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HISTORY’S KEEPERS
BY SUE BJORKMAN PHOTOS BY JUSTIN ITNYRE
Prepare yourself—contrary to popular belief, a Google search can’t tell you everything.
For local research into all 450 years of St. Augustine’s history, two of the best places to find the precious papers and priceless photographs of the past are the St. Augustine Historical Society Research Library and the Archives of the Diocese of St. Augustine. Appropriately enough,
both are open to the public and both are located on Aviles Street in the historic downtown district.
THE ST. AUGUSTINE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
The St. Augustine Historical Society Research Library is like the attic of
a very old, extremely well-organized relative. It has a little bit of everything, from the complete collection of the local
newspaper since 1886, to photos of President Warren Harding playing golf here in the early 1900s.
Writers, historians, owners of historic homes, and those interested in genealogy are its most frequent visitors. Since 1995, it has been located in the centuries-old Segui-Kirby Smith House. Even more than the shelves of books, file cabinets, computers and microfilm machines, its greatest resource is the staff. They seem
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