Using Old Phone Books & Telephone Exchanges for Genealogy

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Old telephone directories and telephone exchange records are overlooked but powerful tools for tracking ancestors between census years, identifying residences, confirming occupations, and locating relatives and associates living nearby. These materials can help genealogists follow families as they moved, discover name and address changes, and reconstruct neighborhoods or business networks. This Quicksheet explains how to use residential and business phone books, reverse directories, and historical telephone exchange lists to uncover hidden clues about your ancestors’ lives.

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One reply on “Using Old Phone Books & Telephone Exchanges for Genealogy”

Do you have Canadian records on your site. Most of your records look to be American.

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