• The Rhodes Room has officially moved to a newly renovated area! Please drop by and visit the Rhodes Room Staff, and see the new room!
• It is spacious, bright and cheerful with plenty of room to work.
• Two brand new Minolta microfilm/fiche readers connected to a laser jet printer help make reading microfilm a little more fun!
• Take a virtual tour of the new Rhodes Room and see how it developed from the planning stages to completion.

The focus of the Evelyn D. Rhodes Genealogy and Local History Room centers on the Catawba Valley of Piedmont North Carolina.

The Rhodes Room web site is supported with federal Library Service and Technology Act (LSTA) funds made possible through a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources through the North Carolina ECHO, 'Exploring Cultural Heritage Online' Digitization Grant Program.

Catawba County, which was formed in 1842, is an important cultural and historic area into which many early Germans, Scotch-Irish and English emigrants settled.  Some of their descendants are still living in Catawba County today, while others stayed for only a few generations; moving onward to settle elsewhere in North Carolina or in other states such as Tennessee, Kentucky, and Missouri.

The Evelyn D. Rhodes Room collection consists of approximately 6,000 volumes relating to genealogy and history.  While the main focus is on the compilation of information and materials about the people and history of Catawba County, the collection does include records from the surrounding counties, and materials that can aid a researcher in tracing ancestors before their arrival in North Carolina. Materials containing genealogical information from Pennsylvania, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee are a valuable part of the collection.

The Rhodes Room is staffed during the hours below.  Don't hesitate to ask for assistance. We are here to help!

Tuesday- Saturday : 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Sunday & Monday: closed

If you have any questions you can contact us at afloyd@catawbacountync.gov or:

The Rhodes Room

Local and Family History Department

115 W. C. Street

Newton, NC 28658                Phone: 828-465-8669          Fax: 828-465-8293

Click here for a few of the resources available in the Rhodes Room.