Forest County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

Guide to Forest 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 the forests contained within its limits. The county is located in the northwest area of the state.

County Courthouse
Forest County Courthouse 526 Elm Street Tionesta, PA 16353 Phone: 814-755-3579 Prothonotary/Clerk of Courts/Register of Wills/Recorder of Deeds/Clerk of Orphan's Court: 814-755-3526 Forest County Website County Register and Recorder has birth records 1893-1906, marriage, divorce, 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:

Cemeteries
Additional Cemetery Resources
 * ca.1700-ca.1950 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Pennsylvania Genealogy LDS Genealogy

Church Records
Some of the major religious affiliations in Forest County are: Lutheran, Methodist and Presbyterian. For a history of the various churches in the towns of Forest County see "History of Forest County, 1867-1967.



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 $

Catholic List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * "100 years of the Pittsburgh Catholic Diocese 1843–1943," Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 17, No. 1. . Chronology, map, county-by-county information.
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records
Court of Common Pleas
 * 1852–1904 Sheriffs' Deed Book

Guardianship

 * 1855–1888 Court Dockets

Land and Property Records
Land records in Forest County began in 1784. These records are filed with the Prothonotary/Recorder of Deeds office in Tionesta, Pennsylvania.

Land Indexes and Records
 * 1852–1904 Sheriffs' Deed Book - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
 * 1857–1933 Deed Books, 1857-1886; Indexes to Deeds, 1857-1933 - images only; click on the camera icon to view images

Local Histories

 * History of the Counties of McKean, Elk, and Forest, Pennsylvania, with Biographical Selections. 1890. By Michael A. Leeson. Chicago, Illinois : J.H. Beers. Online at: Vol. 1 - FamilySearch Digital Library, Vol. 2 - FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive, Google Books, Ancestry ($).

Maps and Gazetteers
Maps
 * Maps of Pennsylvania (1673-1878)
 * Ancestor Tracks has posted downloadable images from the 1881 Map of Forest Co. Pennsylvania Compiled from Records &amp; Official Surveys by S.D. Irwin, published by J.L. Smith. This wall map 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.
 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1858–1906 Naturalization Docket - images only; click on the camera icon to view images

Newspapers
Newspapers of Forest County


 * Pennsylvania Newspapers
 * Chronicling America US Newspaper Directory

Online Newspapers

To learn if there are newspapers online for a specific town or city in Pennsylvania, see news.google.com/newspapers and search for the town or the name of a newspaper.


 * The Forest Republican, 1869-1952

Online Newspaper Abstracts


 * 1947-2010  at FamilySearch
 * PA-Roots Newspaper Articles of Forest County.
 * USGenWeb Forest County Historical Newspapers

Obituaries
Online Obituary Abstracts


 * PA-Roots Obituaries of Forest County.
 * USGenWeb Forest County Obituaries

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1683-1993 Pennsylvania Wills and Probate Records 1683-1993 at Ancestry $
 * 1855-1911 Forest County Probate Records at FamilySearch
 * 1855–1888 Court Dockets - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
 * 1855–1911 Wills - 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

 * 1893-1907 Register of Births  - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
 * 1949, 1963-1974 Forest County Birth Index 1949, 1963-1974 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch

Marriage

 * 1626-2016 Pennsylvania, United States Marriages at FindMyPast ($)
 * 1677-1950  at FamilySearch
 * 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 $
 * 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry $
 * 1885-1928 Marriage Licenses (Forest County, Pennsylvania)  - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
 * 1885-1950  Extracted marriage records – 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
 * 1893-1907 Register of Deaths –  - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
 * 1895-1907 Forest County Death Index 1895-1907 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch

Divorce
Divorce records are available through the office of the Prothonotary, Forest 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

 * Franklin Pennsylvania Family History Center

Societies

 * Forest County Historical Society &amp; Museum 206 Elm St. Tionesta, PA 16353-9702 Phone: 814-755-4422 Website The Forest History Center is housed in an 1875 pre-Victorian Eastlake style home filled with artifacts and genealogies of the area’s families.

Websites

 * USGenWeb project
 * Forest 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.