Bellefonte, the Centre County seat, is 10 miles northeast of Penn State’s University Park campus. Named in honor of the town’s central spring ("la belle fonte") by the French statesman Talleyrand, Bellefonte has been home to seven governors from three states.
If you want to read brief biographies of each one, you'll find the details on this page.
Centre County Genealogy online resources
The Pennsylvania Room of the Centre County Library and Museum focuses on Centre County and Pennsylvania history and genealogy. It has a specialized collection of over 3000 volumes devoted exclusively to these topics, as well as original Centre County records, newspapers, vertical files containing items of historical and genealogical interest, and various historical and genealogical periodicals.
The Pennsylvania Room is located in the Museum building at 203 North Allegheny Street in Bellefonte. A staff person is usually available to assist genealogical and historical researchers from 9 - 12 and 1 - 5 Monday to Friday. The Pennsylvania Room is also open 9 - 12 and 1 - 5 on Saturdays.
Mail queries will be accepted if you are unable to visit, but our limited staff cannot provide extensive search and copy services.
