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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Do you research school records? I’m not talking about yearbooks. Those can be found on the Yearbooks Page. I’m talking about actual school records, such as enrollment, attendance, and grade reports for example. These are interesting source documents because they might record the student’s age, birth date and location, and possibly their parents’ names. All great ways to find this information if you haven’t found them in other documents about your target ancestor. Besides, finding out your grandmother’s grades would be interesting!
The record collection links, listed below, feature school records from the state, and list collections of records that are available for free online.
If you wish to get educated with some basic information regarding what is available and how to navigate your research for school records, you can read these summaries:
- 5 Quick Tips to Get the Most Out of Education Records
- Top 10 Strategies for Finding School Records for Genealogy
- Getting Started With School Records for Genealogy Research
So, what types of records related to schools are maintained and often available?
- School Census
- School Catalogs
- Teacher’s Registers
- Attendance Records
- Report Cards
- Class Logs
- Teacher Rosters
- School Board Meetings/Reports
- Academic Team and Class Photos
- Local Newspaper Articles:
- Graduation Lists
- School Activities
- School Sports
- Student Newspapers
- Alumni Directories and Publications
- Yearbooks
- Yearbook Indexes
And, what types of information can you derive from these school records?
- Name (often includes a middle name which is useful).
- Age
- Physical Characteristics – color/race, disability.
- Birth Date
- Current Residence Address
- Name of Father
- Name of Mother
- Occupations of parents
- Grades
- Classes Taken
- Activities (from Photos)
- Date left school (can help with family residence relocation)
Below is a list of links to free online school record collections for the state;
Note: Some of the links go to sites with not much information and some go to sites with an extensive set of records.
Note: Some links listed take you to a FamilySearch Collection of digital images. Near the bottom of the page under Film/Digital Notes is the name of each sub-collection. If there is a camera icon at the right of the name (in the Format column) then the collections’ images are browsable. If there is a camera with a key icon, it is only available at a Family History Center or affiliated library. If there is a film reel icon, then it is only available in microfilm format, not digital. To take full advantage make sure that you are logged in to FamilySearch. The results may be different if you are signed in, rather than not.
Maine School Records
- Andover, Reports of the Selectmen and Superintending School Committee for the Year ending 1874
- Belfast Maine High School Graduates, 1875-1900
- Benton, Annual Report of the Selectmen, Tax Collector and Treasurer, and Superintendent of Schools of the Town for the Year ending February 20, 1951
- Bowdoin, Annual Report of the Selectmen
- Brunswick, General Catalogue of Bowdoin College and the Medical School of Maine, 1794-1894
- Brunswick, General Catalogue of Bowdoin College and the Medical School of Maine, 1794-1902
- Brunswick, General Catalogue of Bowdoin College and the Medical School of Maine, 1794-1912
- Brunswick, History of Bowdoin College with Biographical Sketches of its Graduates from 1806 to 1879
- Brunswick, Memoranda Regarding Members of the Class of 1877 Bowdoin College: with an Historical Sketch of the College from 1877 to 1902
- Castine, Catalog and Circular of the Eastern State Normal School for the Year ending June 8, 1909
- Clinton, Town and Vital Records, 1795-1891
- College Graduates from Farmington
- College Graduates from Piscataquis County, 1800s
- Cumberland, Annual Report of the Municipal Officers
- Farmington, History of the State Normal School, with Sketches of the Teachers and Graduates
- Maine Student Group and Individual Photos
- Maine, Secretary of State Returns for the Blind, Deaf and Dumb, 1864-1877
- Montville, Town and Vital Records, 1802-1929
- Obituary Record of the Graduates of Bowdoin College and the Medical School of Maine
- Orono, Alumni Directory of the University of Maine, 1912
- Orono, Alumni Directory of the University of Maine, 1921
- Penobscot County, Miscellaneous School Records
- Scarborough Historical Society Education Records
- Sherman, Town and Vital Records, 1855-1924
- Washington, Annual Report of the Supervisor of Schools, for the Year ending 1885
- Waterville, Third General Catalogue of Colby College, 1820-1908
- Wilton, Annual Reports of the Municipal Officers and Superintending School Committee for the Years ending 1904 and 1922
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!