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Collection Guides

Collection Guides

The guides to the record collections for the City Archives are organized alphabetically by departmental record groups. Each department or record group includes a unique group number, description, and historical context. Each record group includes one or more collections and/or items (with collection or accession number in parenthesis), which are described in further detail usually with a downloadable (.PDF) finding aid.

A finding aid is a detailed description of a collection's records, and may include historical context, an inventory, and more information about those records. Finding aids help researchers understand the records they are researching, as well as provide a fundamental level of access to collections. Links to available finding aids are provided throughout the guide.

The collection guide is not all inclusive of the City Archive's holdings, and will be updated as more collections' finding aids are created and more materials are accessioned.

Assessors, Board of (0102)

Collections include Property Assessment Records and Veterans Exemption Records.

Aviation Department (0417)

Collections include Aviation Departmental Records and Airport Authority Meeting Minutes.

Board of Mayor and Aldermen (0100)

Collections include Supporting Documents of BMA Meetings, BMA Meeting Minutes, BMA Ordinances, and Common Council Records.

City Clerk, Office of the (0300)

Collections include, but are not limited to, Agreements & Contracts, Annual Return of Corporations, Bicentennial Committee Records, Charter Commission Papers, Correspondence, Deeds, Election Records, Records of Corporations, Town Records, and Ward Election Journals.

Economic Development Office (0609)

Collections include Amoskeag Millyard Renewal Project Collection, Economic Development Projects Records, and Grenier Field Airport Project Collection.

Finance Department (0404)

Collections include Civil War Soldiers' Relief Fund Ledgers, Financial Budgets & Reports, and Early Treasurer Records.

Fire Department (0405)

Collections include the department's Annual Reports, records of the Board of Fire Commissioners, and the Manchester Firefighters' Memorial Colleciton.

Health Department (0406)

Collections include the Health Department Reports.

Human Resources Department (0419)

Collections include Departmental Reports and Yarger-Decker records.

Mayor, Office of the (0200)

Mayoral collections include papers from the following administrations: Benoit, Vallee, Mongan, Pariseau, Stanton, Dupuis, Beaulieu, Shaw, Wieczorek, Baines, Guinta, and Gatsas.

Non-City Records (9800)

Non-city, or non-government records, include the collections of City Directories, City Hall Restoration Committee Records, Hands Across the Merrimack Papers, Oral Histories, and the Postcard Collection.

Photograph Collections (9700)

Photograph collections include Inauguration Photographs and Silk Mill Photographs.

Planning Department (0411)

Collections include the Amoskeag Housing Historic District Photographs, Building Codes, Historic District Commission Records, Housing Code Dept Minutes, Planning Board Minutes, Ward Maps, and Zoning Ordinances.

Police Department (0412)

Collections include Chief Healy Scrapbook, Complaint Books, Daily Lohs of Joseph Pouliot, Naturalization Records, Police Court Records, and Reports.

Public Works Department (0409)

This record group encompasses the Highway Division, the Parks, Recreation, and Cemeteries Division, the Environmental Protection Division, and the Facilities Division. Collections include Board of Cemetery Trustees Records, Burial Records, Cemetery Lot & Deed Records, City Maps & Plans, WPA Surveys, and more.

School Committee, Board of (0607)

Collections include School Board Reports and School Committee Records.

Senior Services Department (0418)

Materials from the department include its Publicity and Outreach Collection.

Tax Collector, Office of the (0310)

Collections include Property/Real Estate Tax Records, Poll Tax Records, and others.

Water Works Department (0414)

Collections include the Board of Water Commissioners Meeting Minutes and Water Works Reports.

Welfare Department (0415)

Collections include the records of the Overseers of the Poor.