Genesee County, New York Genealogy

United States New York  Genesee

Historical Facts

 * Its name is from the Seneca Indian word Gen-nis'-hee-yo meaning "The Beautiful Valley."
 * County Historian Engine House 3 West Main Street Batavia, NY 14020 Ph: (585) 344-2550 ext 2613

Parent County

 * Created 30 March 1802 from Ontario County.

Boundary Changes

 * over the years parts were set off to create these counties:
 * 7 April 1806 Allegany
 * 11 March 1808 Cattaraugus
 * 11 March 1808 Chautauqua
 * 11 March 1818 Niagara
 * 23 February 1821 Livingston
 * 23 February 1821 Monroe
 * 11 November 1824 Orleans
 * 14 May 1841 Wyoming

Record Loss

 * Lost census: 1890

Cemeteries
Volunteers have spent many hours transcribing cemetery markers, which often give not only birth and death dates, but family relationships. Here are several links to transcriptions:

USGenWeb List of Transcriptions for Genesee Cemeteries

Google Search of BettysGenealogy.org

Migration
Early migration routes to and from Genesee County for European settlers included:


 * Mohawk or Iroquois Trail (west fork) about 1722
 * Great Genesee Road 1794
 * Erie Canal 1825

Military
Civil War service men in Wyoming County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county.

See: 129th Regiment, New York Infantry, 138th Regiment, New York Infantry ,151st Regiment, New York Infantry

Newspapers
Newspapers can be a rich source of genealogical information. Obituaries provide death and burial information, and often give names of immediate and extended family, including maiden and/or married names of women. Marriage announcements provide maiden names and often mention other family members as well. Information was not always carefully checked before publication, so it should be validated using other sources.

A searchable index to selected articles from the Batavia Daily News (covering approximately the mid-1800s to mid-1900s) is available at userdb.rootsweb.ancestry.com/news/. Included are instructions for requesting copies from the Genesee County Historical Society.

The Le Roy Gazette is available on Ancestry.com at http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=50002. Fees may apply. According to the site, the date range runs from 1826 through 1993, though not all years are available.

|Societies, Libraries and Museums
Genesee Area Genealogy Society

Websites

 * The Genesee County NYGenWeb Project, an member of The NYGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Genesee County.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Genesee County. (Mirror site)
 * Family History Library catalog for Genesee County