Grant County, Washington Genealogy

United States Washington  Grant County  Guide to  genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records, since 1909, when the county was formed.

Parent County(s)
Grant County, Washington was created 24 February 1909 from Douglas County.

County Seat:: Ephrata For Courthouse, see Archives, libraries, etc.

Boundary Changes
Historical County Boundaries from Newberry Library

Neighboring Counties
is surrounded by: Adams | Benton | Douglas | Franklin | Kittitas | Lincoln | Okanogan | Yakima

Topics
The types of records that follow are used for genealogy and family history. Most tell what you may learn and how to locate the records. Links to Internet sites usually go directly to entries with names, images, or information.

Cemeteries

 * Alpha list of cemeteries in the county with links to online transcripts.

Census

 * See Washington Census for online indexes and images of US federal censuses. of: 1856, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, and 1940.
 * See statewide printed indexes, including 1856.
 * Check county indexes when online indexes fail. Created by people who knew the families of the area, they are often more accurate and they may have added insights. See periodicals and local libraries or other record holders.


 * 1890 Veterans
 * 1900
 * 1910
 * 1920
 * 1930
 * 1940

Church Records

 * Church records (microfilmed originals or published transcripts) for are listed in the . (Press space bar to select town.)

LDS Ward and Branch Records


 * Grand Coulee

Court Records
Many of your ancestors may be found in court records as defendants, plaintiffs, witnesses, or jurors. Court records can establish family relationships and places of residence, occupations, and other family history information. See Washington Court Records for the various courts through the years.

For specialized court records, see Divorce · Guardianship · Land · Naturalization · Probate

Japanese
World War II Files, 1942-1946

Public Welfare/Social Security Department, (Japanese Internment) Assistance Cases, Evacuee Referrals for Resettlement and Assistance, 1945-1946 from the Washington State Archives – Digital Archives

Guardianship
Guardianship of orphans or adults unable to manage their own affairs were handled by the probate and the Federal District courts. See Washington Court Records.

History Timeline
Historical County Boundaries from Newberry Library Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were gleaned from Wilma, David. Grant County -- Thumbnail History, History Link.org Essay 8010.


 * Indian cultures such as the Interior Salish, Wenatchi, and Okanogan were the earliest inhabitants of the region.
 * Mid 1800s - The first white settlers devoted themselves primarily to raising livestock.
 * 1909 February 24 - The Washington state Legislature formally created Grant County.
 * 1944-48 – With the completion of Grand Coulee Dam and the Columbia Basin Reclamation Project, many people moved to Grant County to work on farms.

Naturalization and Citizenship
Declarations of Intent before 1906 often include the nation of origin, his* foreign and "Americanized" names, residence, and date of arrival. See Washington Naturalization and Citizenship for more information. (*Women were not naturalized until 1922 in the United States.)

Washington State Digital Archives has digitized various types of naturalization-related records, including declarations of intentions, delayed birth files, naturalization affidavits, notifications of application for admission to US citizenship, orders fixing naturalization terms, petitions and records, petitions, receipts for certificates of citizenship, record of final decrees of citizenship and record of petitions dockets. Depending on the county, records range from 1854-1988.
 * Naturalization Records, 1909-1978 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)

Newspapers

 * Newspapers (Sortable by towns, years, and titles)

Obituaries
Also check:


 * Newspapers of
 * Local Funeral Homes, Libraries, or family records.
 * Obituaries of neighboring counties

Postmaster Indexes

 * Prior to 1965 Part of: County Records, Prior to 1965 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

Probate Records

 * 1909-1930 Part of: County Records, 1856-2009 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

School Records

 * 1910-1925 Part of: County Records, 1856-2009 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

Marriage

 * 1890-2004 Part of: County Records, 1856-2009 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)
 * Marriage Records, 1909-2003 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)

Divorce
Divorce records give the names of the parties and may give the date and place of their marriage. See Washington Vital Records for excellent information.

Death

 * Washington Death Certificates 1907-1960 A free internet index to the 1907-1960 death certificates can be found at FamilySearch Record Search, no images are available. A transcribed death certificate may contain such information as name of the deceased, date and place of death, age, gender, birth date and birth place, mother’s maiden name and name of spouse, place of residence, occupation and certificate numbers.

Websites
Sites with online indexes or images of records:


 * Wenatchee Area Genealogical Society
 * Web Sites at RootsWeb - Grant WA (Free)
 * The Grant County WAGenWeb Project (free), a member of The WAGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project (free) for grant County. (Mirror site)
 * Current Collections at Washington State Digital Archives (Free) Type county name, click Search, then select a collection. Collections were posted to the appropriate headings for this Wiki page in November, 2013.
 * Historical Collections at FamilySearch.org. (Free) Click "Last Updated." Collections through October 2013 have been posted to the appropriate headings for this Wiki page.

Sites that search the Internet for records online:


 * Linkpendium (free)
 * CyndisList (free)

Major catalogs to offline genealogical records: Catalogs refer to books, microfilm, manuscripts, and/or Internet images and indexes for various topics.


 * for (Select topics. Add comma to select towns.)
 * WorldCat To find libraries near you that have items of interest, see WorldCat Online Catalog.
 * Allen County Public Library (Indiana)
 * See also local libraries and Washington Archives and Libraries

Archives, Libraries, etc.
Resources for are available in libraries, archives, and other repositories at all levels: the town, the county, the state (including universities), and the nation.


 * Check websites and catalogs, such as items in (Utah) or Allen County Public Library (Indiana) for.

Courthouse
Grant County Courthouse 35 C Street NW PO Box 37 Ephrata, WA 98823-0037 Phone 509.754.2011 County Auditor has marriage and land records from 1909. County Clerk has divorce, probate and court records.

Family History Centers

 * Ephrata Washington Family History Center
 * Moses Lake Washington Family History Center
 * Quincy Washington Family History Center

Libraries
Online Resources: The public libraries in Grant County are part of North Central Regional Library. Their Research and Homework Center includes Heritage Quest. Library cards and passwords may be required for access.


 * Coulee City Community Library, 405 W Main, Coulee City 99115  Phone: (509) 632-8751


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Ephrata Community Library, 45 Alder Nw, Ephrata 98823  Phone: (509) 754-3971


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Grand Coulee Community Library, 225 Federal, Grand Coulee 99133  Phone: (509) 633-0972


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Mattawa Community Library, 61 Government Way, Mattawa 99349  Phone: (509) 932-5507


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Moses Lake Community Library, 418 E 5th Ave, Moses Lake 98837  Phone: (509) 765-3489


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Quincy Community Library, 108 B St Sw, Quincy 98848  Phone: (509) 787-2359


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Royal City Community Library, 356 Camelia, Royal City 99357  Phone: (509) 346-9281


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Soap Lake Community Library, 32 E Main, Soap Lake 98851  Phone: (509) 246-1313


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Warden Community Library, 305 S Main, Warden 98857  Phone: (509) 349-2226


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:

Towns and Communities
See a list of towns and communities in Grant County per Wikipedia.