Douglas County, Nevada Genealogy

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

Description
The county was named for Stephen A. Douglas, famous for his 1860 Presidential campaign debates with Abraham Lincoln. It is located in the northwestern area of the state.

County Courthouse
Douglas County Courthouse1594 Esmeralda Ave, Rm 105 Minden, NV 89423-0218 Phone: 775-782-9014 Douglas County Website County Clerk has marriage, divorce, probate and court records.

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

Boundary Changes

 * Parent County: created 25 November 1861 as an original county
 * County seat: Minden
 * Interactive Formation Boundary Map of Nevada - shows boundary changes for Nevada Counties
 * Nevada Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library

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:

There are no incorporated towns or cities in Douglas County. The following communities are census-designated places, or un-incorporated communities, meaning population and demographic data is available from the U.S. Census Bureau for each one.


 * National Register of Historic Places listings in Douglas County, Nevada

Cemeteries
The following web site has additional information on Douglas county cemeteries.


 * Interment.net Nevada cemetery records by county.

State and Territory Census Records

 * 1850  at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images; Nevada was included in both the 1850 New Mexico and Utah Territory Censuses.
 * 1860  at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images; Nevada was included in both the 1860 New Mexico and Utah Territory Censuses.
 * 1860 Nevada, Compiled Census Index, 1860-1910 at Ancestry ($), index
 * 1862-1863 1862-1863 Nevada Territory Tax List - Index
 * 1875 Nevada State Census, 1875 at Ancestry.com ($), index

Federal Census Records
Federal Censuses were taken for the state of Nevada starting in 1870. Although, those living in south-eastern Nevada in 1870 may be enumerated in Utah or Arizona because of disputed boundaries with Nevada. For links to Federal Census indexes, see Nevada Census.

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Directories

 * 1868-1869 Nevada Directory 1868-1869 at Ancestry ($), index only, includes settlers of Nevada.

Land and Property Records
For more information see Nevada Land and Property
 * 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

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places
 * Interactive Formation Boundary Map of Nevada - shows boundary changes for Nevada Counties
 * Historical Maps and Atlases of Nevada - maps and atlases of Nevada

Migration
Early migration routes to and from Douglas County, Nevada Genealogy for emigrant settlers included:


 * California Trail 1844 to 1869 from western Missouri to northern California
 * Carson (River) Trail 1848 (aka Mormon Emigrant Trail) crossed the Forty Mile Desert past the west side of the Carson Sink to pick up the Carson River near Fallon, Nevada up to Hope Valley and Red Lake. The Devil's Ladder then climbed 700 feet (210 m) in half a mile so ropes, chains, and pulleys were required to lift the wagons. Carson Pass was followed by the relatively easy West Pass (Kirkwood, California) and then on to Pollock Pines, Placerville, and Sutter's Fort, California
 * Johnson's Cutoff 1850-1851 (aka Placerville Route, Lake Tahoe Route and Day's Route) from Carson City, Nevada past the south end of Lake Tahoe going south and then west to Placerville, California and Sacramento
 * Daggett Pass 1850 (aka Georgetown Pack Trail) Carson Valley, Nevada to Johnson's Cutoff near South Lake Tahoe, California
 * Walker River-Sonora Road 1852-1854 from the Carson Trail south to the Walker River along the base of the Sierra Nevada until it ascends to Sonora Pass and then down to Strawberry and Sonora, California


 * Central Overland Trail 1859-1869 from Salt Lake City, Utah to Carson City, Nevada through central Nevada on a route south of the Humboldt River]

Online Collections
These collections are unique to Nevada. You will find nationwide databases for military records on U.S. Military Online Genealogy Records and Nevada Military Records. Civil War World War I World War II Korea War Vietnam War Other Conflicts For further information see Nevada Military Records.
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch — index
 * 1863-1866 Nevada Civil War Volunteers, 1863-1866 ($) at Ancestry — index
 * Nevada - Soldiers of the Great War
 * Nevada Casualties of World War II
 * 1940-1945 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Nevada Military Killed in Action in Korea
 * U.S. Military Fatal Casualties of the Korean War for Nevada
 * Nevada Military Killed in Action in Vietnam
 * The Vietnam Veterans Memorial - Nevada
 * Vietnam Conflict Casualty Lists - Nevada
 * Nevadans Killed in Action - Operation Enduring Freedom & Operation Iraqi Freedom

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1956-1991 Nevada, Naturalization Petitions, 1956-1991 at Ancestry ($), index

Newspapers

 * NewspaperArchive.com ($) has a collection of digitized Reno newspapers going back to 1870. This database is sometimes free at libraries.


 * GenealogyBank ($), contains images of Nevada newspapers
 * Newspaper Archive ($), contains images of Nevada newspapers
 * Chronicling America, contains images of some Nevada newspapers; searching tips
 * Elephind - Free; search engine that retrieves newspaper images from other free newspaper websites
 * 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

Birth

 * 1871-1992 at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1975-2012 Nevada Birth Index 1975-2012 at Ancestry ($)

Marriage

 * 1809-2011 Western States Marriage Index, 1809-2011 - Index, incomplete, list of counties included
 * 1862-1992 at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1956-2005 Nevada Marriage Index 1956-2005 at Ancestry ($)

Death

 * 1871-1992 at FamilySearch — index and images

Divorce

 * 1968-2015 Nevada Divorce Records 1968-2015 at Ancestry ($)

Libraries

 * Douglas County Public Library branches:
 * 1470 Albite Rd Gardnerville, NV 89410 Phone: 775-266-2508
 * 1625 Library Ln Minden, NV 89423 Phone: 775-782-9841

Societies

 * Carson Valley Historical Society Main St P. O. Box 165 Genoa, NV 89411 Phone: 775-782-4235
 * Douglas County Historical Society Carson Valley Museum and Cultural Center 1477 U. S. Highway 395 N, Suite B Gardnerville, NV 8941 Phone: 775-782-2555 Fax: 775-783-8802 Email: [mailto:dchs@HistoricNV.org dchs@HistoricNV.org] Website
 * Nevada State Genealogical Society P.O. Box 20666 Reno, NV 89515-0666 Facebook
 * Clark County Nevada Genealogy Society PO Box 1929 Las Vegas, NV 89125-1929 Website
 * Nevada Historical Society 1650 North Virginia Street Reno, NV 89503 Phone: 775-688-1190 Fax: 775-688-2917 Website
 * Tri-State Genealogical Society For Arizona, California, Nevada PO Box 21902 Bullhead City, AZ 86439 Website

Websites

 * Douglas County NVGenWeb Part of the USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county.
 * Nevada Genealogy Network
 * - 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