Can genealogists find information on former students in the Defiance College archives?
Answer
Yes, genealogists and other researchers can find information on former students and others associated with Defiance College in the archives. Many historical resources that list Defiance College student names are available in digital form, from any computer that has internet access.
Catalogs: Course catalogs from the early 1900’s through mid-century often had enrolled students’ names listed in the back
Yearbooks: This page has the Oraculum yearbook issues published between 1908-2007. There were none published between the early 1930s and 1947.
Commencement programs: Many programs list the graduating students’ names.
Unpublished roster of alumni: This document lists known graduates between 1888-1980
Magazines and newspapers: This page gives you access to the various magazines and newspapers published by Defiance College. They are keyword searchable, but remember that anything written in an artistic font or printed vertically may not have gotten picked up by the OCR software that compiles the keyword list. You may have to browse to find an issue published during the time your relative attended the College, and read it to see whether he/she is mentioned.
Other resources that have not yet been digitized may be accessed during the hours the archives are open, usually 8AM-4:30PM weekdays, though appointments for other times can be made. Contact Barb Sedlock for more information (419.783.2487 or bsedlock@defiance.edu)