Mark Jordan asked:


There are several good sources for genealogy research in York County Pennsylvania, if you don’t mind doing the legwork of hands-on research. The bulk of the information is located around the City of York itself. This article will discuss the physical locations for research, not on-line resources. As in most Pennsylvania counties there is not an overwhelming amount of material in any one place, nor at the county or local libraries. To find more material, once the following resources have been exhausted, research can be done at the Pennsylvania State Library and Pennsylvania Archives, located in Harrisburg, not far from York.

Here are the York County resources and what they contain. The listed Market Street and George Street resources are not far apart, and within walking distance of each other. The first four sources are the most valuable to genealogists who are researching York records.

York County Register of Wills and Clerk of the Orphans’ Court, York County Judicial Center, 45 North George Street, York, PA 17401; 717-771-9607. Hours are 8:00AM to 4:30 PM, Monday-Friday.

They have Probate and Marriage records from 1749.

York County Prothonotary / Clerk of Court of Common Pleas, York County Judicial Center, 45 North George Street, York, PA 17401; 717-771-9611. Hours are 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM, Monday-Friday.

They have Court Records from 1749, including unpaid debt complaints, malpractice actions, mortgage foreclosures, personal injury cases, equity actions, district justice civil judgment appeals, license suspension appeals, administrative agency appeals, condemnation proceedings, family court matters such as divorce, child custody and protection from abuse cases and Liens against real estate and personal property.

York County Recorder of Deeds, Administrative Center, 28 East Market St., York, PA 17401-1590; 717-771-9644. Hours are 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, Monday-Friday.

They have Land Records from 1749 and some other records, including Deeds, mortgages, releases, easements (rights-of-way), subdivisions, restrictions, Notary Bonds and Commissions, Military Service Discharges, public and elected county officers.

York County Heritage Trust / York County Historical Society, 250 East Market St., York, PA 17401; 717-848-1587. Hours are 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Tuesday-Saturday. These two organizations have combined. They have over 7500 Surname Files, containing clippings of weddings, obituaries and engagements, short genealogies, family group and pedigree sheets and copies of documents and photos. Each Surname File has five index cards which include abstracts from church records, cemetery records, Will books, pre-1800 tax records, and some other sources. The have a large library of published family books, published indexes, local and church histories and back issues of genealogy publications.

York County Archives, 105 Pleasant Acres Road, York, PA 17402; 717-840-7224. Hours are 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

They have some duplicate information available also at the above locations. They have Estate Files, Marriage Records, Naturalization Records, Tax Records, Birth Records, Bond Books, Clerk of Court Dockets, Death Records and many more records.

York County Library System. There are many local libraries in York County but most have very little genealogy information. Some may have local history information or newspapers on microfilm. Several have uncataloged items, so call ahead to found out. Two of the better libraries to check out are:

• Martin Library, 159 East Market Street, York, PA 17401; 717-846-5300. Hours vary, call ahead.

• Guthrie Memorial Library, 2 Library Place, Hanover, PA 17331; 717-632-5183. Hours vary, call ahead. They have a Pennsylvanian Reading Room, for genealogy, with Hanover and York newspapers 1815-present, on microfilm, as well as area tax lists 1818-1849, Sanborn insurance maps 1886-1949, York County Will Index 1749-1940, and York County Census records from 1790-1930, including 1890.

LDS Family History Center, 2100 Hollywood Drive, York, PA; 717-846-4539.

Hours are M, W, Th 9AM-1PM, T, W 7PM to 9PM, Th 5:30PM-8PM, Sat 9AM-3PM.

Closed Tuesday morning at this time. Not a lot there yet, but growing. It’s worth checking out if you are near. They have access to all LDS software, family files, reference books, old documents on microfilm, etc.



Wilma

Brian Williams asked:


Birth records are maintained by the vital records department or by the country registrar. These records along with other records such as death records, marriage and divorce records form a part of vital records. These records are public records and can be accessed by any person who shows interest in viewing them.

Birth records for Genealogy

A genealogy search is conducted by an individual who is interested in developing a family tree and to know more about his or her lineage and their ancestors. A genealogy search is performed using public records such as the vital records and includes birth records, marriage records, divorce records and death records.

Birth records contain valuable information about a person as it carries information about the person’s date of birth, the names of the parents, their address. It also has some other relevant information that can also be of use in the genealogical search and may include details such as the race, occupation of the parents, sibling details, details about the social security numbers of the parents, the county where the birth took place, etc.

Such relevant details are of vital importance when you are conducting a genealogical search. But, not all birth records carry so much information in them. In earlier times, a birth record was not handled by any governmental agency and was under the discretion of people like priests, doctors or a town clerk to make one. As there were no guidelines for these people to complete a birth record, it may not contain all the relevant information that is now followed while making a birth record.

Another hitch while searching a public record like the birth record may be that the record might have got destroyed due to some natural calamity like floods, storms, etc or due to some accidents such as a fire. While these days, data is backed up to prevent loss there were no such systems in place in the earlier times.

While conducting a genealogy search by accessing records such as birth records and other vital records, you can pay a visit to the local vital records department that maintains these records and request them for the information or you can make an online search through various websites that offer the facilities of making such a search possible.

Making an online search is a much easier option as it saves a lot on time taken to visit the records department, especially when you need to make multiple searches on different people born in different counties or states.

Remember, it is not always an easy path for you if you are intending to make a genealogical search. Tap all avenues such as vital records and whatever other source that is available to you. The more the information you can generate, better will be your success in your endeavor of knowing your ancestors much better.



Anna

Shakora Malik asked:


With hundreds of genealogy charts, websites, computer programs, databases and subscription services, it can be intimidating to know where and how to begin a genealogy search. There are sites online that provide birth, marriage and death records and you can fill in the gaps with census records, military records, county records and cemeteries. But where does one begin?

Follow these tips to get a head start on your family’s history search.

1. Collect what you have

Before you leap into the mass of information available, collect and organize the information you have. This includes birth and marriage certificates, wills, maiden names, burial records and baptismal certificates.

2. Contact your current relatives

Once you have some information, contact your relatives and ask for any documents or helpful information that they may be able to provide. Do they have copies of birth certificates? Do they have contact information or knowledge of any family legends?

To obtain birth certificates, marriage records and death certificates, you need to know the mother’s Maiden name and the county in which the event took place. If you do not have this information, ask your relatives. Below are some documents that may be useful to your research:

Documents that your relatives may have:

- Birth, death or marriage records

- Journals or diaries

- Family photo albums or bibles

Remember to contact both your close relatives as well as your distant relatives. Another relative may have already started a genealogy search and then given up–you might find a relative who is eager to help you with your family history search.

3.  Begin the search!

You can find information online through a variety of websites. There are family history websites and genealogical websites dedicated to family history, many of which are subscription-based services. Expect to spend thirty or forty dollars on these services. You may also want to look at websites that offer public record information online for a nominal fee.

Records that may be available online:

- Census records

- Military records

- Hospital records

- Wills and deeds

- Emigration and immigration records

- Tip: Many databases online require a payment for their services. Before you pay to use any service, do a quick online research to make sure the company is reputable and safe.

University and state libraries are also great resources, as are family history libraries. You may be able to find relevant newspaper articles, history books that trace migrations, microfilms or records at these locations.

When conducting a family history search online or in the library, it is useful to know the full name of any deceased relatives, as well as the county and state where they are buried. Of course, this information may not be available at your fingertips. Remember, don’t get discouraged! Conducting a family history search can be time-consuming, but overall it can be a very valuable and rewarding experience. Don’t be afraid to ask for help from your local librarian or your relatives. They will likely be more than willing and happy to help. If you stumble on an aspect of your search, you can also turn to the internet–there are many discussion groups online that focus on genealogy.



Judith

Laica Baker asked:


Genealogy researchers are some of the people that seek access to many different kinds of public records in a regular basis since these legal documents contain a lot of details that could be useful as they conduct their research and as they do their best to fill in the blank spaces that are in their pedigree chart.

Public records, especially those that are categorized under vital records (such as the birth records, marriage records, death records, and divorce records) are some of the most frequently used records by these genealogists since they contain a lot of details that are very helpful for going further in their research such as the full legal name of a person, the birth date, the place where a certain person was born, the name of the parents along with the name of the siblings, if there are any. In addition, these public records also contain some information like the name of the person’s spouse, the place where the marriage took place and much, much more.  

In short, that means that getting one public record alone will help any family history researcher to get more details and more clues about who to search the next time around. For example, if you will be able to get the birth record of you grandfather, you will be able to get a lot of significant names, places and dates in that record alone and that could be useful for helping you find more details bout your great grandparents too. 

Doing genealogy (or family history, as it is commonly called) is really an easy thing to do if you could access these public records. Especially since there are already a lot of online public records provider in our times, any person from all walks of life can indeed conduct these researches without going through a lot of difficulties like how it was in the past.

Several years ago, genealogy was a dreaded activity for most people since it involved going to different offices, searching details from public libraries, visiting cemeteries, writing far-flung relatives, traveling far places and a whole lot more. 

These days, you could simply stay at home and do your search in your most convenient time.  Besides, most public records are just a click away so completing your genealogy isn’t as hard as it used to be anymore.

For more information about this article try to visit Public Records



Mark