The History of PCGS
The Polk County Genealogical Society was established in 1994 in Bolivar, Missouri. Interested parties first met for an organizational meeting in February 1994. The first program and business meeting was held in April 1994. At the time, the society was a special interest group of the Friends of the Polk County Library and was supported financially by the Friends. The first name of the society was the Bolivar Genealogy Group, but the name was soon changed to the Polk County Genealogical Society.
In 1996, the society became independent of the Friends of the Library. The first publication for sale by the society was published in 1998. The society was incorporated in August 1999 and became a not-for-profit corporation in January 2001.
In October 2001, PCGS purchased the Carnegie library building located on the town square of Bolivar, Missouri and completed renovation of the ground floor in the summer of 2002. The Polk County Genealogical Society Library was opened to the public in July 2002.
In January 2003, PCGS received a grant from the Delarue Trust to remodel the top floor of the PCGS Library. Work commenced in the spring of 2003. The PCGS Library building was declared a historic site by the National Park Service on July 17, 2003 and is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is the first historic site in Polk County to be listed on the Register.
Missouri Secretary of State Matt Blunt announced in June 2004 that PCGS would receive nearly $5,000 from the Missouri Historical Records Grant program. This money was used for preservation supplies. In July 2004, the Polk County Genealogical Society celebrated its 10 year anniversary and the unveiling of the renovated second floor of the library building.
In 2007, restoration of the outside of the historic building commenced. The project for 2009 was replacing the outside stairs. 2010 project was replacing the windows, starting with the north side windows. This project was completed in January 2010, thanks to many generous
donations. Since then, several grants and donations have been received, allowing PCGS to upgrade all of its computers, scanners and printers plus making aesthetic improvements to the interior of the building. In 2016 the group embarked on a new adventure--the installation of solar panels on the roof of the building. This improvement has saved the society thousands of dollars in utility bills!
PCGS currently has over 70 publications for sale and publishes a 10-page bi-monthly newsletter. Membership in PCGS numbers over 200 people. The PCGS Library and Research Facility, open four days a week, is operated totally by volunteers.
