Garland County, Arkansas Genealogy

United States Arkansas  Garland County

Guide to Garland County, Arkansas ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

County Courthouse
Garland County Courthouse 501 Ouachita Avenue Hot Springs, AR 71901 Phone: 501.622.3610 County Clerk has marriage and probate records. Clerk Circuit Court has divorce, court and land records

Parent County

 * 1873--Garland County was created 5 April 1873 from Saline County. County seat: Hot Springs

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Arkansas county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Arkansas County Boundary Maps" (1813-1925) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Record Loss
1905 On February 25, 1905 a fire damaged or destroyed everything except tax books of 1904. Some records have been reconstructed as much as possible, particularly deed and mortgage books.

Neighboring Counties
Hot Spring •  Montgomery  •  Perry  •  Saline  •  Yell

History Timeline
Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were taken from the Garland County page on the website, The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture.


 * 1682-1762 - France claimed all of Arkansas.
 * 1762 - France ceded Louisiana (including the area that became Garland County) to Spain.
 * 1803 April 30 - Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte and U.S. President Thomas Jefferson agreed on the Louisiana Purchase. For about three cents an acre, the future Garland County became part of a U.S. territory.
 * 1818 August 24 - The Quapaw ceded the land around Hot Springs to the United States.
 * 1860-1865 - The county was never occupied by Union troops, but almost the entire population fled to Texas and Louisiana. The citizens feared not only the soldiers but the renegade bands that would terrorize and destroy much of the county.
 * 1873-1900 - Tremendous change occurred in the county.

Episcopal

 * 1878-1942 - St. Lukes Episcopal Church, Hot Spring, Baptism Index 1878-1942. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1878-1895 - St. Lukes Episcopal Church, Hot Spring, Marriage Index 1878-1895. Batch at FamilySearch - free.

Methodist

 * 1874-1887 - First Methodist Church Baptism Index 1874-1887. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1876-1884 - First Methodist Church Marriage Index 1876-1884. Batch at FamilySearch - free.

Local Histories

 * Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Pulaski, Jefferson, Lonoke, Faulkner, Grant, Saline, Perry, Garland, and Hot Spring Counties, Arkansas. Chicago, Nashville, and St. Louis, USA: Goodspeed Publishing, 1889. Online at: Ancestry.com ($)

Maps

 * Maps of Arkansas (1813-1925)
 * Family Maps of (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.

Civil War

 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1901-1929 - at FamilySearch — images only

Probate Records
Online Probate Records
 * 1783 – 1998 Arkansas Wills and Probate Records 1783-1998 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1817 – 1979 at FamilySearch — images
 * Probate Records 1877-1927 Garland County portion of the collection: : Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-19799 FamilySearch Historical Collections (Free, browse images)
 * Includes Probate records 1877-1890; Wills 1890-1927.

Vital Records
See also How to order Arkansas Vital Records

Marriage

 * 1874-1931 - Garland County Marriage Books A, C, I-K, M-Z, 2-4, 28-61 Index 1874-1931 in at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1874-1921 - Garland County Marriage Books A-C, I-K, M-Z, 2-4 Index 1874-1921 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.

Genealogy Societies and Libraries

 * List of Arkansas Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical & Genealogical Societies

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers