93-year-old volunteering at Germantown Historical Society for more than 30 years
Paid Sponsor Partnership: Philadelphia Corporation for Aging
If Germantown history is what you're seeking, Irvin Miller can take you way back.
"We have older maps like this one, which is 1851," says Miller. He volunteers at the Germantown Historical Society every Tuesday morning.
Miller says he first went there in the 1990s to look up some genealogy information on his wife's side and started "asking about things."
While there, he says a search ensued to find a photograph, and he joined in to help.
"And then, so I said, 'well, this is fun,'" he says.
The retired Drexel University physics professor spends most of his time in the archives.
"I started just answering any questions that other people brought in and it's been going on now for 30 years," he says.
"Irv is generally the point person for all patron research," says Malachy Egan, librarian and archivist for the Germantown Historical Society. "He knows this collection frontwards and backwards."
"This is the city directory," says Miller.
"A lot of people come for information about their property," says Egan.
Miller can dig out old maps of the area but says he makes up "mostly indexes" to help make finding information easier.
Fellow volunteer Gerald Bergen works on digitizing materials.
"Making it available to the public is really important," says Egan. "There is a way that you can search from our website on what's called 'the hub.'"
Miller can assist with genealogy research too. There are many family files on site.
"Our archives contain materials that date back to the 17th century, from the late 1600s, when the first German settlers came to German Township, up to the present day," says Egan.
A newly opened visitors center and two exhibitions on site help share the 300 plus years of the neighborhood's history.
"We have a lot of treasures here and we're making sure that they're not hidden treasures," says Tuomi Forrest, Executive Director of Historic Germantown.
And Miller is one of those great resources you can come see by appointment.
"He's really an asset," says Egan.
Miller says he just wants to "help other people" with whatever they're trying to find.
"I mean, I'm 93," he says. "I want to continue contributing something."
If you have questions you'd like to have answered by the Germantown Historical Society, you can submit them and Irvin Miller will pull the preliminary research for you. You do need to schedule an appointment to view it. And there is a fee for the service, but it's free for members of Historic Germantown.
Link to Send Inquiries - Pat Henning Library & Archives
5501 Germantown Ave. Philadelphia, PA 19144
