Benton County, Washington Genealogy

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

Description
Benton County was named for U.S. Senator from Missouri (1821–51) and later U.S. Representative (1853–55) Thomas Hart Benton. The county is located in the south-central area of the state.

Eastern Benton County is dominated by the Tri-City Metropolitan Area. . The area has been a gathering place from prehistoric times because of the intersection of three major rivers. Any resident in or near the confluence of the rivers may have records in Benton, Franklin or Walla Walla county.

County Courthouse
Benton County Courthouse 7122 W Okanogan Place Ste A110 Kennewick, WA 99336 Phone: 509-735-8476 Benton County Courthouse

County Auditor has birth records 1905-1907, and marriage records from 1905. County Clerk has divorce, probate and court records. County Assessor has land records.

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:

History Timeline
Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were gleaned from Elizabeth Gibson. Benton County -- Thumbnail History, HistoryLink.
 * 1803 The first inhabitants were the, Umatillas, Klickitats, and Wallulas.
 * 1853 March 2, U.S. President Millard Fillmore establishes.
 * 1858 A gold rush to British Columbia brought the first influx of white people, as rushers traveled through on their way north.
 * 1880 Steamboats and railroads connected what would become known as Kennewick to the other settlements along the Columbia River.
 * 1880 and earlier - Benton County has very little rainfall, and some farmers had been successful at dryland farming.
 * 1890 Irrigation came to the county and brought many changes.
 * 1905 March 6, Washington State Legislature creates Benton County (out of Klickitat).
 * 1942 The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Manhattan District, surveyed the northern part of the county for a secret government project.
 * 1943 All residents in the town sites of Hanford, White Bluffs, and [Old] Richland and the rural communities in northern Benton County were evacuated. Shortly thereafter, the began.

Business, Commerce, and Occupations

 * 1905-1983 Benton County Auditor, Dental Certificates, 1905-1983 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1992-2023 Benton County Auditor, Professional License Records, 1992-2023 at Washington State Archives - index and images

Cemeteries

 * Many of the graves in the White Bluff Cemetery were moved to Prosser Cemetery (a few moved to Richland or Kennewick). The graves were moved on very short notice by the family members then present. All remaining graves have no record whatever, and are completely unreachable.

Census Records

 * 1803-2010 Washington, County Records, 1803-2010 at FamilySearch
 * 1850-1914 Web: Washington, U.S., Various County Census Records, 1850-1914 at Ancestry (Free)
 * Census indexes at Washington State Archives

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Directories

 * 1911-1916 R. L. Polk & Co., Benton, Franklin, and Klickitat Counties Directory, 1911-1916 at Washington State Archives - index and images

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
American Indians
 * 1911-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Japanese
 * 1942-1946 Public Welfare/Social Security Department, Evacuee (Japanese) Referrals for Resettlement and Assistance, 1945-1946 at Washington State Archives - index and images; Assistance Cases, Evacuee Referrals for Resettlement and Assistance, 1945-1946

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records
 * 1906-2023 Benton County Auditor, Plats and Surveys, 1906-2023 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1938-2023 Benton County Auditor, Recorded Land Records, 1938-2023 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * County Recorder's Office: check deeds, file mining claims, get assistance in finding ownership of a particular property, and obtain copies of county plat maps, 1878-present (prior records having been destroyed in a fire).

Local Histories

 * History of the Yakima Valley, Washington : comprising Yakima, Kittitas and Benton counties. By W. D. Lyman. [Washington (State)?] : S.J. Clarke, 1919. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * 1885-1907 Military Department, National Guard Enlistment Register, 1885-1907 at Washington State Archives - index and images

Indian Wars
 * 1855-1856 Military Department, Indian War Muster Rolls, 1855-1856 at Washington State Archives - index and images

World War I
 * 1921-1925 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

World War II
 * World War II enlistments of Benton County, Washington residents. This is a partial list. The NARA website cautions: "This series does not contain records of all World War II Army enlistees."

Japanese
 * 1942-1946 Public Welfare/Social Security Department, Evacuee (Japanese) Referrals for Resettlement and Assistance, 1945-1946 at Washington State Archives - index and images; Assistance Cases, Evacuee Referrals for Resettlement and Assistance, 1945-1946

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1803-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images only
 * 1905-1954 Benton County Clerk, Naturalization Records, 1905-1954 at Washington State Archives - index and images

Newspapers

 * 1855-2009 Washington Newspapers, 1855-2009 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
 * Benton County, Washington Newspapers (Sortable by towns, years, and titles)
 * Washington Digital Newspaper at Washington State Library

Other Records
Public Records
 * Prior to 1965 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images only
 * 1803-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images only: Includes petitions for roads, courthouse removal, other civl matters and also includes single mothers trying to qualify for welfare support.

Periodicals

 * Washington Periodicals

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1803-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images only. Includes: collection of various records including vital, probate, school, tax, naturalization and other records.
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

School Records
Online School Indexes and Records


 * 1803-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images only. Includes collection of various records including vital, probate, school, tax, naturalization and other records.
 * 1910-1926 Benton County Historical School Districts, Registers and Censuses, 1910-1926 at Washington State Archives - index and 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
 * 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Vital Records

 * 1803-2010 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images only. Includes collection of various records including vital, probate, school, tax, naturalization and other records.

Birth

 * 1852-1963 Washington, Births at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
 * 1871-1921 Department of Health, Delayed Birth Records at Washington State Archives - index and images; includes some earlier and later dates
 * 1873-1965 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1905-1907 Benton County Auditor, Birth Returns, 1905-1907 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1905-1907 Benton County Auditor, Birth Register, 1905-1907 at Washington State Archives - index and images

Marriage

 * 1801-1962 Washington, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index ($)
 * 1855-2008 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1905-1995 Benton County Auditor, Marriage Certificates, 1905-1995 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1909-1939 Benton County Auditor, Marriage Affidavits, 1909-1939 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1939-1949, 1952-1953, 1977-1980 Benton County Auditor, Marriage License Applications, 1939-1949, 1952-1953, 1977-1980 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1968-1997 Department of Health, Marriage Certificates, 1968-1997 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1969-2014 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Includes Marriage license applications 1939-1980, certificates 1905-2008, license index 1906-1926; Marriage affidavits 1905-1922.
 * 1969-2022 Department of Health, Marriage Index, 1969-2022 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1987-Present Benton County Auditor, Marriage Records, 1987-Present at Washington State Archives - index and images

Death

 * 1881-1979 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1907-1960 Washington, Death Certificates, 1907-1960 at MyHeritage — index ($)
 * 1907-1960 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1907-1997 Department of Health, Death Certificates, July 1, 1907-1997 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1907-2020 Department of Health, Death Index, 1907-1960; 1965-2020 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1915-1928 Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, Fatal Accident Cards, 1915-1928 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1919-1921 Department of Health, Fetal Death Records, 1919-1921 at Washington State Archives - index and images

Divorce

 * 1968-1997 Department of Health, Divorce Certificates, 1968-1997 at Washington State Archives - index and images
 * 1969-2014 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1969-2017 Department of Health, Divorce Index, 1969-2017 at Washington State Archives - index and images

FamilySearch Centers

 * Kennewick Washington FamilySearch Center
 * Prosser Washington FamilySearch Center
 * Richland Washington FamilySearch Center
 * West Richland Washington FamilySearch Center

Libraries
Resources for Benton County are available in libraries, archives, and other repositories at all levels: the town, the county, the state (including universities), and the nation.


 * Mid-Columbia Public Libraries
 * Branches and Locations
 * Genealogy Research Tools
 * Special or unique collections: collections of genealogical value are available from 1800s to the present.

Museums
East Benton County Historical Museum 205 Keewaydin Drive Kennewick, WA 99336-0602 Phone: 509-582-7704 Email: [mailto:ebchs@frontier.com ebchs@frontier.com] Website The Reach Museum 1943 Columbia Park Trail Richland, WA 99353 Phone: 509-943-4100 Website

Societies
East Benton County Historical Society & Museum 205 West Keewaydin Drive Kennewick, WA 99336 Phone: 509-582-7704 Website Facebook Tri-City Genealogical Society PO Box 1410 1314 Jadwin Ave Richland, WA 99352-1410 Website

Websites

 * Benton County Washington Genealogy Research. Free Contains information for researching genealogy in Benton County WA, Census, bios, obituary, birth, death, marriage, maps, and other records
 * The Benton County WAGenWeb Project
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project
 * Washington State Digital Archives
 * Websites at RootsWeb - Benton WA
 * Tri-City Genealogical Society
 * – 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.