Potter County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

United States Pennsylvania  Potter County  

Historical Facts
Named for General James Potter, from Pennsylvania in the Continental Army during the American Revolution.

Parent County
26 March 1804: Potter County was created from Lycoming County.

Boundary Changes
29 March 1860: Cameron County set off.

Neighboring Counties
Cameron | Clinton | Lycoming | McKean | Tioga | New York counties: Allegany | Steuben

Land and Property
Register of Wills/Recorder of Deeds Gunzburger Building One North Main Street, 1st Floor Coudersport PA 16915 Phone: (814) 274-8370

Due to the lack of vital records for Pennsylvania, land records are an important tool in early Pennsylvania research. Land records will list the seller and purchaser of the property and may hide clues to family connections. Land records for Potter County are available from the recorder's office for 1804 to the present.


 * Images are available on-line from 2003 to the present using the Landex system. There is a fee to view the images.
 * Deeds, 1806-1866; Indexes to Deeds, 1806-1972

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


 * Catskill Turnpike, trail 1760s; turnpike 1804, from Catskill to Bath, New York with extensions to Buffalo, New York, or Erie, Pennsylvania
 * Forbidden Path, 1767 from Athens, Pennsylvania to Salamanca, New York

Birth

 * 1726-1930 - - free index. Not complete for all years.
 * 1852-1854 – Pennsylvania Births Ancestry.com – $ Index with images.

Marriage

 * 1725-1976 - - free index. Not complete for all years.

Divorce
Divorce records are handled by the office of the Prothonotary. While no on-line indexes or records are available, records may be obtained by visiting or writing to the Prothonotary at:

Prothonotary/Clerk of Courts 1 East Second Street, Room 23, Coudersport PA 16915 Phone (814) 274-9740 E–mail: [mailto:kschroeder@pottercountypa.net kschroeder@pottercountypa.net]

Death

 * 1852-1854 – Pennsylvania Deaths Ancestry.com – $ Index with images.

Web Sites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.