Lawrence County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

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

Description
The county was named for USS Lawrence. It is located in the midwestern area of the state.

County Courthouse
Lawrence County Courthouse 430 Court Street New Castle, PA 16101-3503 724-658-2541 Prothonotary, Clerk of Courts, Clerk of Orphan's Court: 724-656-2126 Register of Wills and Recorder of Deeds: 724-656-2131 Lawrence County Website County Clerk has birth, death, and burial records 1893-1905, marriage records from 1893, divorce and court records from 1855 Register and Recorder has probate and land records

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:

Biographies

 * Biographical Sketches of Leading Citizens Lawrence County, Pennsylvania 1897, courtesy USGenWeb Archives

Cemeteries

 * Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.

Additional Cemetery Resources
 * ca.1700-ca.1950 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * PA-Roots
 * Names in Stone
 * Ancestry($)

Church Records
County-wide Database – Multi-denominational


 * 1708-1985 Pennsylvania, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 at Historical Society of Pennsylvania – $, free to members of the society; Also available at Ancestry $
 * Men of the Cloth, and a few women: Pastors, Preachers and Priests in Western PA (Free) has biographies and photos of many clergymen as well as several churches.
 * Hazen, Aaron Lyle. 20th Century History of New Castle and Lawrence County. Evansville, Indiana: Unigraphics, 1977. Reprint of original published: Chicago, Ill.: Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co., 1908. 1202 pages. includes histories of the churches in the county. Digital version: FamilySearch..

Lists of founding members of the early church congregations in Lawrence County are listed in History of Lawrence County. Church histories are located under the township histories.


 * Free online transcription courtesy of USGenWeb

Baptist

Baptist congregations in New Castle were first established in 1843. By 1877 there were 5 congregations in New Castle.

Catholic Catholic priests visited Lawrence County until St. Mary's was erected in New Castle in 1852.

Episcopal The first Episcopalian services were held in New Castle in 1843.

Lutheran The first Lutheran church was established in New Castle in 1848. Other congregations organized in New Castle, including a Swedish Lutheran Zion church.

Methodist Congregations were established in New Castle (1836) Mahoningtown (1850).

Methodist Episcopal The first Methodist Episcopal church was built in 1816 in New Castle. This congregation had been meeting since 1804. Other congregations were established in Wilmington, Wampum, Pulaski, Mahoning, Eon, Hickory, Mount Jackson, Clinton, and other communities.

Moravian The Moravians established a mission in Lawrence County in 1755, but moved to Tuscarawas Valley, Ohio, by 1773.

Presbyterian Earliest congregations were formed in Hopewell and Nashannock (1800), followed by New Castle (also called Lower Neshannock) and Westfield (1803). Other congregations included Pulaski, Mahoningtown, Darlington, Little Beaver, Enon, Newport Village, and Westfield, among others in the county. United Presbyterian (Seceder or Associate Reformed) An early congregation was formed in Deer Creek (1800), Mahoning (1800) and New Castle (1808). Other congregations were established in Wampum, Beacon Valley, New Wilmington, and Hickory.

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * A History of the Neshannock Presbyterian Church, New Wilmington, Pennsylvania: together with some account of the settlement at Ancestry $
 * FamilySearch Places

Land and Property Records
Land records in Lawrence County began in 1849. These records are filed with the Register of Wills and Recorder of Deeds office in New Castle, Pennsylvania.

Online Land Indexes and Records
 * 1849 -1923 Deeds, 1849-1902; Index, 1849-1923. - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
 * 1850 -1986 Sheriff's and Treasurer's Deeds, 1850-1933; Index, 1850-1986. -images only; click on the camera icon to view images

Local Histories

 * 20th Century History of New Castle and Lawrence County, Pennsylvania. 1908. Comp. and Ed. by Aaron Lyle Hazen. Chicago, Illinois : Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive;.
 * History of Lawrence County, Pennsylvania. 1877. By Samuel W. Durant, Pliny A. Durant. Philadelphia, L. H. Everts Co. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Google Books, Ancestry ($).

Maps and Gazetteers
Maps
 * Maps of Pennsylvania (1673-1878)
 * Ancestor Tracks has posted free downloadable images from the 1908 Warrantee Atlas of Lawrence County, Pennsylvania. This atlas located in the Library of Congress shows major landowners and geographic sites at the date of publishing. While the physical maps are in the public domain, the images we have taken of the maps belong to us and are not to be used commercially. We hereby give permission to use them strictly for personal use; please attribute to Ancestor Tracks.
 * Atlas of Lawrence County, 1872 shows landowners. From the USGenWeb archives.
 * Warrantee Atlas, 1909 Depreciation, Donation, Settlers lands. From the USGenWeb archives.
 * Lawrence County Township Maps, 1986. From the USGenWeb archives.
 * New Castle, PA 1896
 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index

Naturalization and Citizenship
Naturalization records for Lawrence County, Pennsylvania include the following:

Online Naturalization Indexes and Records


 * 1820-1906 Index to Declarations and Petitions in the Western District of Pennsylvania, US Circuit and District Courts located in US Naturalization Records Indexes, 1794-1995 database on Ancestry $
 * 1820-1930 Naturalization Petitions of the U.S. District Court, 1820-1930, and Circuit Court, 1820-1911, for the Western District of Pennsylvania on Fold3.com - ($), indexed, National Archives publication M1537, incomplete for all counties
 * 1820-1930 Naturalization Petitions of the U.S. District Court, 1820-1930, and Circuit Court, 1820-1911, for the Western District of Pennsylvania located in Selected US Naturalization Records - Original Documents, 1790-1974 database on Ancestry $
 * 1843-1939 Naturalization records, 1843-1939. - Each film has it's own index; images only; click on the camera icon to view images

Newspapers
Newspapers of Lawrence County


 * Pennsylvania Newspapers
 * Chronicling America US Newspaper Directory

Online Newspaper Extracts


 * 1947-2010  at FamilySearch

Obituaries

 * 1850-2010 Lawrence County, Pennsylvania Obituary Index, 1850-2010 at Ancestry ($); free version at New Castle Public Library website.

Probate Records
Online Probate Records
 * 1683 -1993 Pennsylvania Wills and Probate Records 1683-1993 at Ancestry $
 * 1683-1994
 * 1845-1987 Lawrence County Probate Records at FamilySearch
 * 1849-1920 Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, Wills and Probate Files - Index included: 1849-1987; images only; click on the camera icon to view 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.

Birth

 * 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Births Ancestry $

Marriage

 * 1626-2016 Pennsylvania, United States Marriages at FindMyPast ($)
 * 1700-1821 Pennsylvania Marriage Records Ancestry $
 * 1725-1976  index. Not complete for all years. This index is not necessarily intended to index any specific set of records. This index is not complete for any particular place or region. This collection may include information previously published in the International Genealogical Index or Vital Records Index collections.
 * Pre-1810  Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry $
 * 1850-2010 Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, Marriage Index, 1850-2010 at Ancestry ($); free version at New Castle Public Library website.
 * 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry $
 * 1858-2006 Pennsylvania, Lawrence County Index of Marriage Announcement, 1858-2006 at MyHeritage ($)
 * 1885-1950  Extracted marriage records – free. Most of the records consist of marriage licenses, certificates, applications, docket books, and affidavits. This database is incomplete for all counties. May also contain marriage records earlier than 1885.

Death

 * 1720-1999  at FamilySearch — index, some images
 * 1850-1880  at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1852-1854  Pennsylvania Deaths Ancestry $
 * 1871-2016 Pennsylvania, Lawrence County Index of Obituaries, 1871-2016 at MyHeritage ($)
 * 1893, 1901 New Castle, Lawrence County, Death Index 1893 and 1901 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch

Divorce
Divorce records are available through the office of the Prothonotary Lawrence County Courthouse.

Archives

 * National Archives at Philadelphia 14700 Townsend Road Philadelphia, PA 19154-1096 Phone: 215-305-2044 Fax: 215-305-2052 website

Family History Centers

 * Monongahela Pennsylvania Family History Center

Libraries

 * New Castle Public Library Genealogy/History Room 207 East North Street New Castle, PA 16101 Phone: 724-658-6659, ext. 112 E-mail: [mailto:nchistory@ncdlc.org nchistory@ncdlc.org] Website The library's collection includes local family histories, Pennsylvania county history books, census, newspapers and a local marriage and obituary database taken from the New Castle News The library will do limited research for a fee.

Museums

 * Colonel Norman J. Maxwell On-line Museum "Family Heirlooms, Artifacts, Ephemera and Historic Places" Website

Societies

 * Lawrence County Historical Society 408 North Jefferson Street New Castle, PA 16101 Phone: 724-658-4022 Email: [mailto:info@lawrencechs.com info@lawrencechs.com] Website
 * The research room collection includes Lawrence County Will Books, Immigration Records, Marriage Records, Deeds, County History, Maps, City Directories, Yearbooks. Onsite research help is available.

Websites

 * Lawrence County Genealogy - PAGenWeb site.Histories, biographies, cemeteries, obituaries and other information.
 * Lawrence County Links - linkpendium.com
 * Lawrence County PA Genealogy
 * – 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.