Start your research with our collection of premium research databases and online resources to find valuable information on a variety of topics.

Select primary source documents related to critical people and events in African American history.

The College Navigator, from the U.S. Department of Education, provides students and their families with information about colleges and federal financial aid. Provides current data on expenses, financial aid, enrollment, admission, graduation rates, majors and the college selection process.

Learn about the Washington County community's health and wellness. Compare indicators for your community against state averages, county values, and target goals. Discover areas of excellence and improvement in your community all in one convenient platform!

This website provides centralized, one-stop access to Maryland-related historical documents, images, audio, and video for Maryland's public libraries and cultural heritage institutions.

(Free DMV Permit Practice Tests) 

Every person with a driver's license, from a regular commuter to a racecar driver, started exactly where you are right now: worried about passing their permit test. In the past, the only thing you could do was pick up the study manual from the MVA and go over each page until you felt like you had the information memorized. But now, with the entire internet at your fingertips, there's a better way to prepare. Driving-Tests.org gives you the chance to practice in the best way possible: with realistic practice tests, filled with accurate questions, based on the permit manual from Maryland's Motor Vehicle Administration! Includes: 10 car practice tests, 6 motorcycle practice tests, 1 CDL (Commercial Driver’s License) practice test, 2 online driver’s manuals (car and motorcycle), a FAQ section with detailed answers to 100+ DMV-related questions.

There are many free websites online that provide quality health information right at your fingertips. This resource guide lists websites to help you research health info on general health, nutrition, finding a doctor, health insurance, local health-related organizations, professional articles and clinical trials, complementary and alternative medicine, consumer protection, diseases and conditions, and health info for seniors.

Alvin J. Johnson was a publisher of maps and atlases from 1854-1887, under the names A.J. Johnson, Johnson and Browning and Johnson and Ward. His Atlases and the maps of the various states in the United States have become collectible and are avidly sought by collectors and historians alike. Many state maps have been removed from Johnson's Family World Atlases and are collected in this form by collectors. The Johnson U.S. Map Project has created a data set of the changes in Johnson's U.S. and state maps which will allow the user of this website to definitively date the publication of any loose map from these atlases. We also present historical essays on the life of Johnson and his atlases and his relationship with other 19th Century American Atlas publishers, J.H. Colton and Augustus Mitchell.

The Johnson U.S. Map Project represents the work of Dr. Ira S. Lourie. He is a child psychiatrist who has been an avid map collector since 1978 and whose mapping related interests include both the maps of Maryland and the atlases of Alvin J. Johnson. He has presented his work on Johnson and his atlases to the Washington Map Society and has been published in the Map Society’s journal, the Portolan. Dr. Lourie is the sole owner of the Johnson U.S. Map Project database and website. In 2020 Dr. Lourie graciously donated his collection to the Washington County Free Library.

MedlinePlus brings together authoritative information from the National Library of Medicine (NLM), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other government agencies and health-related organizations including journal articles, extensive information about drugs, an illustrated medical encyclopedia, interactive patient tutorials, and the latest health news.

The Rural Heritage Museum's mission is to preserve the past and provide learning opportunities about the rural heritage in Washington County Maryland prior to 1940.

Digital Sanborn Maps, 1867-1970 provides access to more than 660,000 large-scale maps for more than 12,000 American towns and cities. Sanborn fire insurance maps are the most frequently consulted maps in libraries, and are valuable historical tools. In electronic form, Sanborn maps allow users to easily manipulate the maps, magnify and zoom in on specific sections, and layer maps from different years.

Resource guide: Fire Insurance Map Research Guide

2-1-1 Maryland is partnership of four agencies working together to provide simple access to health and human services information. 2-1-1 is an easy to remember telephone number that connects people with important community services. Call specialists answer calls 24 hours a day, every day of the year. The 2-1-1 database has information on nearly 5,000 agencies and programs across the state.

The purpose of this guide is to serve as an introduction to the genealogy resources available through the Washington County Free Library system, including the John Clinton Frye Western Maryland Room.

Allegany, Garrett, and Washington Counties in Western Maryland have a rich and diverse history. View images from the collections of the libraries, historical societies, and individuals in the three counties. There are photographs, newspaper articles, and indexes, rare books and more.