This library/archives is a research center for Pennsylvania Mennonite and Amish history, genealogy, and theology. It also holds a significant collection of historical/genealogical materials pertaining to southeastern Pennsylvania with a special focus on Lancaster County. The Society is a nonprofit, educational organization and is dedicated to the collection, preservation, and interpretation of books, papers, and artifacts related to the Anabaptist-Mennonite heritage.

Nonmembers of the Society pay a $5.00 per day fee to use the library, but students may use the facilities free of charge. Most genealogies and local histories are shelved in the reading room, where researchers have access to open shelves. Additional books, maps, and archival items are housed in adjacent, limited-access areas, which require staff assistance for retrieval. Books are cataloged according to the Library of Congress classification system. Public computers with Internet access, including Ancestry.com, are available in the reading room. Microform readers, a reader-printer, and photocopier/printer are available for use.

See What's New in the Library!

Click here to visit Destiny Quest to see what is new in the library as well as resource lists and the most-used library books.

Click here for the standard library catalog search page.

Ancestry.com is the world’s largest online family history collection. Access is restricted to persons at the Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society. 

• Census & Voter Lists
• Birth, Marriage & Death Certificates
• Military Records
• Immigration & Travel Documents
• Family Trees 
• Newspapers & Publications 
• Schools, Directories & Church Histories 
• Stories, Memoirs & Personal Histories 
• Tax, Criminal and Land Records and Wills
• Reference Books, Dictionaries & Almanacs 
• Pictures 
• Maps, Atlases & Gazetteers

View photos and learn about the model replica of the Hunsecker Covered Bridge.