Pondera County, Montana Genealogy

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

Description
Pondera County is located in the northwestern part of the state.

County Courthouse
Pondera County Courthouse 20 4th Ave SW Conrad, MT 59425-2340 Phone: 406.278.4000 Pondera County Website County Clerk has birth, death and land records from 1919; Clerk Court has marriage, divorce, probate and court records

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

Boundary Changes
The Montana legislature created Pondera County in 1919 from Chouteau and Teton Counties with Conrad as the county seat. Local lore suggests that Pondera is either the phonetic spelling of the French word “Pend d’Oreille” meaning hanging earring or “pain d’or” meaning golden bread for the color of the native grasses in the area. Wheat production remains the main industry for the county.

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:

Indian Reservation

A small portion of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation is located in Pondera County. The larger part of the Reservation is in Glacier County.

Resources
At FamilySearch

Territory and State Censuses

 * 1860 at FamilySearch Historical Records - How to Use this Collection; index and images; Montana was included in the 1860 Washington and Nebraska Territory Censuses
 * 1870 at FamilySearch Historical Records - How to Use this Collection; index and images; Montana Territory Census
 * 1880 at FamilySearch Historical Records - How to Use this Collection; index and images; Montana Territory Census

Federal Census Records
Federal Censuses were taken for the state of Montana starting in 1890, although no records survived. The 1900 Census is the next Federal Census available. For links to Federal Census indexes, see Montana Census.

Church Records
Online Church Records Lutheran Church
 * 1875-1940 U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Records, 1875-1940 at Ancestry — ($); Index and images; Dates vary for each county

Dutch Reformed Church *1920s-1960s U.S., Dutch Christian Reformed Church Membership Records, 1856-1970 at Ancestry — ($); Index and images; Christian Reformed Church of Conrad, 1920s-1960s List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

County Records

 * 1910 - 1974 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Index and images.

Funeral Homes

 * Pondera Funeral Home in Conrad

Land and Property Records
Online Land Records
 * Land Patent Search - index to federal patents and homesteads on the Bureau of Land Management website, some images available
 * 1796 - 1907 U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907 at Ancestry - index, info taken from Bureau of Land Management website
 * 1863 - 1908 U.S. Homestead Records 1863-1908 at Ancestry.com - ($), index and images
 * 1910 - 1974 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Index and images.

Local Histories

 * Pondera. 1968. n.p.: Pondera History Association. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Ancestry — index & images, ($)

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
 * See an interactive map of Pondera County cemeteries and modern-day townships. (Histopolis)
 * Interactive Formation Boundary Map of Montana - shows boundary changes for Montana Counties
 * Historical Maps and Atlases of Montana - maps and atlases of Montana

Online Collections
These collections are unique to Montana. You will find nationwide databases for military records on U.S. Military Online Genealogy Records and Montana Military Records. Civil War World War I World War II For further information see Montana Military Records.
 * 1890 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1890 - 1918 Montana Military Enlistments at Montana Memory Project
 * 1904 - 1918 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1917 - 1918 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * Soldiers of the Great War from the State of Montana at USGenWeb.
 * Military Enlistments Montana World War I at Montana Memory Project
 * WWII Army and Army Air Force Casualties for Montana - Index only

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1791-1992 U.S. Naturalization Record Indexes, 1791-1992 at Ancestry($), index only
 * 1868-1999 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1870-1999 Montana, Federal Naturalization Records, 1870-1999 at Ancestry($), index only
 * 1913-1945 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Index and images.

Newspapers
 Montana Newspapers Online
 * Chronicling America - contains images of some Montana newspapers; searching tips
 * Elephind - Free; search engine that retrieves newspaper images from other free newspaper websites
 * GenealogyBank - ($), contains images of Montana newspapers
 * Montana Newspapers by the Montana Historical Society
 * Newspaper Archive - ($), contains images of Montana newspapers

Montana Newspaper Catalogs
 * U.S. Newspaper Directory, 1690-Present on Chronicling America - contains a list of all known newspapers and the dates they cover; once you locate a newspaper name, contact the local library to see if they have copies of the newspaper.

Obituaries

 * Obituary Daily Times - large obituary index from newspapers across the United States.

See also United States Obituaries for more about finding United States obituaries.

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1831–1952 Montana Wills and Probate Records 1831-1952 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1910-2012 (*) at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1913-1933 (*); District Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Birth

 * 1840-2004 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1840-2004 Montana, County Births and Deaths, 1840 - 2004 at Ancestry ($) — index
 * 1897-1988 Montana, U.S., Birth Records, 1897-1988 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
 * 1910-1982 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Index and images.

Marriage

 * 1800-1994 Montana, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index $
 * 1865-1950 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1865-1950 Montana, County Marriages, 1865 - 1950 at Ancestry ($) — index
 * 1889-1947 at FamilySearch -  How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1889-1947 Montana Select Marriages 1889 - 1947 at Ancestry ($) — index
 * 1919-1960 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Index and images.
 * 1943-1988 Montana, U.S., Marriage Records, 1943-1988 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
 * Western States Marriage Index - Index, incomplete, list of counties included

Death

 * 1840-2004 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1840-2004 Montana, County Births and Deaths, 1840 - 2004 at Ancestry ($) — index
 * 1860-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1868-2011 Montana, Death Index, 1868 - 2011 at Ancestry ($) — index
 * 1914-2012 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Index and images.
 * pre 1953-2002 Montana State Death Registry Index Pre 1954 & 1954 - 2002 at Montana State Genealogical Society — index
 * 1954-2011 Montana Death Records at Findmypast ($) — index

Divorce

 * 1943-1988 Montana, U.S., Divorce Records, 1943-1988 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)

Voting Records

 * 1884-1992 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Family History Centers

 * Chester Montana Family History Center
 * Choteau Montana Family History Center
 * Conrad Montana Family History Center
 * Cut Bank Montana Family History Center
 * Shelby Montana Family History Center

Libraries
Conrad Public Library 15 4th Ave SW Conrad, Montana 406-271-5751 Email: [mailto:ask@conradlibrary.com ask@conradlibrary.com] Website

Valier Public Library 400 Teton Ave Valier, MT 59486 406-279-3366 Email: [mailto:valierlibrary@gmail.com valierlibrary@gmail.com] Website Facebook

Museums
Conrad Depot Society Train Museum 315 S Front St Conrad, MT 59425

Societies
Pondera History Association Files Website

Websites

 * Pondera County at Cyndi's List — a comprehensive, categorized & cross-referenced list of links that point you to genealogical research sites online
 * Pondera County at Genealogy Trails — volunteer transcriptions of genealogical and historical data
 * Pondera County at Montana USGenWeb - free online resources for genealogical research
 * Pondera County at Montana USGenWeb Archives - free online data for genealogical research
 * Pondera County, Montana at Linkpendium - genealogy and family history
 * Pondera County, Montana Genealogy at LDSGenealogy.com - collection of links by state, county, city, and record type
 * The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection. Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.