This Digital Archive is now open to the public! Why? Well, because we are working on a bigger and better digital archive with no log in required! Head on over to humboldthistoryresearch.org to access more historic photos and resources.
Introducing our new, open access database consisting of historic photos from the HCHS collections.
This website can be searched via key word, subject fields, photographer, decade and/or HCHS object ID number. And, you will find a map! This fun feature allows you to click geotagged historic photos across a map of Humboldt County.
Due to this momentous undertaking, we are always accepting donations to support our digital archive project. If you would like to see a certain collection uploaded to the website, be sure to include that information with your donation. We are always happy to work with the public to improve access!
Audiovisual Media
A.W. Ericson Selected Photographs
Jesse Meiser Selected Photographs
Nathan Bixby Strong Selected Photographs 1880-1888
Kitty Ferris Joy Emporium 2nd & D St. Eureka
Looking Up 2nd St. from F St. Eureka
Chas. Sawtell Saloon & Store 2nd & D St., Eureka
Russ Market NW Corner 3rd & G St. Eureka
Looking Up E St. from 2nd St. Eureka Bay Hotel
Jones Block 3rd & F St. Eureka West Side of F St.
Emma Freeman Collection Selected Photographs
Lloyd Stine Eureka Photo Collection Volume 9 Selections
Broadway at Clark February 1954
G St Between Second and Third February 1954
Shull Family Collection (8mm)
Firestone Building Fire, Eureka 1954
Arcata Barrel Factory Employees, Arcata c.1955
1955 Flood Damage, Weott
1955 Flood Damage, Klamath and Pepperwood
1955 Flood Damage, Klamath
1955 Flood Damage, Avenue of the Giants and Weott
Library Lecture Series
Please see the Humboldt County Library’s YouTube page for Zoom lectures recorded beginning in 2021.
- ”A Bear, 50 Mules and a Moon” presented by Jerry Rohde, September 2019 - “Sarah Johnson: Humboldt’s First Lighthouse Keeper,” presented by Peggy Wheeler, December 2018
- “Chasing Down the Moon: Chinese Expulsion through Historical Fiction,” presented by Carla Baku, November 2018
- “Sex, Drunks, and Alleged Insanity: Interpreting Historical Criminal Records,” presented by Morgan Harvey, September 2018
- “Lore of the Land: Myths, Folktales, and Legends from the Redwood Coast,” presented by Paul Woodland, June 2018
- “A Photographic History of Arcata’s Creamery District,” presented by Fran Beatty, May 2018
- “The Friendship of Bodega y Quadra & Vancouver,” presented by Pattie Fleschner, March 2018
- “The Cost of Contempt: Loss of the USS Milwaukee,” presented by Savannah Smith, October 2015
Annual Luncheon Programs: Annual programs hosted by the Humboldt County Historical Society.
- “Falk: Company Lumber Town of the American West,” presented by Julie Clark, February 2019
- “Trees & Grass: Boom, Bust, and the American Dream,” presented by Ray Raphael, February 2018
- “Fall of the House of Gunther,” presented by Jon Humboldt Gates, February 2017
- “A History of Prostitution in Eureka,” presented by retired chief of Eureka Police Department Murl Harpham, February 2014
Some materials have been reduced in size and quality to optimize digital viewing. If you need a resource at a higher resolution, digital reproductions can be purchased through the Archivist.
1848 Russian Atlas showing Humboldt Bay
Genealogy Resources
Humboldt County Jail Collection: Booking Records, 1888-1913
Pierce Mortuary Collection: Register of Deaths, 1880-1908
Goff Midwife Record, 1873-1892. This record covers the Mattole/Petrolia area. Registry of Births by Mary Deborah Goff
Indexes by Karen Hendricks:
Naturalization Records of Humboldt County Residents, 1854-1896
Humboldt County Marriage Records, 1855-1911
Marilyn Milota Bio Files:
A-Z
Some Interesting Articles Volume I
Some Interesting Articles Volume II
Some Interesting Articles Vol. III
Some Interesting Articles Part IV
Humboldt County Original Pioneer Members
Indexes by Marilyn Milota
Miscellaneous Humboldt County Records, 1850-1930
Miscellaneous Humboldt County Records, 1931-1941
Miscellaneous Humboldt County Records, 1942-1947
Manuscripts
Sail & Steam Along the Northern California Coast, 1910 - Written by Wallace Martin. Searchable.
Diary of Cora Bailey (Bridgeville), 1898-1900 The social and educational adventures of a young school teacher in Southern Humboldt.
Mining Diary of Bertrand A. Gates, 1896 Read what it was like to go small scale mining during the old days! This is the full diary from which our article in the Winter 2017 Humboldt Historian was gleaned.
Diary of Hannah Carter. Hannah’s diary tells the full tale of her trip from Pennsylvania to Humboldt County to marry her fiancé. An article from the Summer 2011 Humboldt Historian was based on this record.
Recollections of an Old Time School Teacher. By Shirley M. Hannah. This memoir tells of his time teaching in Orleans and Trinidad, beginning in 1908, along with other stories. Includes an alphabetized list of names mentioned within the text.
Trinidad Whaling Station Log, 1921-1922. Transcribed by volunteer Lynn Harvey. Complete daily log of Trinidad Whaling Station. Useful for studying the local whaling industry, the California Seafood Products Company, as well as historic weather patterns.
Aerial Photographs
Eureka, 1931 [1680 B1; 1680 B3; 1680 B5; 1680 B7; 1680 B9; 1680 B10; 1680 B12; 1680 B14; 1680 B16; 1680 B18]
Maps
California Highways and Public Works (CHPW) Collection: CA-36, c.1954
35A Alton to Strong's Station, no.1
35A Stations P560 - P616, Van Duzen River (Mile 10.8 - 12.0 E.)
35A Stations 616 - P-Line - 681, Van Duzen River (Mile 12.0 - 13.1 E.)
35B Stations 0 - 97, Van Duzen River Crossing (Between Mile 0.4 - 7.3 E.) no.1
35B Stations 81 - 151, Van Duzen River Crossing (Between Mile 0.4 - 7.3) no.2
35B Stations 142 - 216, Van Duzen River Crossing (Between Mile 0.4 - 7.3) no.3
35B Stations 57 - 80, Relocation of Baker Grade
35B Stations 210 - 288, Van Duzen River (Between Mile 0.4 - 7.3 E.)
35B Stations 283 - 341, Van Duzen River (Between Mile 0.4 - 7.3 E.)
35B Stations 338 - 415, Van Duzen River (Between Mile 0.4 - 7.3 E.)
California Highways and Public Works (CHPW) Collection: US-101
HUM 1-A County Line to Richardson Grove, including Hartsook Inn (May 1929)
HUM 1-A Stations 68 - 125, Richarson Grove (February 1948)
HUM 1-A Stations 327 - 380, Benbow (c.1935)
HUM 1-A Stations 380-447, Benbow
HUM 1-A Stations 434 - 493, Garberville
HUM 1-B Stations 0 - 61, Garberville to Redway Bluff (1930)
HUM 1-B Stations 60 - 120, Garberville to Redway Bluff (1935)
HUM 1-B Station 584 - 692, Philipsville to Fish Creek (1950)
HUM 1-B Stations 669 - 723, Fish Creek
HUM 1-B Stations 730 - 800, Miranda
HUM 1-E Stations 0 - 66, Jordan Creek to Stafford
HUM 1-E Stations 395 - 451, Vicinity of Robinsons Ferry Bridge (1944)
HUM 1-E Stations 320 - 420, Wildwood and Rio Dell (1944)
HUM 1-E Stations 285 - 375] North Scotia and Wildwood (1944)
Selected Photos of Bridgeville, CA
Photos are low-res. If you’d like a better copy, contact us at
707-445-4342. Click on photo to see full-sized.
