Charlottesville and Albemarle History and Research

City directories can be a helpful tool in historical research, as they include information about businesses, manufacturers, addresses and locations, elected officials, city and county governing bodies, civic organizations, houses of worship, street and avenue guides, and advertisements. Directories are especially useful in filling the gaps between federal census years, studying neighborhood development, and providing additional historical context for a given community at a specific point in time. The UVA Library holds a variety of city directories spanning more than a century within its holdings.

Notable publisher Hill Directory Company published Charlottesville directories until 1976. These guides are useful resources when seeking information about Charlottesville City and Albemarle County within a specific or narrow timeframe. They include "an alphabetical directory of business concerns and private citizens, a directory of householders, occupants of office buildings and other business places, including a complete street and avenue guide and a taxpayer's directory." UVA Library's collection includes directories from 1920 through 1976.

• Available in print by request and in the Shannon library Reference Room: select editions from 1927-1956
• Available on microfilm: 1904-1960. Contact library staff to ask about our microform equipment. 
• Available to view in print at Special Collections: directories from 1927, 1929, and 1931 
• Available online: many editions from 1934-1973
• Available in print for 1990, 1997-1998, and 2000-2001 ("Charlottesville City Directory," formerly "Hill's Directory")

Other types of directories may helpful in the course of your research, and many of these can be found in the UVA Library's collection. Use Virgo to search for directories pertaining to Charlottesville social clubs, local alumni, shopping guides, social services, and more. Date range searching is available in advanced search (enter your subject or keyword, then add the date range). This research guide on directories from the Library of Congress is an excellent resource for discovering additional directories. 

Special Collections

Many directories of local historical relevance can be found in the Small Special Collections Library, and may be viewed in their Reading Room. Browse here to see church, civic organization, business, and other directories held by Special Collections.