Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska Genealogy

Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska genealogy and family history research page. Guide to genealogy, history, and courthouse sources including birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, wills, deeds and land records, Civil War records, family histories, cemeteries, churches, tax records, newspapers, and obituaries.

County Courthouse
County Clerk has marriage records. County Judge has divorce, probate and court records.

Parent County
1888 Scotts Bluff County was created 6 November 1888 from Cheyenne County. County seat: Gering

Description
Scotts Bluff was named after a prominent bluff that served as a monument for 19th-century pioneers traveling along the Oregon Trail. The bluff was named after a fur trapper named Hiram Scott who died near the bluff in 1828.

Boundary Changes

 * Interactive Formation Boundary Map of Nebraska - shows boundary changes for Nebraska Counties
 * Nebraska Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library

Record Loss
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Places/Localities
==== Populated Places ====

Cities

 * Gering
 * Minatare
 * Mitchell
 * Scottsbluff

Villages

 * Henry
 * Lyman
 * McGrew
 * Melbeta
 * Morrill
 * Terrytown

Unincorporated communities

 * Bradley
 * Haig

Neighboring Counties

 * Banner
 * Box Butte
 * Goshen County, Wyoming
 * Sioux

State Census Records

 * 1854 - 1870 - Nebraska, Compiled Census Index, 1854-1870 at Ancestry.com - index ($)
 * 1860 - 1885 - Nebraska State Census Collection 1860-1885 at Ancestry.com - index and images ($)
 * 1885 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1885 - Nebraska State Census 1885 at Ancestry.com - index and images ($)

Federal Census Records
Federal Censuses were taken for Nebraska starting in 1860. For links to Federal census indexes, see Nebraska Census.

Church
LDS Ward and Branch Records


 * Scottsbluff
 * Scottsbluff Dist

Court

 * 1870 - 1990 — Nebraska Prisoner Records 1870-1990 — index only

Land
Online Land Records

For more information see Nebraska Land and Property
 * Land Patent Search - index to federal patents and homesteads on the Bureau of Land Management website, some images available
 * 1796 - 1907 - U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907 at Ancestry - index, info taken from Bureau of Land Management website
 * 1861 - 1936 - U.S. Homestead Records 1861-1936 at Ancestry.com - ($), index and images

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Family Maps of (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
 * Nebraska Gazetteer - database for all known places found in 1890 and 1911 Nebraska gazetteers
 * Interactive Formation Boundary Map of Nebraska - shows boundary changes for Nebraska Counties



Migration
Early migration routes to and from Scotts Bluff County for European and African American settlers included:


 * Platte River
 * Oregon Trail 1830s to 1890s from western Missouri to Oregon City, Oregon
 * California Trail 1846 to 1869 from western Missouri to northern California
 * Mormon Trail 1846 to 1869 from Nauvoo, Illinois to Salt Lake City, Utah

Revolutionary War

 * 1775 - 1783 - at FamilySearch - images only
 * For more nationwide Revolutionary War databases, see US Military Online Genealogy Records.

Civil War

 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1891 - Nebraska Resident Military Roster on June 1, 1891 at Ancestry.com - ($), Roster of Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines of the War of 1812, the Mexico War, and the War of the Rebellion, residing in Nebraska June 1, 1891
 * 1893 - Roster of Nebraska Veterans - list of veterans in 1893
 * For more nationwide Civil War databases, see US Military Online Genealogy Records.

WWI

 * 1917 - 1918 - World War I Drafts 1917-1918 - index only
 * For more nationwide World War I databases, see US Military Online Genealogy Records.

Newspapers
 Nebraska Newspapers Online Nebraska Newspaper Catalogs
 * Nebraska Newspapers - contains images of newspapers throughout Nebraska
 * GenealogyBank - ($), contains images of Nebraska newspapers
 * Newspaper Archive - ($), contains images of Nebraska newspapers
 * Chronicling America - contains images of some Nebraska newspapers; searching tips
 * Elephind - Free; search engine that retrieves newspaper images from other free newspaper websites
 * Nebraska State Historical Society - catalog of known Nebraska newspapers; lists repositories that have the newspapers
 * U.S. Newspaper Directory, 1690-Present on Chronicling America - contains a list of all known newspapers and the dates they cover; once you locate a newspaper name, contact the local library to see if they have copies of the newspaper

Probate
Online Probate Records
 * 1806 – 1989 Nebraska Wills and Probate Records 1806-1989 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

Marriage Records
Online Marriage Records Indexes and Images
 * 1855 - 1995 — at FamilySearch — index only
 * 1856 - 1898 — Nebraska Marriages 1856-1898 at Ancestry.com ($), index only

Societies and Libraries
Libraries


 * Lied Scottsbluff Public Library 1809 3rd Ave 69361 Scottsbluff, NE Phone: 308-630-6250 Fax: 308-630-6293 Website


 * Gering Public Library 1055 P Street Gering, NE 69341 Phone: 308-436-7433


 * Lyman Public Library 313 Jeffers Street Lyman, NE 69352 Phone: 308-787-1366


 * Minatare Public Library 309 Main Street Minatare, NE 69356 Phone: 308-783-1414


 * Mitchell Public Library 1449 Center Avenue Mitchell, NE 69357 Phone: 308-623-2222


 * Morrill Public Library 119 East Webster Street Morrill, NE 69358 Phone: 308-247-2611

Family History Centers



 * Scottsbluff Nebraska Family History Center

Websites

 * USGenWeb
 * Rootsweb
 * Linkpendium
 * Genealogy Trails
 * Genealogy Inc.