Adams County, Pennsylvania Church Records

List of Churches and Church Parishes in Adams County

 * FamilySearch Places

Databases Covering Several Denominations

 * 1620-1991 (*) at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1729-1881 Pennsylvania Church Records - Adams, Berks, and Lancaster Counties, 1729-1881 at Ancestry ($)

Catholic Church
Conewago Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, Conewago Township
 * 1790-1815  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1791-1835  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index

Episcopal/Anglican Church
Christ's Episcopal Church, York Springs
 * 1760-1763, 1784-1836, 1851-1876  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index

Lutheran Church
Christ Lutheran Church, Gettysburg Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, York Springs Lower Bermudian Lutheran and Reformed Union Congregation Lutheran and Dutch Reformed Church, Arendtsville Mark's Lutheran Reformed Church, Mount Joy Township St. Mark German Reformed and Evangelical Lutheran Congregation, Gettysburg St. James Evangelical Lutheran Church, Gettysburg St. John Lutheran Church, Abbottstown Upper Bermudian Church, Huntington Township
 * 1785-1874 Adams County, Pennsylvania, 1785-1874: Lutheran and Reformed Congregations at Ancestry ($)
 * 1837-1875 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1847-1880 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1840-1875  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1842-1880  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1745-1864  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1758-1772  in International Genealogical Index] at FamilySearch - index
 * 1770-1874  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1835-1873  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1836-1873  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1819-1875  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1830-1879  in International Genealogical Index] at FamilySearch - index
 * 1850-1877  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1850-1877  in International Genealogical Index] at FamilySearch - index
 * 1791-1874  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index

Methodist Church
The Methodist Episcopal Church, Gettysburg
 * 1854-1875  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1854-1885  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index

Presbyterian Church
Rock Creek Congregation, Gettysburg
 * Burial Record of Lower Marsh Creek Presbyterian Church at Ancestry ($).
 * 1814-1821 in International Genealogical Index] at FamilySearch - index
 * 1774-1815, 1828-1840  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index

Reformed Church
Benders Reformed Church, Butler Township Bermudian Reformed Church, Latimore Township Conewago Dutch Reformed Church, Straban Township Emanuel Reformed Church, Abbottstown German Reformed Congregation, New Oxford St. John's Evangelical and Reformed Church, Fairfield Trinity Reformed Church, Gettysburg
 * 1770-1874 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1785-1874 Adams County, Pennsylvania, 1785-1874: Lutheran and Reformed Congregations at Ancestry - index ($)
 * 1780-1852 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1745-1864  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1758-1772  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1769-1793  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1768-1875  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index; Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche.
 * 1822-1846  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1854-1875  in  International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index
 * 1835-1875  in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - index



History of Churches in Adams County
Perhaps the earliest religious denomination to be established in the county was the Church of the Brethren or the Dunkards who came around 1840. The Church of England or Episcopal congregations if the English were formed soon after. They kept few records. The Dutch Reformed church came around 1865. German Lutherans came to the county around 1780-1800. Other groups to come included Methodists, Irish Catholics, and Scotch-Irish Presbyterians. Not all the early churches to settle in the county stayed active to the present day.

Historical Sketches on Adams County Churches

 * Church Histories of Christ's Church (Union Twp.); Lower Marsh Creek Presbyterian Church (Fairfield) and Saint Aloysius Church of Littlestown. Found at Adams County, Pennsylvania USGenWeb Archives
 * Early 1800s - Present An alphabetical list of Adams County Clergymen: Their names, their churches, and their years of service.
 * History of Saint Aloysius Church of Littlestown, Pennsylvania (1893) - full-text online
 * 1708-1985 Pennsylvania, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 at Historical Society of Pennsylvania – $, to members of the society; Also available at Ancestry $
 * Contains church records of:
 * Abbottstown: St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church; St. John's Lutheran Church
 * Arendtsville: Zion United Church of Christ
 * Barlow: Mount Joy Lutheran Church
 * Bendersville: Bethlehem Lutheran Church
 * Biglerville: St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church; Trinity United Church of Christ
 * Butler: Benders Church
 * Conewago: Sacred Heart Basilica
 * East Berlin: Trinity Lutheran Church
 * Fairfield: St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church; Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church
 * Franklin: Lutheran Church
 * Gettysburg: Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church; St. James Evangelical Lutheran Church
 * Latimore: Chestnut Grove Evangelical Lutheran Church; Lower Bermudian Lutheran and Reformed Union Church
 * Littlestown: Christ United Church of Christ; St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church
 * McSherrystown: St. Paul Lutheran Church
 * Mount Joy: Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church; Marks German Reformed Evangelical Lutheran Congregations
 * Mount Pleasant: St. Luke's Evangelical Lutheran Church; United Brethren in Christ
 * Straban: St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church
 * Uriah: United Methodist Church
 * York Springs: Holy Trinity Lutheran Church; United Brethren in Christ

Archives, Libraries, and Societies with Church Records
The Adams County Historical Society Archives of the Historical Society contain:
 * A church and cemetery file.
 * A collection of Parish Register Transcripts: Many from old Lutheran and German Reformed congregations, and some from Presbyterian, Methodist, and Roman Catholic churches situated in the greater south-central and southeastern Pennsylvania and Maryland areas.
 * Baptisms, marriages, etc. in over 300 Lutheran &amp; many non-Lutheran Churches in Adams County and area.

The Adams County Historical Society website includes a detailed list of Adams County Clergymen covering the entire period of the county's history (1800-present). Clergymen's names, churches served, and dates served are included in this online resource.