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List of historical societies in the United States

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This is a partial list of historical and heritage societies in the United States.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.
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National societies

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State societies

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Societies with museums include:

State
or federal district 		State historical society State history museum
Alabama Alabama Historical Commission Alabama Department of Archives and History
Alaska Alaska Historical Society Alaska State Museum
Arizona Arizona Historical Society Arizona State Museum
Arkansas Arkansas Historical Association Historic Arkansas Museum
California California Historical Society
(ceased in 2025)[1] 		The California Museum
Colorado History Colorado History Colorado Center
Connecticut Connecticut Museum of Culture and History Museum of Connecticut History
Delaware Delaware Historical Society Delaware History Center
Florida Florida Historical Society Museum of Florida History
Georgia Georgia Historical Society None
Hawaiʻi Hawaiian Historical Society Hawaiian Historical Society
Idaho Idaho State Historical Society Idaho State Museum
Illinois Illinois State Historical Society Illinois State Museum
Indiana Indiana Historical Society Indiana State Museum
Iowa State Historical Society of Iowa State Historical Museum of Iowa
Kansas Kansas Historical Society Kansas Museum of History
Kentucky Kentucky Historical Society Kentucky Museum
Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History
Louisiana Louisiana Historical Society Louisiana State Museum
Louisiana History Museum
Maine Maine Historical Society Maine State Museum
Maine Historical Society Museum
Maryland Maryland Historical Society Maryland Historical Society
Massachusetts Massachusetts Historical Society Commonwealth Museum
Michigan Historical Society of Michigan Michigan Historical Center [d]
Minnesota Minnesota Historical Society Minnesota History Center
Mississippi Mississippi Historical Society Museum of Mississippi History
Missouri State Historical Society of Missouri Missouri State Museum
Montana Montana Historical Society Montana Historical Society Museum
Nebraska History Nebraska Nebraska History Museum
Nevada Nevada Historical Society [d][2] Nevada State Museum
New Hampshire New Hampshire Historical Society New Hampshire Historical Society Museum
New Jersey New Jersey Historical Society New Jersey State Museum
New Mexico Historical Society of New Mexico [d] New Mexico History Museum
New York New-York Historical Society New York State Museum
North Carolina North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office [d] North Carolina Museum of History
North Dakota State Historical Society of North Dakota North Dakota Heritage Center
Ohio Ohio History Connection Ohio History Center
Oklahoma Oklahoma Historical Society Oklahoma History Center
Oregon Oregon Historical Society Oregon Historical Society Museum
Pennsylvania Historical Society of Pennsylvania State Museum of Pennsylvania
Rhode Island Rhode Island Historical Society Rhode Island Historical Society
South Carolina South Carolina Historical Society South Carolina State Museum
South Dakota South Dakota State Historical Society South Dakota State Historical Society
Tennessee Tennessee Historical Commission Tennessee State Museum
Texas Texas State Historical Association Bullock Texas State History Museum
Utah Utah State Historical Society Utah State Historical Society
Vermont Vermont Historical Society Vermont History Museum
Virginia Virginia Historical Society Virginia Museum of History and Culture
Washington Washington State Historical Society Washington State History Museum
West Virginia West Virginia Division of Culture and History West Virginia Culture Center and State Museum
Wisconsin Wisconsin Historical Society Wisconsin Historical Museum
Wyoming Wyoming State Historical Society [d] Wyoming State Museum
District of Columbia Historical Society of Washington, D.C. None

Other state associations

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Territorial societies

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Federal District societies

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See also: History of Washington, D.C.

County and local societies

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Alabama

[edit]
  • Birmingham Historical Society[3]
  • Blount County Historical Society[4]
  • Bullock County Historical Society[4]
  • Cherokee County Historical Society[4]
  • Chilton County Historical Society[4]
  • Clarke County Historical Society[4]
  • Clay County Historical Society[4]
  • Crenshaw County Historical Society[4]
  • Elmore County Historical Society[4]
  • Escambia County Historical Society[4]
  • Fayette County Historical Society[4]
  • Greene County Historical Society[4]
  • Hale County Historical Society[3]
  • Lee County Historical Society[4]
  • Limestone County Historical Society[4]
  • Marengo County Historical Society[4]
  • Marion County Historical Society[4]
  • Mobile Historical Society[3]
  • Montgomery County Historical Society[4]
  • Randolph County Historical Society[4]
  • Russell County Historical Society[3]
  • Shelby County Historical Society[4]
  • Washington County Historical Society[4]
  • West Jefferson County Historical Society[4]

Alaska

[edit]
See also: History of Alaska

Arizona

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  • Apache County Historical Society[4]
  • Arizona Pioneers' Historical Society[3]
  • Gila County Historical Society[4]
  • Graham County Historical Society[4]
  • Maricopa County Historical Society[4]
  • Mohave County Historical Society[4]
  • Navaho County Historical Society[4]
  • Northern Gila County Historical Society[4]
  • Prescott Historical Society[3]
  • Yuma County Historical Society[4]

Arkansas

[edit]
See also: History of Arkansas
Johnson County Historical Society building in Clarksville, Arkansas (photo 2021)

California

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in California

Colorado

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Colorado

Connecticut

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Connecticut

Delaware

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Georgetown Historical Society building in Delaware, US in 2020
See also: History of Delaware

Florida

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Florida

Georgia

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Georgia (U.S. state)

Hawaii

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  • Maui Historical Society[13]
  • Wahiawa Historical Society[4]

Idaho

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Idaho

Illinois

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Illinois

Indiana

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Indiana

Iowa

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Iowa

Kansas

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Kansas

Kentucky

[edit]
See also: History of Kentucky
  • Adair County Historical Society[14]
  • Allen County Historical Society[15]
  • Anderson County Historical Society[14]
  • Barren County Historical Society[14]
  • Big Sandy Valley Historical Society[11][16]
  • Boone County Historical Society[17]
  • Boyle County Historical Society[18]
  • Clay County Historical Society[1]
  • Eastern Kentucky Historical Society[14]
  • Erlanger Historical Society[17]
  • Filson Historical Society[19]
  • Hart County Historical Society[4]
  • Henderson County Historical Society[3]
  • Kenton County Historical Society[17]
  • Kentucky Genealogical Society[11]
  • Lincoln County Historical Society[4]
  • Livingston County Historical Society[15]
  • Louisville Southern Historical Society[20]
  • Oldham County Historical Society[4]
  • Red River Historical Society[15]
  • Simpson County Historical Society[4]
  • Woodford County Historical Society[15]

Louisiana

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Louisiana

Maine

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Maine

Maryland

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Maryland

Massachusetts

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Massachusetts

Michigan

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Michigan

Minnesota

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Minnesota

Mississippi

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See also: History of Mississippi
Simpson County Historical Society building in Mississippi (photo 2019)
  • Biloxi Historical Society[21]
  • Bolivar County Historical Society[22]
  • Canton Madison County Historical Society[4][21]
  • Hancock County Historical Society[4]
  • Hattiesburg Area Historical Society[5]
  • Itawamba Historical Society[19][21]
  • Historical Society of Jackson County[23]
  • Kosciusdko Attala Historical Society[4]
  • Lawrence County Historical Society[4]
  • Lucedale George County Historical Society [4]
  • Marion County Historical Society[22]
  • Mississippi Methodist Historical Society[3][24]
  • Noxubee County Historical Society[22]
  • Pass Christian Historical Society[4]
  • Pontotoc County Historical Society[4]
  • Simpson County Historical and Genealogical Society[25]
  • South Tishomingo County Historical Society[25]
  • Tishomingo County Historical & Genealogical Society[4]
  • Union County Historical Society[4]
  • Vicksburg & Warren County Historical Society[4]

Missouri

[edit]
See also: History of Missouri
1920 newspaper item about the formation of the Clark County Historical Society, Missouri

Montana

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  • Cascade County Historical Society[13]
  • Glacier County Historical Society[13]
  • Upper Swan Valley Historical Society[4]

Nebraska

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See also: History of Nebraska

Nevada

[edit]
See also: History of Nevada

New Hampshire

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in New Hampshire

New Jersey

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in New Jersey

New Mexico

[edit]
See also: History of New Mexico

New York

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in New York (state)

North Carolina

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in North Carolina

North Dakota

[edit]
See also: History of North Dakota
McLean County Historical Society museum building in Washburn, North Dakota (photo 2007)

Ohio

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Ohio

Oklahoma

[edit]
See also: History of Oklahoma

Oregon

[edit]
See also: History of Oregon
  • Benton County Historical Society[33]
  • Clatsop County Historical Society[4]
  • Cottage Grove Historical Society[34]
  • Gresham Historical Society[34][35]
  • Josephine County Historical Society[13]
  • Lane County Historical Society[11]
  • Old Fort Dalles Historical Society[3]
  • Polk County Historical Society[34][35]
  • Portland Historical Society[11]
  • Sandy Historical Society[34][11]
  • Silverton Country Historical Society[34]
  • Southern Oregon Historical Society[33]
  • Tillamock County Pioneer Associaiton[3]
  • Umatilla County Historical Society[36]

Pennsylvania

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Rhode Island

South Carolina

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in South Carolina

South Dakota

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  • Brookings County Historical Society[4]
  • Codington County Historical Society[4]
  • Custer County Historical Society[4]
  • Lake County Historical Society[4]
  • Minnehaha County Historical Society[3]
  • Sully County Historical Society[4]
  • Union County Historical Society[4]
  • Yankton County Historical Society[4]

Tennessee

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Tennessee

Texas

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Texas

Utah

[edit]
See also: History of Utah
  • Alta Historical Society[citation needed]
  • Cache Valley Historical Society
  • Delta County Historical Society
  • Draper Utah Historical Society
  • Fort Harmony Historical Society
  • Iron County Historical Society
  • Lehi Historical Society and Archives
  • Morgan County Historical Society
  • Park City Historical Society
  • Riverton Historical Society
  • Smithfield Historical Society
  • Summit County Historical Society
  • Tooele County Historical Society
  • Washington County Historical Society
  • West Jordan Historical Society
  • West Valley Historical Society

Vermont

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Vermont

Virginia

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Virginia

Washington

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Washington (state)

West Virginia

[edit]
See also: History of West Virginia

Wisconsin

[edit]
Main article: List of historical societies in Wisconsin

Wyoming

[edit]
See also: History of Wyoming

See also

[edit]

References

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  1. ^ "California Historical Society to Dissolve and Transfer Collections to Stanford", nytimes.com, January 28, 2025
  2. ^ Su Kim Chung (2015). "We Seek to Be Patient": Jeanne Wier and the Nevada Historical Society, 1904-1950 (PhD thesis). University of California, Los Angeles – via escholarship.org.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad American Association for State and Local History (1944), Historical societies in the United States and Canada: a handbook, Washington, D.C – via HathiTrust{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd be bf bg bh bi bj bk bl bm bn bo bp bq br bs bt bu bv bw bx by bz ca "Nonprofit Explorer", propublica.org, New York: ProPublica, retrieved June 26, 2025
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o American Association for State and Local History (2002), Directory of historical organizations in the United States and Canada (15th ed.), Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press, ISBN 9780759100022 – via archive.org
  6. ^ a b c d e f g "Elva R. Scott Local Historical Society Award", alaskahistoricalsociety.org, Alaska Historical Society, retrieved July 9, 2025
  7. ^ a b "Alaska's Digital Archives", vilda.alaska.edu, OCLC 850948178, retrieved July 9, 2025
  8. ^ The Frontiersman, Palmer, Alaska, May 23, 1963 – via Chronicling America{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  9. ^ "Nome Historical Society changes meeting days", Nome Nugget, Alaska, August 3, 1962 – via Chronicling America
  10. ^ a b c d "Historians & Historic Organizations", encyclopediaofarkansas.net, Central Arkansas Library System, retrieved July 8, 2025
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i Social Networks and Archival Context, United States: SNAC Cooperative, retrieved June 25, 2025
  12. ^ "Early pioneers of Pope", Russellville Democrat, Arkansas, May 11, 1876 – via Chronicling America, Report of Caleb Davis to the Pope County Historical Society
  13. ^ a b c d e Terry Abraham, ed. (2015), "Western United States and Canada", Repositories of Primary Sources, 1995-2015, University of Idaho Library
  14. ^ a b c d "News and Notes: Local Societies", The Register of the Kentucky Historical Society, vol. 62, no. 2, p. 162+, April 1964, JSTOR 23375901
  15. ^ a b c d "Kentucky Local History Trust Fund", history.ky.gov, Kentucky Historical Society, retrieved July 7, 2025
  16. ^ "Local History and Genealogy", LibGuides, Kentucky: Big Sandy Community and Technical College, retrieved July 4, 2025
  17. ^ a b c "Kentucky Digital Library", kyvl.org, Kentucky Virtual Library, retrieved July 7, 2025
  18. ^ Appleton Prentiss Clark Griffin (1907), Bibliography of American Historical Societies (2nd ed.), Washington DC: Government Printing Office – via HathiTrust
  19. ^ a b Terry Abraham, ed. (2015), "Eastern United States and Canada", Repositories of Primary Sources, 1995-2015, University of Idaho Library
  20. ^ "Historical societies in the United States", Officers, Act of incorporation, Constitution, List of members, Historical societies in the United States, 1896, Baltimore, MD: American Historical Association, 1896, p. 42+ – via HathiTrust
  21. ^ a b c "Local Historical Societies", mississippihistory.org, Mississippi Historical Society, retrieved July 10, 2025
  22. ^ a b c "Award Recipients: Outstanding Local Historical Society Award (formerly Frank E. Everett, Jr. Award)", mississippihistory.org, Mississippi Historical Society, retrieved July 10, 2025
  23. ^ "O.S. scouts sell tags for county historical society", Pascagoula Chronicle-Star and Moss Point Advertiser, Mississippi, October 13, 1950 – via Chronicling America
  24. ^ "M.E. Historical Society to meet", Hattiesburg News, Mississippi, October 21, 1913 – via Chronicling America
  25. ^ a b "Partners", msdiglib.org, Mississippi Digital Library, retrieved July 10, 2025
  26. ^ "Clark County's New Society", The Daily Gate City and Constitution-Democrat, Keokuk, Iowa, January 27, 1920 – via Chronicling America
  27. ^ a b "Missouri Local Historical and Genealogical Societies Directory", shsmo.org, State Historical Society of Missouri, retrieved July 26, 2024
  28. ^ "Links of Interest", frenchcolonialstudies.org, Illinois, US: Center for French Colonial Studies, retrieved July 20, 2025
  29. ^ "Digital Initiatives: North Dakota Memories Collection", LibGuides, Bismarck, ND: North Dakota State Library, retrieved July 10, 2025
  30. ^ a b c "North Dakota State Archives", history.nd.gov, Bismarck, ND: State Historical Society of North Dakota, retrieved July 10, 2025
  31. ^ a b c "Partners", Gateway to Oklahoma History, Oklahoma Historical Society, retrieved July 7, 2025
  32. ^ Michele Seikel; Tabitha Manners, Oklahoma Digital Collections (PDF), Oklahoma Library Association, retrieved July 7, 2025
  33. ^ a b "Historic Preservation", Research Guides, University of Oregon Libraries, retrieved July 7, 2025
  34. ^ a b c d e "Regional Historical Societies and History Museums", Oregon Blue Book, Oregon Secretary of State, retrieved July 7, 2025
  35. ^ a b "Contributing Organizations", northwestdigitalheritage.org, Northwest Digital Heritage, retrieved July 7, 2025
  36. ^ "Home historical society commended by speaker", East Oregonian, Pendleton, OR, November 24, 1913 – via Library of Congress' Chronicling America

Further reading

[edit]
  • Julian P. Boyd. "State and local historical societies in the United States." The American Historical Review 40.1 (1934): 10–37.
  • Leslie Dunlop (1944), American Historical Societies, 1790-1860, University of Wisconsin (thesis)
  • Walter Muir Whitehill (1962), Independent Historical Societies: An Enquiry into Their Research and Publication Functions and Their Financial Future, Harvard University Press, ISBN 9780674448254 {{citation}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  • Houston Gwynne Jones, ed. Historical Consciousness in the Early Republic: The Origins of State Historical Societies, Museums, and Collections, 1791-1861 (North Caroliniana Society and North Carolina Collection, 1995)
  • Sara Lawrence (December 11, 2003), "History of Historical Societies in the U.S.", publichistory.org, US: Public History Resource Center, archived from the original on November 3, 2004 – via Wayback Machine
  • Ryan Schumacher. "The Wisconsin Magazine of History: A Case Study in Scholarly and Popular Approaches to American State Historical Society Publishing, 1917–2000." Journal of Scholarly Publishing 44.2 (2013): 114–141.
  • 2022 National Census of History Organizations, American Association for State and Local History
[edit]
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