Midwest Historical & Genealogical Society

06/02/2026

We have been given a January 25, 1976 Wichita Eagle with a bicentennial commemorative section. We don't have a way to store entire newspapers, so we'd like to find a good home for it. First come, first serve! Find us at 1203 N Main today until 4, then Saturday 10-4.

05/22/2026

Our volunteers are taking Memorial Weekend off, so the library will be closed on Saturday. We'll see you Tuesday!

05/09/2026

Hello! Local author Mack Moore will be at the library to discuss his new memoir "Almost Born on the 4th of July" on Tuesday, May 12, at 1:30. Come hear about writing and publishing a book, and share your stories about growing up in Wichita in the 1960s!

05/03/2026

Oh wow! What a great article about a cool project! Thanks Carrie and Jaime!

A new digital preservation center at the Midwest Historical and Genealogical Society was made possible by this person’s donation.

04/20/2026

The Midwest Historical & Genealogical Society has opened Melinda’s Corner, a free public service made possible through funding from the estate of Melinda Fultz. Located at 1203 N. Main in Wichita, volunteers help individuals transfer, digitize, and preserve personal data and family memories from a wide range of older media formats — before those formats become unreadable forever.

Melinda’s Corner is open Tuesdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. No appointment is necessary, though visitors are asked to call ahead at 316-264-3611. Bring a USB drive to take your files home. All services are free of charge.

Services currently available
Data transfer: 3.5” floppy disks, CDs and DVDs, most memory card types.
Video digitizing: VHS tapes, DVDs, 8mm and Super 8 film.
Scanning: Slides, negatives, prints, and oversize items such as scrapbooks and ledgers (via camera stand).
Genealogy file format conversion: PAF, GEDCOM, Ancestral Quest, GRAMPS, Legacy, The Master Genealogist, etc.

Volunteers are also working to expand capabilities to include 5.25” floppy disks and Zip drives, and to add audio formats such as cassette tapes, micro-cassettes, and vinyl records. Betamax and Blu-ray support are also under consideration. Updates will be announced as those services become available.

Genealogists and family historians are especially encouraged to visit — volunteers can assist with converting files between all major genealogy software formats, making it easy to share or migrate your research.

“I’m so thankful for Melinda Fultz’s bequest, which has allowed us to get the equipment to put the Digital Preservation Center together. I know people will find this free station useful to upgrade old-format items to more easily viewed digital formats.”
— Ann Boll, President, Midwest Historical & Genealogical Society

03/14/2026

We're going to have a outdoor clean-up day on Wednesday, April 8, at 10am. We'll be picking up trash, raking leaves, and getting rid of some dead branches and twigs. Everyone is welcome to help! Bring your work gloves, rakes and trash bags!

02/03/2026

The February Alert newsletter is on the website: https://mhgswichita.org/wp/2026/02/february-alert-newsletter-3/

01/26/2026

Yup, the snow plows blocked our driveway. The library will be closed until Saturday. Sorry everyone!

01/24/2026

It will surprise precisely no one that we are closed today! We hope to be open on Tuesday, but it depends on the ice and snow level in the parking lot (and how big a pile the snow plows make on our driveway when they clear Main street)

Get some research done!

01/13/2026

Mike is putting together our digital preservation station! Does anyone have an external ZIP drive or external 5 1/4 inch drive they could donate? Email [email protected]
Thanks!