Nash County, North Carolina Genealogy

Guide to Nash County, North Carolina ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Description
Nash County is located in the eastern portion of North Carolina and was named for Revolutionary War General Francis Nash.

County Courthouse
Nash County Courthouse 120 W. Washington Street Nashville, NC 27856 Phone: 252-459-9836 Nash County Website Register of Deeds has birth and death records from 1913 and marriage records from 1872. Clerk Superior Court has divorce and court records 1876.

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
Nash County was formed in 1777 from the western part of Edgecombe County. It was named for American Revolutionary War Brigadier General Francis Nash (1742-1777) of Hillsborough, who had been mortally wounded at the Battle of Germantown that year while fighting under General George Washington. Nashville, the County seat, was settled in 1780 and chartered in 1815. After the Revolutionary War, the County settled down to a pace that made it one of the State's leading farm areas. Since the Civil War, it has been known primarily as a leading agricultural County, but it has experienced steady industrial growth since that time.

Census Records

 * Nash County Census information (NCGenWeb)

Church Records

 * 1700-1970 - at FamilySearch — index

Baptist
 * Falls of Tar. Constituted 1757.
 * Poplar Spring. Constituted 1793.

Presbyterian
 * Historical sketch of the First Presbyterian Church of Rocky Mount, North Carolina (Eastern NC Digital Library)

Directories

 * North Carolina State business directories. Directories include information about area businesses and citizens. (NCGenWeb)

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African American
 * Nash County African-American resources (NCGenWeb)
 * Nash County Slavery Petitions (NCGenWeb)
 * Rosenwald Schools in Nash County (NCGenWeb)

Genealogies

 * [Boddie] Leary, Helen F.M. "The Two William Boddies of North Carolina," The American Genealogist, Vol. 66, No. 1 (Jan. 1991):16-29; Vol. 62, No. 2 (Apr. 1991):106-110; Vol. 66, No. 3 (Jul. 1991):148-153. Available at.
 * [Pridgen] Digital version at Pridgen family of Sapony Creek, Nash County, North Carolina some descendants of William Pridgen, d. ca. 1762, Vol. II.

Land and Property Records
The first land grants in the area date from 1743.


 * Nash County Deeds (USGenWeb Archives)
 * Property records 1995-present (Nash County Register of Deeds)

Local Histories

 * Local histories of Nash County (NCGenWeb)
 * Rocky Mount Mills carded cotton yarns, Rocky Mount, N.C. (Eastern NC Digital Library)
 * Rocky Mount Mills, a case history of industrial development, 1818-1943 (Eastern NC Digital Library)

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Nash County Maps (NC Maps collection of UNC-Chapel Hill)

Military Records

 * Nash County Military information (NCGenWeb)

Revolutionary War 
 * 1779-1782  at FamilySearch

Civil War 
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry
 * 1885-1953  at FamilySearch
 * Roster of Nash County Confederate soldiers (Eastern NC Digital Library)


 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
 * - 7th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
 * - 12th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, Company H
 * - 13th Battalion, North Carolina Infantry, Company B
 * - 1st Brigade, North Carolina Reserves, Company A
 * - 1st Regiment, North Carolina Junior Reserves, Company A
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Cavalry, Company E
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, 1st Company E
 * - 3rd Battalion, North Carolina Senior Reserves, Captain D W William's Company

World War I 
 * 1917-1919  at FamilySearch
 * WWI Rosters of Nash County men (NCGenWeb)

World War II 
 * 1940-1948  at FamilySearch

Newspapers

 * 1799-1893 Nash County marriages. Included in Carrie Broughton's 6-volume index of the Raleigh Register &amp; State Gazette newspaper (1799-1893). Marriages are listed by year and PDF files are searchable. Available on the North Carolina Digital Collections website.
 * Nash County newspapers. Listing of newspapers published in the county. (Library of Congress)
 * North Carolina Newspaper Digitization Project. Full-text papers from 1752-1890s.
 * Nash County deaths. County area deaths reported in various newspapers; dates range from late 1700s to 1900s.

Obituaries

 * Nash County Obituaries (USGenWeb Archives)

Probate Records
Online Probate Records


 * 1660-1790 North Carolina Will Abstracts 1660-1790 at Ancestry $
 * 1663-1979  at FamilySearch
 * 1665-1998 North Carolina Wills and Probate Records 1665-1998 at Ancestry $
 * 1735-1970  at FamilySearch
 * 1760-1800 North Carolina Will Abstracts 1760-1800 at Ancestry $
 * 1776-1964  at FamilySearch
 * 1778-1897 Images of Wills & Estates 1778-1867; 1867-1897. North Carolina Pioneers $
 * Pre-1790 Pre-1790 Nash County, North Carolina Genealogy Wills. (North Carolina State Archives)
 * Nash County residents wills (NCGenWeb)
 * Nash County wills &amp; estates (USGenWeb Archives)

The county's oldest will is at the Dept of Archives, Raleigh, NC.

School Records

 * Wesleyan College Yearbooks: 1962-2009
 * Rosenwald Schools in Nash County, African-American. (NCGenWeb)
 * Nash County students at NC colleges. Yearbook index. (NCGenWeb)

Tax Records

 * 1782 Tax Lists, Nash County, 1782 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2, at Ancestry $
 * 1782 Tax Lists, Nash County, 1782 (images) at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1782 Nash County, NC, 1782 Tax List (transcript) at FamilySearch

Vital Records

 * 1800-2000 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Uncertified copies of vital records can be ordered for a small fee from the Register of Deeds.

Birth

 * 1787-1835 Nash County Bastard Bonds 1787-1835 (NCGenWeb)
 * 1800-2000  at FamilySearch
 * 1866-1964  at FamilySearch
 * 1913-1922  at FamilySearch — index and images

Marriage

 * 1741-2004 North Carolina, United States Marriages at FindMyPast
 * 1741-2004 North Carolina Marriage Index 1741-2004 at Ancestry $
 * 1759-1979  at FamilySearch
 * 1762-1979  at FamilySearch
 * 1763-1868  at FamilySearch

Death

 * 1898-1994  at FamilySearch
 * 1906-1930  at FamilySearch
 * 1908-2004 North Carolina Death Indexes 1908-2004 at Ancestry $
 * 1909-1975 North Carolina Death Certificates 1909-1975 at Ancestry $
 * 1931-1994  at FamilySearch

Divorce

 * 1926-1975  at FamilySearch
 * 1958-2004 North Carolina Divorce Index 1958-2004 at Ancestry $

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to Family History Centers

Libraries

 * Edgecombe County Library Website
 * Braswell Memorial Library Website

Societies

 * Tar River Connections Genealogical Society PO Box 8764 Rocky Mount, NC 27803-8764 Website

Websites

 * Nash County, NCGenWeb Project
 * Nash County, USGenWeb Archives
 * – 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.