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 for the period when they lived. And it is important to a 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 resource is 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, name of a building or historical event and find what is available.
For the state of Indiana, 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 be constantly checking and updating these links, so if you find a broken link, please use your favorite search engine to locate the new link.
(Updated May 2022)
- Allen County Community Album
- Allen County Historic Photographs
- Allen County Photographs and Collections
- American Legion Auxiliary – Indianapolis
- American Turners Image Collection
- American Turners Local Societies
- Athenaeum Damenverein & Women’s Auxiliary Image Collection
- Athenaeum Turners Records, 1880-2002
- Ball State University Digital Photo Collections
- Brownsburg Then & Now
- Butler University Image Collections
- City of Terre Haute
- Clark County Image Collections
- Clark County Visual History
- Clinton Public Library
- Columbus Historic Photos
- Corydon Photograph Collection
- Covington Historic Photographs
- Crawfordsville District Public Library, Image Database Search
- Daviess County Historical Society – Washington
- DePauw University – Archives Documents and Photographs
- Earlham College Photo Archives
- Eckhart Public Library Online Photo Archive
- Edinburgh Historical Photos
- Elkhart County Historical Society Collections
- Elkhart Historic Photographs
- Evansville Digital History
- Evansville Images
- Evansville Photography Gallery
- Fort Wayne and Allen County History
- Fort Wayne History Center Digital Collections
- Fountain County Community
- Fountain County Photos
- Gibson County Community
- Grace College Photo Collections
- Hamilton County History Photographs
- Hanover College – Photographic and Visual Materials
- Hendricks County Museum
- Historic Bremen Photos
- Historic Richmond Indiana Photos
- Historic Columbus
- History of Greenville in Pictures
- Hoosier Recollections Photo Albums
- Howard County Images
- Howard County Photo Gallery
- Huntington City-Township Public Library
- Huntington Historical Photographs
- Indiana Album
- Indiana Album
- Indiana Album, Inc. – Indianapolis
- Indiana Ancient Faces
- Indiana Archives – Abandoned Building Photography
- Indiana Dead Fred
- Indiana Farm Security Administration Photographs
- Indiana Historical Society – Destination Indiana
- Indiana Historical Society – Digital Images
- Indiana Images Index
- Indiana Old Family Photos
- Indiana Penny Postcards
- Indiana State Fair Photo Collection
- Indiana State Library Photograph Collection
- Indiana State Library Photograph Collections
- Indiana State University Archives
- Indiana State University Photo Archives
- Indiana University – Image Collections Online
- Indiana University Digital Collections
- Indiana Memory
- Indiana, DP.LA Photos
- Indiana, Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black-and-White Negatives
- Indianapolis Foundation
- Indianapolis Public Library Digital Collections
- Indianapolis South Side Turners
- Inland Steel Company Photograph Collection
- Invisible Indianapolis
- IUPUI Image Collection
- IUPUI Photograph Collections
- Jay County Photo Albums
- Jefferson County Historical Photographs
- Jennings County Photos
- Knox County Community
- Knox County Pictures
- Knox County Public Library
- Kosciusko County Photo Album
- La Porte County Photo Gallery
- LaPorte County “Old Time Family Photos”
- Library of Congress Prints & Photographs – Indiana
- Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog
- Lincoln Library Photographs
- Mapleton-Fall Creek Neighborhood
- Michiana Memory – Civil Rights and African American History
- Michiana Memory – Photo Collections
- Michigan City Photos
- Minnetrista Cultural Foundation – Muncie
- Mishawaka-Penn-Harris Public Library – Mishawaka
- Monroe County Historical Museum – Bloomington
- Monroeville Ternet Collection
- Montgomery County Photographs
- Mooresville Historical Photos and Flashcards
- Muncie and Delaware County Historic Photographs
- Nappanee Public Library – Nappanee
- National Archives – Digital Photograph Collections
- Near Eastside Indianapolis History Photographs
- New Albany Historic Photograph Archive
- New Albany Historic Photos
- New Albany Photo Gallery
- Newton County Photo Galleries
- North Madison County Public Library – Elwood Photos
- Northwest Indiana Views
- Parke County Community
- Parke County Photos
- Photographs of Dubois County
- Picturing Madison County
- Pike County Coal Mines
- Pike County Family Photos
- Pike County Treasures
- Plainfield-Guilford Township Public Library Photograph Collection
- Portage Community Photo Albums
- Porter County Historical Images
- Purdue University Photo Collections
- Putnam County Public Library Local History and Genealogy Photos
- Ransom Place Neighborhood Association
- Richmond and Wayne County Photos
- Saint Joseph County Photos
- Smithsonian Images
- South Bend Area Photographs and Postcards
- Starke County Collection
- Sullivan County Historical Society
- Sullivan Munce Cultural Center – Zionsville
- Switzerland County Photo Album
- The Other Side of Middletown Photographs
- Tippecanoe County Family Photos
- Tippecanoe County Historical Society – Lafayette
- University of Saint Francis Photo Collection
- University of Southern Indiana Photo Collections
- Valparaiso Historic Photographs
- Vermillion County Community
- Vermillion County Historic Photographs
- Vigo County Community
- Vintage Aerial Photos – Indiana
- Vintage Indianapolis Photos
- Vintage Views of North Manchester
- Wabash College Historic Images
- Wabash College Historic Images
- Wabash County Historical Museum Photos
- Wabash County Miscellaneous Photo Albums
- Wabash Valley Visions and Voices
- Westchester Township Historical Images
- Westchester Township History Museum – Chesterton
- Westport Historical Photos
- Whiting-Robertsdale Historical Society Historical Photos
- Whitko Community Digital Image Project
- Willard Library Archive Galleries
- William H Willennar Genealogy Center – Auburn
- Woodburn Historical Society
For historical photos from other states as well as articles about photo research, please visit the Photos page.
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