Sussex County, Delaware Genealogy

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

Delaware Online Genealogy Records

Description
The County is located in the south area of the state.

County Courthouse

 * County Courthouse
 * Formerly known as Deale County, the name was changed to Sussex on 4 Dec 1682.
 * The Recorder of deeds has land records from 1693.
 * Register of Wills houses the probate records

Record Loss
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Boundary Changes

 * Parent County: Sussex County was created 8 August 1673 from Deale (old) County.
 * County Seat:Georgetown
 * Because of the ongoing boundary disputes between Lord Baltimore of Maryland and William Penn of Pennsylvania, much of Sussex County (excepting a few miles inland from the coast) was also recognized as part of Maryland's Somerset County up through 1760. Both Pennsylvania (and, after 1710, Delaware) and Maryland issued land patents for the area, sometimes in conflict with each other.

The British Crown ordered the dispute to be settled in 1760, and commissioned Charles Mason and Jermiah Dixon to survey the boundary. In 1769, the survey was completed, defining the border between Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvania that exists today.

The border between Sussex and Kent Counties, Delaware was set in 1683 and has not changed since then.


 * For animated maps illustrating Delaware County boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Delaware County Boundary Maps" (1673-1841) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit Hometown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

Bible Records
Wiltbank Family Bible, published in Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 29, p.339, available online at Family Search.

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
Delaware: Enslaved and Free Persons, and Slaveholders is a database of enslaved and free African-Americans extracted from Sussex County, Delaware will books from 1836-1851, with ongoing updates. Slaveholders occasionally provided surnames or exact birthdates in their wills.

Local Histories
Online County Histories


 * Some Records of Sussex County, Delaware. By Charles Henry Black Turner. 1909. Philadelphia : Allen, Lane & Scott. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive, Google Books, Ancestry ($);.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

Civil War

 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection

World War I

 * 1917-1919 - at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection

World War II

 * 1940-1945 - at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1802-1943 - Delaware, Federal Naturalization Records, 1802-1943 at Ancestry.com - index and images ($)
 * 1804-1839, 1907-1959 Delaware, County Naturalization Records at Family Search - free

Newspapers

 * 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)

Probate Records

 * 1680 -1800 Sussex County, Delaware Probate Records, online at Ancestry ($)
 * DeValinger, Leon. A Calendar of Sussex County, Delaware Probate Records, 1680-1800 . Dover, Delaware: Public Archives Commission, 1964.
 * Moore, Marguerite R. indexes for Sussex 1800-1869, three volumes(Westminster, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1995-97.)

Vital Records

 * 1650-1974 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * See also How to order Delaware Vital Records

Birth

 * order electronically online or download an application for Delaware Birth Certificate to mail

Marriage

 * 1784-2007 Delaware, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * Marriage Certificate to mail

Death

 * Death Certificate to mail

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to Family History Centers

Societies, Libraries, and Museums

 * Georgetown Historical Society 510 S. Bedford Street Georgetown, DE 19947 302 855-9660 Email: [mailto:marvelmuseum@gmail.com marvelmuseum@gmail.com] Facebook


 * Laurel Public Library 101 E 4th St Laurel, DE 19956 302 875-3184 Website Facebook


 * Lewes Historical Society 110 Shipcarpenter St. Lewes, DE 302-645-7670 Website


 * Lower Delmarva Genealogical Society  (Kent and Sussex County) Box 3602 Salisbury, Maryland 21802-3602 E-Mail: [mailto:info@ldgs.org info@ldgs.org] Website


 * Sussex County Genealogical Society c/o Rehoboth Beach Public Library 226 Rehoboth Avenue Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971 Email: [mailto:info@scgsdelaware.org info@scgsdelaware.org] Website

Websites

 * Sussex County, DE History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Delaware Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * Delaware Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * The Sussex County DEGenWeb Project, an member of The DEGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Sussex County
 * FamilySearch Catalog for Sussex County
 * Sussex County, Delaware Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Sussex County Genealogy (Delaware Genealogy)
 * Sussex County Delaware History