A 1965 Phonebook

I have searches saved on eBay for certain things and this gem popped up.  It’s a 1965 Woonsocket phonebook.  I had a lot of families that were there at this point in time.  All of my maternal great-grandparents were still alive in 1965. (You know what I’ll be researching later....) 

Do you know why this is so valuable for genealogy?  I know my genealogy friends do!  It has names, address, locations, other families with the same last name listed, businesses and their locations, hospitals, funeral homes, banks, schools, long forgotten restaurants and other businesses that people owned with names tied to those businesses.  It’s a snapshot in time - all in one book.  The census records are great but considering they aren’t released for 72 years it won’t be until 2032 that the 1960 census is released and 2042 until the 1970 census is released.  I think it’s safe to say that the first census that I would be able to see myself on is the 1980 census which is in 2052 and I’ll be in my 80s or dead…  LOL.  Census records don't have business information on them either.  Genealogy GOLD I tell you! 

For example, look at this gem!  Alexander Tenczar was a photographer in Woonsocket in 1965 and there’s a photo of him in the business section.  Now, if you were a descendant of Mr. Tenczar this would be a fabulous find!  [Note to self: research the Tenczar family and get this to them.]

If you are having trouble finding your relatives and you are positive they were there somewhere, try finding an old phone book in that area.  You might just get lucky and break through that brick wall.   Keep in mind timeframes.  After all, phone books haven’t been around forever!   In some areas, city directories have been around for a long time so that’s another option to explore for the pre-phone days.  You’d be surprised what you can find on eBay.  It’s a great source for genealogy that’s not to be overlooked!  

In the meantime, I'm going to be perusing through 1965. Why in the world was Johnny's Clam Spa opened at 8 a.m.?  Does anyone need me to look anyone up for them???