The Ancestor Hunt regularly adds and updates new collection links, as well as searches for and fixes broken links.
(This page's most recent update is December 2024)
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An old proverb states that “the eyes are the windows into the soul.” A genealogy corollary is that “a photo is a window into the lives of your ancestors.”
I love old photos, whether they are portraits of my ancestors or historical photos of the period when they lived. It is important to complete research that one attempts to understand the environment that surrounds our ancestors’ lives if one wants to truly appreciate what they went through.
So where can they be found? Obviously, the best resources are our own photo albums and those that our relatives possess. But what about other resources? Many archives, historical societies, libraries, and genealogical societies have collections of old photos. And in the past few years, there has been a massive movement towards making these historical photo collections available online. Some have search capabilities where you can actually put in a surname or a location, the name of a building, or a historical event and find what is available.
For the state of South Dakota, what collections are available for you to browse and/or search online? Here is a list of sites to start with. Please feel free to add in the comments other online resources that you might be aware of in the state.
Please be aware that there may be very strict rules regarding downloading or other use of the images that you may find. Copyright and other legal protections may be in force. Make sure that you read the limitations of use for any image that you find in these collections and wish to download and/or copy. It is your responsibility to adhere to the rules for all of these collections.
Please note that links to these sites may change in the future. The author (me) will not constantly be checking and updating these links, so if you find a broken link, please use your favorite search engine to locate the new link.
South Dakota Historical Photo Archives
- Abandoned South Dakota History & Images
- Aberdeen Area Historical Photos
- Black Hills State University Photo Collections
- Bon Homme County Photos
- Brookings – Norby Photo Collection
- Bureau of Indian Affairs – Photographs – South Dakota
- Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Photograph Records
- Codington Postcards
- Day County Historic Photographs
- Deadwood History – Deadwood
- Deadwood Revealed Historical Photos
- Digital Library of South Dakota
- Early Mitchell Photos
- Historic South Dakota Photos
- Huron Public Library Photographs
- Library of Congress Prints & Photographs – South Dakota
- Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog
- Lyman County Photos
- Minnilusa Historical Association – Rapid City
- National Archives – Digital Photograph Collections
- Northern State University Digital Collections
- Oglala Dakota College Photo Archives
- Pierre and Fort Pierre Historic Places – Photos
- Rapid City Public Library Historic Archives
- Siouxland Heritage Museums – Photos
- Smithsonian Images
- South Dakota Ancient Faces
- South Dakota Dead Fred
- South Dakota Digital Archives
- South Dakota Historical Photos
- South Dakota Historical Photos
- South Dakota History of Cities, Towns, Places and People Who made it Great – Photos
- South Dakota History Photos
- South Dakota Penny Postcards
- South Dakota State Historic Preservation Photos
- South Dakota State Library Digital Collections
- South Dakota State University Photo Collection
- South Dakota, DP.LA Photos
- South Dakota, Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black-and-White Negatives
- Tripp County Photos
- University of South Dakota Photograph Collection
- Vintage Aerial Photos – South Dakota
For historical photos from other states and articles about photo research, please visit the Photos page.
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!