Clarke County, Georgia Genealogy

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

Description
The County was named for Elijah Clarke. The County is located in the northeastern area of the state.

County Courthouse
Clarke County Courthouse 325 E Washington Street, Rm 200 PO Box 1868 Athens, GA 30601 Phone: 706-613-3031 Clarke County Website Clerk Superior Court has divorce, land and court records from 1801 and military records from 1922. County Health Department has birth and death records from 1919. Probate Court had marriage and probate records from 1801.

Populated Places
In 1991 the original City of Athens abandoned its charter to form a unified government with Clarke County, referred to jointly as Athens–Clarke County. Virtually the entire county is made up of the city of Athens and the University of Georgia. Its county seat is Athens, with which it is a consolidated city-county.

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
Bible Records of Clarke County, GA at USGenWeb Archives

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Methodist Episcopal First Methodist Episcopal Church, Athens


 * 1825-1884 First Methodist Episcopal Church, Athens, Baptism Index 1825-1884. Batch  at FamilySearch.
 * 1825-1884 First Methodist Episcopal Church, Athens, Marriage Index 1825-1884. Batch  at FamilySearch.

Methodist Episcopal Church South, Winterville


 * 1890-1895 Methodist Episcopal Church South, Winterville, Baptism Index 1890-1895. Batch  at FamilySearch.
 * 1890-1895 Methodist Episcopal Church South, Winterville, Marriage Index 1890-1895. Batch  at FamilySearch.

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African American


 * African American Experience in Athens explores the experience of African Americas at the University of Georgia and city of Athens, created by the University of Georgia.

Land and Property Records

 * 1735-1866 Georgian Colonial and Headright Plat Index, 1735-1866 at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault - alpha index
 * 1783-1909 Headright and Bounty Plats, 1783-1909 at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault - images with alpha index
 * 1805-1833 District Plats of Survey at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault - images organized by county and district
 * Colonial Plats and Warrants at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault - images with alpha index
 * Index to Deed Book A 1802-1804 Georgia Pioneers ($)

Local Histories

 * History of Athens and Clarke County. Athens, Ga.?: H.J. Rowe, 1923. Digital version at Ancestry ($)
 * Hull, Augustus Longstreet. Annals of Athens, Georgia, 1801-1901. Athens, Ga.?: Banner Job Office, 1906, c1907. Digital version at Ancestry ($) or for free at Google Books

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
 * Maps of Georgia (1758-1932)
 * 1740s-? Historic Map File at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault - images
 * 1866 - 1935 County Map File at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault - images
 * Historical Maps from Hargrett Rare Book &amp; Manuscript Library, Univ. of Georgia Libraries
 * Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps from the Digital Library of Georgia. Most Georgia towns and cities up to 1923. Athens maps for years 1885 and 1893.

Military Records

 * Georgia USGenWeb Archives Project

Civil War 

Online Records


 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch — index — How to Use this Collection
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch — index — How to Use this Collection
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry— index (free)
 * 1861-1865 Confederate Enlistment Oaths and Discharges at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault- images and alphabetical index
 * 1861-1865 Confederate Muster Rolls at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault- images; filter by commanding officer, service branch and regiment
 * 1861-1865 Confederate Pension Application Supplements - images and alphabetical index; filter by county
 * 1864 Militia Enrollment Lists, 1864 - images; filter by county
 * 1867-1868  at FamilySearch — index — How to Use this Collection
 * 1879-1920  at FamilySearch — index — How to Use this Collection
 * 1879-1960 Confederate Pension Applications - images and alphabetical index; filter by county


 * - Carlton's Company, Georgia Artillery (Troup Artillery) (Confederate)
 * - 3rd Battalion, Georgia Infantry (Confederate) Companies K and L
 * - 5th Regiment, Georgia Infantry (Confederate), Company N
 * -37th Regiment, Georgia Infantry (Confederate), Company E
 * - 44th Regiment, Georgia Infantry (Confederate) Company C
 * - 66th Regiment, Georgia Infantry (Confederate), Company I


 * Jones, Charles C., and Joseph B. Cuimming. 1993. Military operations in Georgia during the War between the States: address delivered before the Confederate Survivors Association in Augusta, Georgia upon the occasion of its fifteenth annual reunion on Memorial Day, April 26th, 1893. Conway, Arkansas: Olbuck Press.
 * Stegeman, John F. 1964. These Men She Gave: Civil War Diary of Athens, Georgia. Athens, Ga: University of Georgia Press. (page 146-158)
 * Georgia. Inferior Court (Clarke County). 1960. Bonds to support families of Confederate soldiers 1861-1869, and discharge certificates of Confederate soldiers 1864 [Clarke County, Georgia]. Salt Lake City, Utah: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah.
 * Mitchell, Albert L. 1960. Roster of companies furnished by Clarke County, Georgia, to the Confederate Army in the War between the States, 1861-1865. [S.l.]: Mann Film Laboratories.

Spanish-American War
 * 1898 Spanish-American War Service Summary Cards - images and alphabetical index; filter by residence, muster location and unit

World War I World War II
 * 1914-1918 World War I Casualties Scrapbooks - images and alphabetical index
 * 1920-1929 at FamilySearch — index and images — How to Use this Collection
 * 1940-1942 Georgia World War II Draft Registration Cards 1940-1942 at findmypast - index ($))

Newspapers

 * 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
 * Athens Historic Newspaper Archives - Digital Library of Georgia contains full-text issues of 5 historic Athens newspapers. Titles include Athenian (1827-1832), Southern Banner (1832-1882), Southern Watchman (1855-1882),Daily/Weekly Banner-Watchman (1882-1889), Daily/Weekly Athens Banner (1889-1922). Search or Browse available. Viewing papers requires download of free DjVu Browser Plug-in.
 * Georgia Historic Newspapers at Digital Library of Georgia

Other Records
Paupers and Chain Gangs 


 * 1883-1886 Georgia Pioneers ($)

Voting Records 


 * 1867-1868  at FamilySearch — index — How to Use this Collection

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records


 * 1733-1753 Colonial Wills at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault - images with alpha index
 * 1742-1990 (*) at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1742-1992 Georgia Wills and Probate Records 1742-1992 at Ancestry — index and images ($)
 * 1754-1776 Colonial Will Books at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault - images with alpha index
 * 1797-1949 (*); Georgia. Probate Court (Clarke County) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1797-1949 Index to Unbound Estates 1797-1949 Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1799-1819 Index to Mixed Estates 1799-1819 Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1799-1830 Index to Mixed Estates 1799-1830 Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1799-1956 (*); Georgia. Court of Ordinary (Clarke County) at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1802-1911 (*); Georgia. Court of Ordinary (Clarke County) at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1803-1822 Index to Will Bk C 1803-1822 Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1803-1842 Wills (1803-1842) (abstracts) Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1805-1821 (*); Georgia. Court of Ordinary (Clarke County) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1811-1949 (*); Georgia. Inferior Court (Clarke County) at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1822-1842 Index to Will Bk C 1822-1842 Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1825-1868 (*); Georgia. Inferior Court (Clarke County) at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1842-1859 Wills 1842-1859 (digital images) Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1847-1957 (*); Georgia. Court of Ordinary (Clarke County) at FamilySearch Catalog — partial and images
 * 1859-1885 Index to Will Bk D 1859-1885 Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1876-1924 (*); Georgia. Court of Ordinary (Clarke County) at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1881-1925 (*); Georgia. Court of Ordinary (Clarke County) at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images
 * 1885-1911 Index to Will Bk E 1885-1911 Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * Athens-Clarke County Probate Court Genealogical links and resources.
 * 1827-1835 Images of Estates, Inventories, Orphans. Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1835-1845 Images of Estates, Inventories, Orphans. Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * (*); at FamilySearch Catalog — partial 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. — How to Use this Collection
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records

 * 1802, 1805, 1810 Tax Digest (digital) Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1802, 1803, 1804, 1805, 1810, 1815 (images of all districts). Georgia Pioneers  ($)
 * 1787-1900 at FamilySearch — How to use this collection, index and images

Birth

 * 1808-1851 Clarke County Birth Index 1808-1851. Batch  at FamilySearch
 * 1870-1960  at FamilySearch — index, and some images — How to Use this Collection

Marriage

 * 1560-1993 Georgia, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 1699-1944 Georgia Marriages 1699-1944 at Ancestry— index ($)
 * 1754-1960  at FamilySearch — index and images — How to Use this Collection
 * 1785-1950  at FamilySearch — index and images — How to Use this Collection
 * 1787-1962  at FamilySearch — index — How to Use this Collection
 * 1805-1852 - Clarke County Marriage Books A thru D Index 1805-1852. Batch at FamilySearch
 * 1808 - Clarke County Marriage Index 1808. Batch at FamilySearch
 * 1808-1967  at FamilySearch — index — How to Use this Collection
 * 1828-1978 Georgia Marriage Records from Select Counties 1828-1978 at Ancestry — index and images ($)
 * 1846-1872 Clarke County Marriage Books D and E Index 1846-1872. Batch  at FamilySearch
 * 1871-1885 Clarke County Marriage Books F thru H Index 1871-1885. Batch  at FamilySearch
 * 1885-1886 Marriages from Newspapers 1885-1886 Georgia Pioneers ($)
 * 1886-1890 Clarke County Marriage Books F thru H Index 1886-1890. Batch  at FamilySearch
 * 1890-1901 Clarke County Marriage Books I and J Index 1890-1901. Batch  at FamilySearch
 * 1807-1820; 1805-1821 (index); 1815-1821 (index); License (Index) 1821-1838; License (Index) 1838-1867; 1885-1886 (from newspapers). Georgia Pioneers ($)

Death

 * 1870-1960  at FamilySearch — index, and some images — How to Use this Collection
 * 1914-1927  at FamilySearch — index and images — How to Use this Collection
 * 1919-1998 Georgia Deaths 1919-1998 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1919-1930 Georgia Death Certificates at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault - index and images
 * 1928-1930 Georgia Non-Indexed Death Certificates at Georgia Archives Virtual Vault - images
 * 1928-1942  at FamilySearch — index and images — How to Use this Collection
 * 1933-1998  at FamilySearch — index — How to Use this Collection

Voter Records

 * 1856-1941 at FamilySearch — How to use this collection, index and images

Family History Centers

 * Athens Georgia Family History Center

Libraries

 * Athens-Clarke County Library Heritage Room Website
 * University of Georgia Library Website

Societies
Athens-Clarke Heritage Fountain, Inc. 489 Prince Ave Athens, GA 30601 Phone: 706-353-1801 Athens-Clarke Heritage Fountain, Inc. Website Athens Library

First African Methodist Episcopal Church 521 N Hull Street Athens, GA 30601 Phone: 706-548-1454 First African Methodist Episcopal Church Website First AME Church Facebook

Clarke-Oconee Genealogical Society PO Box 6403 Athens, GA 30604 Phone: 770-720-5970 Email: [mailto:cogsgenealogy@gmail.com cogsgenealogy@gmail.com] Clarke-Oconee Genealogical Society Website

T.R.R. Cobb House 175 Hill Street Athens, GA 30601 Phone: 706-369-3513 Email: [mailto:sthomas@trrcobbhouse.org sthomas@trrcobbhouse.org] Thomas Reade Rootes Cobb House Website

Websites

 * Georgia Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * Clarke County, GAGenWeb - free genealogy resources; part of the national USGenWeb Project
 * GAGenWeb Archives
 * Clarke County, Georgia Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Digital Library of Georgia - Digital Library of Georgia contains is a gateway to Georgia's history and culture found in digitized books, manuscripts, photographs, government documents, newspapers, maps, audio, video, and other resources. The Digital Library of Georgia connects users to a million digital objects in more than 200 collections from 60 institutions and 100 government agencies. Though this represents only a fraction of Georgia's cultural treasures, the Digital Library of Georgia continues to grow through its partnerships with libraries, archives, museums, government agencies, and allied organizations across the state. Viewing requires download of free DjVu Browser Plug-in.
 * Georgia Pioneers Georgia Pioneers.
 * USGenweb Clarke County, Georgia project
 * - 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