Alumni records are part directories, part newspapers, and magazines, part biographies, part obituaries, part yearbooks, part vital records, etc. You get the idea. If you are seeking genealogy clues, these “records’ are full of them. All of the information is derivative, but it can provide leads for you to search for original documents. And if you are documenting a person’s family story, well, there’s a ton of that kind of information too.
So what am I including in Alumni Records?
- Alumni directories
- Alumni registers
- Alumni newsletters, bulletins, newspapers, and magazines
- Commencement programs
And what information is available in them?
- Graduation dates and degree(s) received
- Current photos and/or those of their family
- Current address lists
- Where are they now and what are they doing?
- Obituaries and “In Memoriam”
- Marriages
- Children born to the alumnus
- Deaths in their family
- Life achievements and awards
- Interesting stories about the alumnus and their family
Below is a list of links to free online alumni record and index collections for the state:
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.
(Updated October 2023)
Pennsylvania Alumni Records
- Alumni Directory, University of Pittsburgh, 1916
- Alumni Record, Dickinson College
- Alumni Register of Swarthmore College: a Biographical List of managers, Teachers, Graduates and Former Students, 1862-1930
- Blair County, Student Information, Altoona High School Alumni Directory, 1921, Part 1, 1877-1909
- Blair County, Student Information, Altoona High School Alumni Directory, 1921, Part 3, 1918-1922
- Blair County, Student Information, Altoona High School Alumni Directory, 1921, Part 2, 1910-1917
- Bloomsburg University Alumni Directory
- Bloomsburg University Alumni Quarterly Magazine
- Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania Alumni Magazine
- Bucknell University, Alumni Catalogue, 1851-1910
- Bucknell University, Alumni Magazine
- Bucknell University, Lewisburg, Alumni Catalogue, 1851-1910
- Bucknell University, Alumni Catalogue, 1851-1915
- Bucknell University, Alumni Catalogue, 1851-1921
- Butler University Alumni Magazine
- California University of Pennsylvania Monthly Alumni Newsletter
- Carlisle, Alumni Record, Dickinson College
- Chatham University Alumni Magazine
- Chatham University Alumni Magazine
- Clarion University Alumni Magazines
- Clarion University Alumni Newsletters and Magazines
- Delaware County Christian School Alumni Newsletters
- Dickinson College, Alumni Record
- Edinboro University Magazine
- Elizabethtown College Etownian Alumni Edition
- Franklin and Marshall College, Catalogue of Officers and Students, 1787-1903
- Geibel Catholic Alumni Newsletter
- General Alumni Catalogue of Washington and Jefferson College 1918
- Geneva College Alumni Newsletter
- Haverford College Alumni Magazine
- Haverford College, Biographical Catalogue of the Matriculates, 1833-1900
- History of the University of Pennsylvania: from its Foundation to A.D. 1770, including Biographical Sketches of the Trustees, Faculty, the First Alumni and Others
- Homoeopathic Medical College of Pennsylvania and the Hahnemann Medical College and Hospital of Philadelphia, pre-1918, Biographical Index of the Graduates
- Indiana State Teachers College Alumni Bulletin
- Indiana University of Pennsylvania Alumni Directory
- Indiana University of Pennsylvania Alumni Extra
- Indiana University of Pennsylvania Alumni Newsletters
- Indiana University of Pennsylvania Commencement Programs
- Keystone College Alumni Magazine
- King’s College Magazine
- Kiski School Alumni Bulletin
- Kutztown University Alumni Magazine
- Kutztown University Commencement Programs
- La Salle University Commencement Programs
- Lafayette College Alumni Magazine
- Lafayette College, Alumni Biographical Sketches
- Lafayette College, Biographical Sketches of the Alumni of from its Organization to the Present Time
- Lancaster, Franklin and Marshall College, A record of the lives of the Deceased Alumni, 1837-1909
- Lehigh University Alumni Directory
- Lewisburg, Bucknell University – Alumni Catalogue, 1851-1910
- Lincoln University Alumni Directory, 1912-1991
- Lincoln University Alumni News
- Lock Haven University Commencement Programs
- Lycoming College Alumni Magazine
- Mansfield State College, Alumni Directory 1978
- Mansfield University of Pennsylvania Alumni Directory
- Mansfield University of Pennsylvania’s Music Department’s Alumni Newsletter
- Messiah University Alumni Magazine
- Millersville University Magazine
- Penn Alumni Newsletters
- Penn College of Technology Alumni Magazine
- Penn State Alumni Quarterly
- Penn State College of Medicine Alumni Newsletter
- Pennsylvania College of Gettysburg, Alumni Directory, 1832-1918
- Pennsylvania College of Health Sciences Magazine
- Pennsylvania College of Technology Alumni Newsletters
- Philadelphia – General Alumni Catalogue of the University of Pennsylvania, 1922
- Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine Commencement Programs
- Pittsburgh Central High School Alumni Directory, PCHS Alumni Association, 1859 – 1905
- Pittsburgh Central High School Alumni Directory, PCHS Alumni Association, 1859 – 1905
- Pittsburgh Central High School Alumni Directory, PCHS Alumni Association, 1859 – 1905
- Pittsburgh Central High School Alumni Directory, PCHS Alumni Association, 1859 – 1905
- Pittsburgh Central High School Alumni Directory, PCHS Alumni Association, 1859 – 1905
- Pittsburgh Central High School Alumni Directory, PCHS Alumni Association, 1859 – 1905
- Pittsburgh Central High School Alumni Directory, PCHS Alumni Association, 1859 – 1905
- Robert Morris University Alumni News
- Salus University Alumni News
- Shady Side Academy Alumni Magazine
- Shady Side Academy Alumni Newsletters
- Slippery Rock University Alumni News
- Susquehanna University Alumni News
- Swarthmore College, Alumni Register, 1862-1930
- Swarthmore, Alumni Register of Swarthmore College, 1862-1930
- University of Pennsylvania Alumni Register
- University of Pennsylvania Commencement Programs
- University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education Alumni Magazine
- University of Pennsylvania Health System and the Perelman School of Medicine Magazine
- University of Pennsylvania, Alumni Register
- University of Pennsylvania, Catalogue of the Alumni of the Medical Department
- University of Pennsylvania, from its Foundation to A.D. 1770, including Biographical Sketches of the Trustees, Faculty, the First Alumni
- University of Pennsylvania, General Alumni Catalogue, 1922
- University of Pennsylvania, General Alumni Catalogue, 1922
- University of Pennsylvania, General Alumni Catalogue, 1922
- University of Pittsburgh Magazine
- University of the Arts Commencement Programs
- Washington & Jefferson College Alumni Magazine
- Washington and Jefferson College, General Alumni Catalogue, 1918
- Washington and Jefferson College, General Alumni Catalogue, 1918
- Washington, General Alumni Catalogue of Washington and Jefferson College, 1918
- Waynesburg University Alumni News
- West Chester University Alumni Magazine
- Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf Alumni News
- Western University of Pennsylvania, Alumni Register, Collegiate and Engineering Departments, Department of Law
- Westminster College Alumni Publications
- Wharton Alumni Magazine
- York College of Pennsylvania Magazine
Good Luck and Happy Hunting!