DeKalb County, Alabama Genealogy

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

Description
DeKalb County was created on 9 January 1836 and was named for Major General Baron Johan DeKalb, a hero of the American Revolution. Its county seat is Fort Payne. It is located in the northeastern area of the state.

County Courthouse
DeKalb County Courthouse 300 Grand Ave South PO Box 681149 Fort Payne, AL 35968 Phone: 256-845-8525 Fax: 256-845-8535 DeKalb County Website Probate Judge has marriage, divorce, probate and land records. County Health Department has birth, death and burial records. Clerk Circuit Court has court records.

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit Hometown Locator.

Bible Records

 * DeKalb County Bible Records at USGenWeb Archives Project

Biographies

 * Memorial Record of Alabama, Baldwin County. 1893. Madison, WI: Brant & Fuller, 1893. Pg. 929. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * DeKalb County Biographies at The USGenWeb Archives Project

Census Records
State Census


 * 1855   at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1866  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1907, 1921, 1927  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Church Records

 * 1831-1994  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1800-1913 (*); Judge of Probate and Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1836-1916 (*); Chancery Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1908-1915 (*); Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

 * 1865-1872  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; images only

Funeral Homes

 * Burt Funeral Homes in Fort Payne and Valley Head
 * Collinsville Funeral Home in Collinsville
 * Corner Stone Funeral Chapel and Crematory in lder
 * Crossville Memorial Chapel in Crossville
 * Kerby Funeral Home in Geraldine and Henagar
 * Rainsville Funeral Home in Geraldine and Rainsville
 * Wilson Funeral and Cremation in Fort Payne
 * W.T. Wilson Funeral Chapel in Rainsville

Land and Property Records
To place a grant or deed on a map within context of DeKalb County see:


 * Boyd, Gregory A. Family Maps of DeKalb County, Alabama: with Homesteads, Roads, Waterways, Towns, Cemeteries, Railroads, and More. Norman, Okla.: Arphax Pub. Co., 2007. This is a definitive work and can be used as an index to land grants. Digital version at HistoryGeo.com ($). Website includes surname index..

Online Land Indexes and Records

Local Histories

 * Northern Alabama, Historical and Biographical. 1888. Birmingham, Ala.: Smith and De Land, 1888. Pg. 135. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, Hathitrust.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Maps of Alabama (1799-1980)
 * Family Maps of DeKalb County (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
 * Alabama Maps and Blueprints Collection at Alabama Department of Archives and History – maps can be browsed by location or subject

Military Records
Multiple Wars
 * ca.1918-ca.1962  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Civil War
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index, images at partner site
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index, images at partner site
 * 1861-1865 Civil War Service Database at [https://archives.alabama.gov/ Alabama Department of Archives and
 * 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 $
 * 1871-1880 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1880-1930  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1907, 1921, 1927  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * Alabama Civil War and Reconstruction Newspapers at Alabama Department of Archives and History


 * - 10th Regiment, Alabama Infantry, Company I
 * - 12th Regiment, Alabama Infantry, Company E "DeKalb Invincibles"
 * - 48th Regiment, Alabama Infantry, Company B
 * - 49th Regiment, Alabama Infantry, Company D and G
 * - 54th Regiment, Alabama Infantry, Company G (formerly Co. "C", 1st AL, TN, and MS Infantry)
 * - 54th Regiment, Alabama Infantry, Company K (formerly Co. "K", 40th TN Infantry)

World War I
 * 1917-1919 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1917-1918 Alabama World War I Service Records at Alabama Department of Archives and History - alpha index by name and images
 * 1917-1918 Alabama World War I Gold Star Files at Alabama Department of Archives and History - alpha index by name and images

World War II
 * 1940-1945 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1940-1966 Alabama Active Military Service Reports at Alabama Department of Archives and History - alpha index by name and images

Newspapers

 * Alabama Civil War and Reconstruction Newspapers at Alabama Department of Archives and History
 * 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)

Obituaries
A collection of obituaries and death notices from various funeral homes in the DeKalb County area has been put together by GenealogyBuffs.com.
 * 1881-1974 Alabama, Deaths and Burials Index, 1881-1974 at  Ancestry.com $
 * 1908-1959 Alabama Deaths, 1908-59 at Ancestry $
 * DeKalb County, Alabama Obituary and Death Notices Collection

Other Records
Voter Registration
 * 1834-1981  at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection; index and some images

Alabama Voting Registers for 1867 are available online at the Alabama Department of Archives and History. DeKalb County has one book.

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1753-1999 Alabama Wills and Probate Records 1753-1999 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1809-1985 (*) at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; images
 * 1830-1976 (*) at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1838-1930 (*); Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1839-1931 (*); Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1867-1892 (*); Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog — 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.
 * 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

 * 1865-1866 U.S. IRS Tax Assessment Lists, 1862-1918 at Ancestry $

Birth

 * 1881-1930 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1881-1930 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index, and some images

Marriage

 * 1733-2013 Alabama, United States Marriages at Findmypast ($)
 * 1800-1969 Alabama, U.S., Marriage Index, 1800-1969 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1802-1825 Alabama, U.S., Compiled Marriages, 1802-1825 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1809-1920 Alabama, U.S., Compiled Marriages from Selected Counties, 1809-1920 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1809-1950  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collectionindex, and some images
 * 1816-1957  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1818-1936  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1836-1916 DeKalb County, Alabama Marriage Index, 1836-1916 at Ancestry ($)
 * DeKalb County Marriages - partial at ALGenWeb

Death

 * 1881-1952  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1881-1974 Alabama, U.S., Deaths and Burials Index, 1881-1974 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1908-1959 Alabama, U.S., Death Index, 1908-1959 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1908-1974  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * DeKalb County Deaths (partial) at ALGenWeb

Archives
Alabama Department of Archives and History 624 Washington Ave PO Box 300100 Montgomery, AL 36104 Phone: 334-242-4435 Email: [mailto:mark.palmer@archives.alabama.gov mark.palmer@archives.alabama.gov] Website Facebook

FamilySearch Centers

 * Guntersville Alabama FamilySearch Center
 * Scottsboro Alabama FamilySearch Center
 * Cherokee County Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Rainsville Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries
DeKalb DeKalb County Public Library 504 Grand Ave NW Fort Payne, AL 35967 Phone: 256-845-2671 Website Facebook Rainsville Public Library 941 East Main St PO Box 509 Rainsville, AL 35986 Phone: 256-638-3311 Email: [mailto:rpl1@farmerstel.com rpl1@farmerstel.com] Website Facebook

Societies
Collinsville Historical Association 113 W Main Street Collinsville, AL 35961 Facebook DeKalb County Genealogical Society PO Box 681087 Fort Payne, AL 35968-1612 Facebook Landmarks of DeKalb County 510 Gault Ave N PO Box 680518 Fort Payne, AL 35968-0518 Phone: 256-845-6888 Email: [mailto:landmarksdekalb@bellsouth.net landmarksdekalb@bellsouth.net] Website Facebook NorthEast Alabama Genealogical Society 1 Cabot Ave PO Box 8268 Gadsen, AL 35902 Email: [mailto:neagslib@comcast.net neagslib@comcast.net] Website Facebook

Websites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * USGenWeb Archives Project. Record transcriptions from Bibles, obituaries, court records and more.
 * DeKalb County ALGenWeb. Record transcriptions and information pertinent to the county.
 * DeKalb County, Alabama Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * – 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.