By Craig Scott
One of the most enjoyable resources available through the Gadsden Public Library isn’t a new bestseller or the latest technology—it’s a collection of old high school yearbooks that allows us to take a trip back in time.
Have you ever wondered what your parents or grandparents looked like in high school? Maybe you’d like to find an old classmate, a favorite teacher, or relive your own school days. Our searchable digital yearbook collection makes it easier than ever.
The Gadsden Public Library has digitized a growing collection of local high school yearbooks and made them available online at gadsdenlibrary.org/searchable-yearbooks. Best of all, these yearbooks are fully searchable by name. Simply enter a person’s name, and if it appears in one of the digitized yearbooks, you’ll be taken directly to the page where it appears. There’s no need to flip through hundreds of pages looking for a familiar face.
Our online collection currently includes yearbooks from several local schools, including Gadsden High School, Emma Sansom High School, Etowah High School, Litchfield High School, and Hokes Bluff High School. Whether you’re researching family history, preparing for a class reunion, or simply taking a nostalgic walk down memory lane, these yearbooks are an incredible community resource.
Of course, our collection doesn’t stop there.
The Gadsden Public Library also houses many additional yearbooks that have not yet been digitized. These are available for public use at our Alabama City Genealogy Branch, located at 2700 West Meighan Boulevard, Gadsden, Alabama 35904. Our genealogy staff welcomes visitors who are researching local history, tracing family roots, or searching for school memories from years gone by.
Genealogy research is about much more than birth certificates and census records. Yearbooks often preserve details that can’t be found anywhere else—photographs, clubs, sports teams, school organizations, handwritten messages, and snapshots of everyday life in our community. They help tell the story of Gadsden and Etowah County through the faces and experiences of the people who lived here.
If you need assistance using the online collection or locating a particular yearbook, our knowledgeable genealogy staff is always happy to help. You can reach the Alabama City Genealogy Branch by calling 256-549-4688.
Whether you’re reconnecting with your past, introducing your children to your high school days, or conducting serious genealogical research, we invite you to explore this remarkable collection. You never know what memories—or familiar faces—you may discover.
Happy searching!
Gadsden Public Library: 254 South College Street, downtown Gadsden (next to the U.S. Post Office). Phone: 256-549-4699. Genealogy Branch: 2700 West Meighan Boulevard, Alabama City (next to the Ritz Theater at the corner of West Meighan and Wall Street). Phone: 256-549-4688
Craig Scott is the director for the GPL.
