Through donations and grants from genealogical societies and State Sen. Harri Anne Smith, the department is now expanding and becoming more technologically advanced.Genealogy and Reference Librarian Jocelyn Ross-Rayford said the Alabama Department of Archives and History has worked with the library to upgrade two Apple computers with printable state archives, as well as federal Census documents and the local Southern Star.
In addition, the library also received a collection of material covering 50 states from the Southeast Alabama Genealogical Society and a filing cabinet for maps through the Chattahoochee Commission.Before the upgrades, Ross-Rayford said residents used microfilm that was purchased by the Dale County Historical Society, but they could not print research because there was no microfilm printer.