Portage County, Ohio Genealogy

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

Description
The county was named for an old Native American path called "Portage Trail". It is located in the northeastern area of the state.

County Courthouse
Portage County Courthouse 203 West Main Street Ravena, Ohio 44266 Phone: 330-297-3639 Portage County Website

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:

Church Records

 * 1765-1947 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images; selected counties, incomplete; includes, death, church, and cemetery records

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records

Local Histories

 * Brown, Robert Charles, History of Portage County, Ohio: Containing a History of the County, Its Townships, Towns, Villages, Schools, Churches, Industries, etc., (Chicago, Illinois: Warner, Beers, 1885). Digital copy at Google Books, Internet Archive, FamilySearch Digital Library,


 * Holmes, James B., Portage Heritage: A History of Portage County; Its Towns and Townships and the Men and Women Who Have Developed Them, (Kent, Ohio: Commercial Press, 1957). Digital copy at Internet Archive, FamilySearch Digital Library,


 * Bowen, A.W., A Portrait and Biographical Record of Portage and Summit Counties, Ohio, (Logansport, Indiana: A.W. Bowen, 1898). Digital copy at Google Books, Internet Archive, FamilySearch Digital Library,

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Maps of Ohio (1788-1940)
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * 1888-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.

Civil War Service men from Portage County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in Portage County.


 * -1st Regiment, Ohio Light Artillery, Batteries A, D, and I.
 * - 104th Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Companies D and I

World War I
 * 1914-1918 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1914-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1916-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1800-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.

Newspapers

 * 1793-late 1900's at History Connection —  Select county.
 * 1793-2009 Ohio Newspapers, 1793-2009 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
 * Early- late 1900's Newspapers at Ohio Memory — sort by County, City, Time Period, and more.

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records


 * 1786-1998 Ohio Wills and Probate Records 1786-1998 at Ancestry ($) — index and images.
 * 1789-1996 at FamilySearch.org — How to Use this Collection; index and images.

School Records

 * Kent State University Yearbooks - approximately 1914-1985 yearbooks are freely available on the Internet Archive

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.
 * 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Tax Records
Online Tax Indexes and Records
 * 1800-1850 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1800-1850 Ohio Tax Records, 1800-1850 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Birth

 * 1841-2003 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images; or scroll down to Browse images by county.
 * 1908-1998 Ohio, Birth Index, 1908-1998 at Ancestry ($) — Index
 * 1918-1953 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1959-1998 Ohio, Birth Index, 1959-1998 at MyHeritage - index ($)

Marriage

 * 1789-2013 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1800-1942 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index.
 * 1800-1958 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index.
 * 1970-2003 Ohio, Marriages, 1970 - 2003 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Death

 * 1765-1947 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images; selected counties, incomplete; includes, death, church, and cemetery records
 * 1833-1967 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1840-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1908-1932, 1938–1944, and 1958–2007 at FamilySearch– How to Use this Collection; Index.
 * 1908-1932, 1938-2018 Ohio, Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2018 at Ancestry ($) — index and images
 * 1913-1944, 1954-1963 Ohio Death Index, 1913-1944, 1954-1963 at MyHeritage ($) — index
 * 1918-1953 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Divorce

 * 1962-2007 Ohio, Divorce Abstracts, 1962-1963, 1967-1971, 1973-2007 at Ancestry ($)

FamilySearch Centers

 * Akron Ohio FamilySearch Center (Tallmadge)
 * Rootstown Ohio FamilySearch Center
 * Plano Community District Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Akron-Summit County Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries
Portage County District Library Aurora Memorial Library 115 East Pioneer Trail Aurora, OH 44202 330-562-6502 Website

Societies
Portage County Historical Society 6549 N. Chestnut Street Ravenna, OH 44266 330-296-3523 Website Portage County Chapter, OGS P.O. Box 821 Ravenna, OH 44266 E-Mail:[mailto:pccogs@embarqmail.com pccogs@embarqmail.com] Website

Websites

 * Local Gov't Records by County at Ohio History Connection — Browse their list; records are not online.
 * Custom Browse of Historical Collections at Ohio Memory — Use map or alpha bar to select county or place, then browse search options in left sidebar.
 * Ohio Genealogical Society ($) — online databases
 * Portage County Ohio Genealogy
 * Ohio GenWeb: Portage County - free genealogy resources; part of the national USGenWeb 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.