The Alleghany Historical-Genealogical Society was formed in late 1978 by a group of interested citizens.

It meets on the 2nd Friday of each month (but no meeting in December), at 4:00 PM, in the Alleghany County Public Library located at 115 Atwood Street in Sparta. (Changes in meeting time or place are announced in the Alleghany News and on our facebook page; be sure to check there if you plan to attend.) The Society’s collection of genealogical books and papers is in a special section of the library.

2024 Board of Directors

Officers
President – Cindy Atwood
Vice President – Jeff Halsey
Secretary – Reba Evans
Co-Treasurers – Suzanne Mellow-Irwin & Eula Raye Cook

Board Members
Claire Brooks
Margaret Crouse
JoAnne Edwards
Heather Fernandez

Chaplain
Ross Wagner

Ex Officio
Roy Hunt
John Irwin
Lucy Roe

In addition to census records for the county and civil war books, we have accumulated information on a number of local families. An alphabetical index of this information is contained in a table entitled “Genealogical Resources in the Alleghany Library” but the collection is growing all the time.

Each member of our Society receives a copy of our quarterly newsletter. Visit our newsletter archive to see some of our older newsletters.

The first project the Society embarked on was the long and tedious work of surveying all the cemeteries in the county, concentrating first on the small family plots in remote areas where cattle were grazing and cemetery fences were disappearing and stones being broken. We recorded nearly 300 burial plots including church and community cemeteries. The Society published this information in October 1988 in Alleghany County Cemeteries, which can be consulted at the Library. This book may be purchased from the Society and at several locations in Sparta, NC. More information can be found on our books page.

The Society then undertook, with the Hunter Publishing Company, to compile and publish the Alleghany County Heritage, a book which was published in October 1983 and consists of 555 pages with a great number of pictures. Over 700 families submitted genealogical information and family histories. This is a great source of information for anyone searching for roots in this area. More information can be found on our books page.

For many years, the Society has collected and preserved historical items of many types: photographs, paintings, aboriginal artifacts, furniture, work implements and other materials which illustrate the life, conditions, events and activities of the past and present. This collection, along with items loaned from folks in our community, is presented at the Alleghany Historical Museum, at 45 North Main Street, in downtown Sparta.