Preserving and Interpreting Monroe County’s Past

The Monroe County Historian is responsible for preserving and interpreting the history of Monroe County and its city, towns, and villages. Duties fall into four categories: 1) research and writing, 2) teaching and public presentations, 3) historic preservation (documents, artifacts, and buildings), and 4) organization, advocacy, and tourism promotion. The office also maintains the county’s historical archives.

Monroe County Historical Archives

The Monroe County Archives are currently being processed, rehoused, and catalogued. Materials are being added to an online finding aid on an ongoing basis. You can search the collections at Rochester Public Library Archives. Please contact the office if you are looking for something that has not yet been catalogued.

County Historian

Christine L. Ridarsky has served as Monroe County Historian since December 2024 and City of Rochester Historian since October 2008. She has bachelor’s degrees in Journalism & Mass Communication and Political Science from Kent State University, a master’s degree in American History from the State University of New York, College at Brockport, and is ABD toward a PhD in American History at the University of Rochester. She is co-editor of the Rochester History journal and co-editor of Susan B. Anthony and the Struggle for Equal Rights (University of Rochester Press, 2012).

Ridarsky has more than 20 years of experience in public history and archives, having served as Regional Archivist for the New York State Archives Documentary Heritage Program from 2002 to 2004 and as an archival consultant and professional historian since then. She has also taught history and writing courses at the University of Rochester and SUNY Brockport.

Ridarsky serves as a trustee and past president of the Association of Public Historians of New York State, the professional organization that represents the state’s 1,600+ government-appointed historians. She was a founding member and past chair of the National Council on Public History’s Government Historians Committee and currently serves on that organization’s Membership Committee.

Additional resources

For more information on Monroe County history and historical resources, visit:

Local History ROCs!

The Local History ROCs! blog features short stories about a variety of local history topics. It is published twice a month by the Office of Rochester & Monroe County History in partnership with the Local History & Genealogical Division of the Rochester Public Library.

Read Local History ROCs! Blog

Rochester History

Rochester History is a scholarly journal that provides informative articles about the history and culture of Rochester, Monroe County, and the Genesee Valley, all located in New York State. The journal is published biannually (spring and fall) in partnership with the Rochester Public Library, Rochester Institute of Technology’s History Department, and RIT Press.

Subscribe Read Back Issues

Local History & Genealogy Division

The Local History & Genealogy Division of the Rochester Public Library holds the largest collection of primary and secondary source materials about the history of Rochester, Monroe County, and the Genesee Valley in the region, as well as a vast assemblage of resources to help you research your family history. The division is located on the 2nd floor of the Rundel Memorial Building of the Central Library of Rochester & Monroe County in downtown Rochester.

Learn More

Municipal Historians

Under New York Arts & Cultural Affairs Law § 57.07 and 57.09 and New York County Law § 400, every county, city, town, and village is required to appoint a historian to document, preserve, interpret, and share their community’s history. Reach out to them for information on a specific community.

Find a Historian