How to Find Information on a Business That No Longer Exists
Locate records through the Library of Congress., Locate websites that are no longer online on the Wayback Machine., Find business records for a company in your community.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Locate records through the Library of Congress.
The Library of Congress has compiled an aid to assist researchers in finding information on old businesses.
The guide also includes selected Internet resources relating to business history.
It can be found at https://www.loc.gov/rr/business/ Ask a Library of Congress Librarian.
If you have trouble finding information online, you can submit your question directly to library staff. -
Step 2: Locate websites that are no longer online on the Wayback Machine.
The Wayback Machine is an online archive of more than 200 billion web pages, found at https://archive.org/web/.
If you know the name of the website that the business you're looking for used to use, you can enter it in the search bar to see snapshots of the webpage at previous points in time., You can contact your local newspaper online, or find archived copies at the local library.
Many towns have a local history collection that contains information about business that once operated in the area. -
Step 3: Find business records for a company in your community.
Detailed Guide
The Library of Congress has compiled an aid to assist researchers in finding information on old businesses.
The guide also includes selected Internet resources relating to business history.
It can be found at https://www.loc.gov/rr/business/ Ask a Library of Congress Librarian.
If you have trouble finding information online, you can submit your question directly to library staff.
The Wayback Machine is an online archive of more than 200 billion web pages, found at https://archive.org/web/.
If you know the name of the website that the business you're looking for used to use, you can enter it in the search bar to see snapshots of the webpage at previous points in time., You can contact your local newspaper online, or find archived copies at the local library.
Many towns have a local history collection that contains information about business that once operated in the area.
About the Author
Gary Lewis
Enthusiastic about teaching creative arts techniques through clear, step-by-step guides.
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