding
30,000items in the archive
1,400member households
2,200students hosted each year
What we offer
Archive, museum, research and education
Membership keeps the lights on and the archive open. Research help from our volunteers is free to members.
Household membership
Covers everyone at one address plus two guest passes for the museum each year.
Museum admission
Three galleries in the 1836 building covering settlement, the railroad era and the county at war.
Research library access
Deeds, plat maps, church registers, newspapers on microfilm and 12,000 photographs.
Genealogy research service
Our volunteers do the search for you and send a written report with document scans.
School and group programs
Curriculum aligned visits for grades three through eight, or we bring a trunk program to you.
About the society
An 1836 building full of paper
Nine Carlisle residents founded the society in 1948 to save county court records that were being discarded. Today we are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit holding 30,000 archival items, operating a three gallery museum, and running the only public research library for Cumberland County genealogy. Most of the work is done by 60 volunteers, and the collection grows mostly by donation from local families.
•Registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit governed by an elected board
•Research library open to the public four days a week
•Ongoing digitization project, 9,000 photographs online so far
•Accepts donations of documents, photographs and objects with county provenance
Reviews
From researchers and members
“A volunteer found the 1871 deed in ninety minutes. I had been searching online for two years.”
Warren T., Genealogy researcher, Ohio
“My fourth graders talk about the trunk program for weeks. It is the only field trip they ask to repeat.”
Ms. Delgado, Elementary teacher, Carlisle
“We donated my father's photographs of the mill. They were scanned, catalogued and back to us in a month.”
Susan A., Donor family
FAQ
Visiting and researching
Can I research my family here?
Yes, and that is most of what the library is used for. We hold deeds, wills, church registers, tax lists, newspapers on microfilm and 12,000 photographs, all indexed for Cumberland County. Come Wednesday through Saturday, and calling ahead lets a volunteer pull materials before you arrive.
What if I cannot travel to Carlisle?
Our research service starts at seventy five dollars for two hours of volunteer searching and includes a written report with scans of any documents found. If we find nothing we tell you what we checked and refund the remaining time.
Will you accept my family's documents?
If the material relates to Cumberland County and can be cared for properly, usually yes. Our collections committee reviews offers monthly. We may decline duplicates or items in unstable condition, and we will always suggest another repository if we are not the right home.
Do you host school groups?
Yes, for grades three through eight, at four dollars a student with one free chaperone per ten children. Programs are aligned to Pennsylvania social studies standards. If a bus is not in your budget, we bring a trunk program to your classroom instead.
Contact
Plan your visit
Call ahead for research appointments so a volunteer can pull materials before you arrive.
Phone(717) 555-0152
Address44 N Pitt St, Carlisle, PA 17013, Carlisle, Pennsylvania
HoursWed to Sat 10am to 4pm, research by appointment
AreaCumberland County and the surrounding Cumberland Valley