She put the metal box on the table and flipped the latch open with her thumb.

“The public library basement keeps microfiche copies of every vital statistics ledger in the county’s history,” Arlene said.

She stood up and motioned for us to follow her out into the bright afternoon.

We walked two blocks north to the Oak Creek Public Library and went down the narrow stairs to the archive room in the basement.

Arlene unlocked the gray metal cabinet in the corner of the basement, reaching past rows of old newspaper boxes.

Arlene drew a 1990 microfiche roll out of a dusty gray box in the library basement.