City directories are the telephone books of the 19th century. They relate people and places line by line in alphabetical order year after year. Some list occupations or miscellaneous information about recent deaths or relocations. Some list businesses. Some verge on the genre of biographical dictionaries and encyclopedias. Directories are fundamental tools heavily used in historical research, but as digital texts they gain even greater use. Once digitized, a directory can be searched not just by surnames, but by addresses, occupations, and dates.
This page complements the Directories, Gazetteers, Rosters, and Guides collection on UMSL’s Digital Library and a duplicate collection on Missouri Digital Heritage. Below is an updated and comprehensive list of city directories and other similar materials related to St. Louis people and places under an expanded definition which includes guide books, gazeteers, and organization rosters. The materials are listed by year, and links are provided for easy navigation to their respective digital libraries if they are available online. If they are unavailable digitally, links are provided to the catalog entries where physical copies may be found.
The St. Louis Mercantile Library's contribution to the list below was made possible through the support of the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the Missouri State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.
- UMSL Digital Library
- Missouri Digital Heritage.
- Washington University Digital Gateway
- Northern Illinois University
- Missouri History Museum
- State Historical Society of Missouri
- St. Louis Public Library
- Internet Archive
- Library of Congress
- Hathi Trust digital library
- Google Books
- Merlin catalog print copy.
To increase the utility of this page, materials are linked by icons representing various digital libraries and library catalogs. This system allows for multiple links to be applied to some materials which should allow the researcher to make use of the relative strengths of each platform. The Washington University Digital Gateway currently hosts the only human-corrected transcriptions and the most reliable multi-directory search interface.
Directories by Year
1821
1836
1837
1838
1840
1842
1844
1845
1846
1847
1848
1850
- Green's St. Louis Business Directory
- Saint Louis Merchants, Mechanics, and Manufacturers' Business Directory
1851
1852
1853
1854
1857
1858
1859
1860
1863
- Campbell & Richardson’s St. Louis Business Directory
1864
1865
1866
- Edwards' Annual Directory
- Edwards' Descriptive Gazetteer and Commercial Directory of the Mississippi River
1867
- Edwards' Annual Directory
- Goodwin's Pacific Railway Business Guide
- Guide Book and Complete Pocket Map of St. Louis
- Stranger's Guide to St. Louis
1868
1869
1870
1871
1872
1873
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Logan's Railway and Business Directory from St.Louis to Galveston
- St. Louis Commercial Directory
1874
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Baker's St. Louis Business Directory
- Saint Louis, the Commercial Metropolis
1875
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Wilson's History and Directory for Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois
1876
1877
1878
- Gould's Business Directory of the city of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Pictorial Guide to St. Louis
- Tour of St. Louis
1879
1880
1881
1882
- Gilmore's Pocket Guide...edited by Hitchcock
- Gilmore's Pocket Guide...revised by Parker
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- St. Louis: Her Trade, Commerce and Industry
1883
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
1884
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Police Guide and Directory of St. Louis
1885
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Guide to the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
1886
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Progress of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Guide to the Places of Interest in...St. Louis
- Masonic Manual and St. Louis Guide
1887
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Industries of Saint Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
1888
- Commercial and Architectural St. Louis
- Directory of the Legion of Honor
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Directory of the Legion of Honor
- St. Louis Guide, official handbook
- Saint Louis of To-day Illustrated
1889
- City of St. Louis Today
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Engineer's Club of St. Louis
1890
1891
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Commercial and Architectural St. Louis
- City of St. Louis, 1891: Growth in Manufactures...
1892
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Pen and Sunlight Sketches of St. Louis
- Shewey’s Guide and Directory to St. Louis
- Shewey's Pictorial St. Louis, Past and Present…
- St. Louis Through a Camera
1893
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Missouri State Gazetteer and Business Directory
- City of Saint Louis & Its Resources
1894
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Barr and Widen's Credit Guide
- Gould's Handy Guide to St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- Historical and Descriptive Review of St. Louis
- Old and New St. Louis
1895
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- St. Louis Up to Date
1896
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Illustrated Handy Guide to St. Louis
- Illustrated Guide of St. Louis
1897
- Barr & Widen Company’s Credit Guide for the Wholesale Trade
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
1898
- Directory of the Legion of Honor of the State of Missouri
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- St. Louis Engineers' Club Bulletin
1899
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
1900
- Blue Book and Directory of the Merchant's League Club
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Illustrated Handy Guide to St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- St. Louis Taxpayers' Directory
- Watson & Co.'s Classified Business Directory of St. Louis
1901
- Directory of Stationary Engineers of the city of St. Louis and State of Missouri
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- St. Louis County and Town Directory
1902
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- St. Louis Directory of Charities
1903
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- Bulletin of the Engineers' Club of St. Louis
1904
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- Business Directory and Mercantile Register of St. Louis
1905
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- St. Louis Directory of Charities
1906
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
1907
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
- St. Louis Directory of Charities
1908
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Commercial Register for the City of St. Louis
1909
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Red Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's East St. Louis Directory
1910
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Directory of the City of Kirckwood
- Gould's Red Book for the City of St. Louis
- Boo's Directory of St. Louis County
1911
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Red Book for the City of St. Louis
- St. Louis Directory of Charities
1912
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Directory for the City of Maplewood, Mo.
1913
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Red Book for the City of St. Louis
- All About St. Louis
1914
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Directory of Clayton, Missouri
- Gould's Red Book for the City of St. Louis
1915
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Red Book for the City of St. Louis
1916
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Gould's Blue Book for the City of St. Louis
- Gould's Red Book for the City of St. Louis
1917
1918
1919
- Gould's St. Louis Directory
- Catalog of the Educational Institutions of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Missouri, Ohio, and Other States
