Our main Reference Desk is located on the 2nd floor of the library. Staff are available to assist you with the collection and your information needs. You can contact us at 507-452-4860 or fill out our online form.
Genealogy, Obituary, and Article Requests
Please refer to our Genealogy, Obituary, and Article Requests Policy for information and forms on submitting requests for information.
Resources
The library has the Winona Newspaper (currently Winona Daily News formerly Winona Republic Herald) on microfilm from July 19, 1860 to present. Winona Newspapers from 1860-1976 are also available online at the Winona Newspaper Project.
There are limited indices of obituary records from 1960-2010 available online. Please note that the indices are not fully complete:
We have a Digital Microfilm Reader, which allows users to make PDFs of articles/obituaries. Printing is available at $0.10/page.
Other genealogy resources of interest in the library include Ancestry.com: Library Edition (World Edition). This resource is only available for in-house use but users may bring their own laptop. Print resources that are available for in-house use only include City Directories dating from 1872-present day (some years are missing) and The Resting Places of Winona County, Minnesota: Cemeteries of Winona County.
Requests for Genealogy, Obituaries, and Articles
Please download our full Genealogy, Obituary, and Article Requests Policy, which includes the request form.
Requests for obituaries/articles can be made using our online form or through the mail.
Requests from individuals residing in the State of Minnesota are not charged for obituary/article requests. Those residing outside of the state will be charged $2.00/request.
Requests submitted online or through the mail should allow one to four weeks for processing. We cannot guarantee that we will find the requested article/obituary. Only three requests are allowed per month.
Library staff will search seven days from the date of death and will notify you regarding the findings and the payment amount.
