Elizabeth Hodges, MA, MSLIS, is a genealogist, Irish historian, and former museum educator who serves as Assistant Manager of Genealogy Services at the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana. After receiving her BA in History from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, she pursued a Master’s degree in Irish and Irish American Studies at New York University while working as a museum educator at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, where she helped visitors forge meaningful connections to the stories of immigrants, migrants, and refugees who once called a historic New York City tenement—now the Lower East Side Tenement Museum—home. Upon graduating from NYU, she began working for the New York Public Library in the Lionel Pincus and Princess Firyal Map Division while earning an MSLIS from St. John’s University in New York.
In her role at the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center, Elizabeth has helped countless patrons discover their family stories. In addition to providing reference and research assistance, she supervises staff, supports the Genealogy Center’s public programming, and oversees digital initiatives and preservation projects. She manages the Genealogy Center’s digital Community Album, collaborates on community partnerships and outreach efforts, and presents regularly at local, regional, and national conferences. She has participated in dozens of speaking engagements, including a national panel for the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) on the 1950 Census.
Elizabeth has been active in the leadership of the Indiana Genealogical Society since 2022 and has served as At-Large District Director, Corresponding Secretary, and currently serves as Recording Secretary. Her research specialties include Irish migration and immigration, Louisiana Creole and Cajun research, house history, local history, researching immigrant women, utilizing AI to advance genealogical research, and the preservation and interpretation of community history collections.