Local History, Genealogy & Special Collections
The Plainfield Room is open for historical and genealogical research. Our hours are Monday-Friday, 9AM to 4:45PM and Tuesdays from 9AM to 7PM. Please contact us to schedule an appointment. The Memoir Writing Club meets on February 8, 2024; the writing topic is "hosting." All are welcome!
Plainfield High School Yearbooks Now Online!
Our entire collection of PHS Yearbooks has been digitized! Over the years, the yearbook has been called, "The Oracle," "The Spectator," "The Log," "The Kaleidoscope," and finally, "Milestone."
This is a nearly complete run, dating from the first yearbook in 1903 to 2023.
There are still five years missing: 2003, 2012, 2014, 2017, and 2022. If you have a copy of these years that you would be willing to donate or loan for scanning, please let us know!
Access the digital collection, here.
This digitization project was funded, in part, by a grant from the Internet Archive Community Webs program and
by an operating support grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State.
Current Exhibition: Plainfield Black Tennis History: 1916-2023
There' still time to stop by the Anne Louise Davis room to view this photography retrospective on the history of Black tennis in the Queen City!
Presented by the Plainfield Division of Parks & Recreation and curated by historian & Black History Consultant, Ethel M. Washington, this exhibit features 60 images from 1916 to 2023. From famous greats like William Mayes and Eyre Saitch to notable contemporaries Westry Horne, Donald Van Blake, and John T. Chandler, the photos show the people and events that shaped the history of tennis today!
The exhibit is open during regular library hours (when the room is not in use), and will run through February 2024.
CANCELLED - Celebrating The Black Family: Past, Present & Future
Saturday, February 3, 2024
NEW DATE: Saturday, March 2, 2024
12 to 2PM in the ALD Room
In the Spirit of Sankofa, join Plainfield author and Rutgers professor, Bill Davis for this in-person panel discussion about the health of the Black family. Presenters include Rutgers professor, Dr. Tawanda Hubbard from NJ Black Social Workers and Dr. Monique Swift from the NJ Association of Black Psychologists.
Mr. Davis will also be signing copies of his book, “Baba and The Crew: The True Story of a Single Black Father’s Journey to Redemption".
Black Founders: The Forten Family of Philadelphia
Saturday, February 10, 2024 @ 10:30AM via Zoom
REGISTER HERE: http://tinyurl.com/PPLHist2402
This program is special presentation by the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia. In this virtual exhibition,
a museum docent will introduce James Forten and his descendants as they navigated the American Revolution and cross-racial relationships in Philadelphia to become leaders in the abolition movement in the lead-up to the Civil War and the women's suffrage movement. Through objects, documents, and immersive environments, we will explore the Forten family’s roles in the Revolutionary War, business in Philadelphia, and abolition and voting rights from 1776 to 1876.
These programs are co-hosted by Plainfield Public Library and the Historical Society of Plainfield / Drake House Museum
.
Our programs are made possible in part by operating support grants from the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State - additionally through a grant administered by the Union County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs, Department of Parks and Recreation; and by a 2024 HEART (History, Education, Arts Reaching Thousands) Grant from the Union County Board of County Commissioners.
