Washoe County, Nevada Genealogy

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

Description
The county was named after the Washoe people who originally inhabited the area. It is located in the northwest area of the state.

County Courthouse
Washoe County Courthouse 75 Court Street PO Box 11130 Reno, NV 89520 Phone: 775-328-3260 Washoe County Website County Health Department has birth, death and burial records from 1900. County Clerk has divorce, probate, court and naturalization records from 1862. County Recorder has land records from 1862 and marriage records from 1871.

Record Loss
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Boundary Changes

 * Parent County: created 25 November 1861 as an original county
 * County Seat: Reno
 * Interactive Formation Boundary Map of Nevada - shows boundary changes for Nevada Counties
 * Nevada Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library

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:

State and Territory Census Records

 * 1850  at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images; Nevada was included in both the 1850 New Mexico and Utah Territory Censuses.
 * 1860  at FamilySearch Historical Records — index and images; Nevada was included in both the 1860 New Mexico and Utah Territory Censuses.
 * 1860 Nevada, Compiled Census Index, 1860-1910 at Ancestry ($), index
 * 1862-1863 1862-1863 Nevada Territory Tax List - Index
 * 1875 Nevada State Census, 1875 at Ancestry ($), index

Federal Census Records
Federal Censuses were taken for the state of Nevada starting in 1870. Although, those living in south-eastern Nevada in 1870 may be enumerated in Utah or Arizona because of disputed boundaries with Nevada. For links to Federal Census indexes, see Nevada Census.

Church Records
Church records are usually found in town records rather than on the county level. Search the FamilySearch Catalog - Place Search for the appropriate town in Washoe County.

Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Reno
 * Sparks
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records
The 2nd Judicial District Court, State of Nevada, Washoe County, handles divorce and probate as well as other court matters.

Directories

 * 1868-1869 Nevada Directory 1868-1869 at Ancestry ($), index only, includes settlers of Nevada.
 * 1913-1981 U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 at Ancestry ($), Index and images, Reno City Directories, various years.
 * 1941 U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 at Ancestry ($), Index and images, Reno, Sparks and Washoe County City Directories.
 * 1944 U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995 at Ancestry ($), Index and images, Gerlach City Directory.

Land and Property Records
The Washoe County Recorder handles land records.

The grantor/grantee index on this website allows searches of public records from 19 November 1991 to the present. Available images are "unofficial" copies only at $1.00 per page.

For official copies or questions about documents prior to 19 November 1991, call the Washoe County Recorder's office at 775-328-3660 or e-mail [mailto:record@mail.co.washoe.nv.us record@mail.co.washoe.nv.us]

Online Land Records

For more information see Nevada Land and Property
 * 1796-1907 U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907 at Ancestry - index, info taken from Bureau of Land Management website.
 * 1863-1908 U.S. Homestead Records 1863-1908 at Ancestry ($), index and images.
 * Land Patent Search - index to federal patents and homesteads on the Bureau of Land Management website, some images available.

Local Histories

 * Church and Cemetery Records of Washoe County, Nevada. c1971. By Trinity Episcopal Church (Reno, Nevada). Salt Lake City, Utah : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah. Online at:.
 * Excerpts from Memories of George E. Peckham: Printed by Nevada Historical Society Papers, 1917-1920. c1964. By Nona Parkin. N.p: n.p..
 * General History and Resources of Washoe County, Nevada. c1888. By N. A. Hummel. Reno, Nevada : Evening Gazette Job Print..
 * Granite Creek: A Nevada Stage Station. By Alan H. Patera. Journal Article: Western places : a chronicle of western settlement - v. 2 (1993) - v. 2, no. 1 (Mar. 1993). At various libraries(WorldCat).
 * Hunter's Station, Nevada. By Alan H. Patera. Journal Article: Western places : a chronicle of western settlement - v. 3 (1994-1995) - v. 3, no. 1 (spring 1994).  At various libraries(WorldCat).
 * Reno, Hub of the Washoe County: An Illustrated History. c1984. By William D. Rowley. Woodland Hills, California : University of Nevada Reno..
 * The Saga of the Grosch Brothers. By Louis J. Heizmann. Journal Article: Historical review of Berks County - v. 18 (1952) - v. 18, no. 4 (July/Sept. 1953).
 * Sagebrush Chronicles [of] Washoe County. c1971. By David Basso. Reno, Nevada : n.p..

Online County Histories
 * Bowers Mansion. c1952. By Gloria Millicent Mapes. Reno, Nevada : Reno Chapter, Daughters of the American Colonists. Online at: FamilySearch Online Books;.

Google Books has some books about the history and people in Washoe County, Nevada. Try various search terms, including the names of people. Books designated with "Full view" can be read online.

Search FamilySearch Catalog Place Search for Washoe County, Nevada. See if films are available at a local family history center. Public libraries may have copies of books or order through Interlibrary Loan.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Historical Maps of Nevada
 * David Rumsey Collection for Nevada
 * Perry-Castaneda Map Collection for Nevada
 * Washoe County GIS Home Page
 * Interactive Formation Boundary Map of Nevada - shows boundary changes for Nevada Counties
 * Historical Maps and Atlases of Nevada - maps and atlases of Nevada

Migration
Early migration routes to and from Washoe County, Nevada Genealogy for emigrant settlers included:


 * California Trail 1844 to 1869 from western Missouri to northern California
 * Truckee (River) Trail 1844 followed the Truckee River west past Reno, Nevada to Donner Pass to Emigrant Gap to Sutter's Fort (Sacramento, California). The exact route varied over the years, the most used being the Nevada City Road and Auburn Emigrant Road combination.
 * Applegate Trail1846 (avoided the Forty Mile Desert) by leaving the Humboldt River in Nevada early at present-day Rye Reservoir, Nevada and passing through the Black Rock Desert to Fandango Pass past Goose Lake on to the Lost River and eventually the Willamette Valley in Oregon
 * Beckwourth Trail 1850 left the Truckee Trail near present-day Sparks, Nevada going to Oroville and Marysville, California
 * Nobles Road 1851 from the Applegate Trail at Rabbithole Springs in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada to Shasta City, California


 * Central Overland Trail 1859-1869 from Salt Lake City, Utah to Carson City, Nevada through central Nevada on a route south of the Humboldt River]
 * Central Pacific Railroad since 1869 from Ogden, Utah to Sacramento, California

Online Collections
These collections are unique to Nevada. You will find nationwide databases for military records on U.S. Military Online Genealogy Records and Nevada Military Records. Civil War World War I World War II Korea War Vietnam War Other Conflicts For further information see Nevada Military Records.
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch — index
 * 1863-1866 Nevada Civil War Volunteers, 1863-1866 ($) at Ancestry — index
 * Nevada - Soldiers of the Great War
 * Nevada Casualties of World War II
 * 1940-1945 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Nevada Military Killed in Action in Korea
 * U.S. Military Fatal Casualties of the Korean War for Nevada
 * Nevada Military Killed in Action in Vietnam
 * The Vietnam Veterans Memorial - Nevada
 * Vietnam Conflict Casualty Lists - Nevada
 * Nevadans Killed in Action - Operation Enduring Freedom & Operation Iraqi Freedom

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1956-1991 Nevada, Naturalization Petitions, 1956-1991 at Ancestry ($), index

Newspapers

 * Ancestry.com ($) has digital copies of several Reno Nevada newspapers.
 * Genealogy.Bank.com ($) also has digital newspapers for Nevada.
 * NewspaperArchive.com ($) has a collection of digitized Reno newspapers going back to 1870 online. This database is sometimes free at libraries.
 * GenealogyBank ($), contains images of Nevada newspapers
 * Newspaper Archive ($), contains images of Nevada newspapers
 * Chronicling America - contains images of some Nevada newspapers; searching tips
 * Elephind - Free; search engine that retrieves newspaper images from other free newspaper websites
 * U.S. Newspaper Directory, 1690-Present on Chronicling America - contains a list of all known newspapers and the dates they cover; once you locate a newspaper name, contact the local library to see if they have copies of the newspaper

Birth

 * 1871-1992 at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1975-2012 Nevada Birth Index 1975-2012 at Ancestry ($)

Marriage

 * Nevada, Marriage Index, 1956-2005
 * 1809-2011 Western States Marriage Index, 1809-2011 - Index, incomplete, list of counties included
 * 1956-2005 Nevada Marriage Index 1956-2005 at Ancestry ($)
 * The Nevada State Library and Archives has marriage licenses for Washoe County from 1862 to 1872. The original marriage certificate registers are in the county recorder's office and have not been microfilmed by the Family History Library.

Death

 * 1871-1992 at FamilySearch — index and images

Divorce

 * 1968-2015 Nevada Divorce Records 1968-2015 at Ancestry ($)

Family History Centers

 * Reno Family History Center

Libraries

 * Washoe County Public Libraries 301 South Center Street Reno, NV 89501 Phone: 775-327-8300 or 775-327-8341 Website

Museums

 * Division of Museums and History/ Nevada Historical Society 1650 North Virginia Street Reno, NV 89503 Phone: 775-688-1190 Website

Societies

 * Division of Museums and History/ Nevada Historical Society 1650 North Virginia Street Reno, NV 89503 Phone: 775-688-1190 Website
 * Wellington Historical Society PO Box 36 Wellington, NV 89444
 * Nevada State Genealogical Society PO Box 20666 Reno, NV 89515-0666 4751 Neil Road Reno, NV Website
 * Nevada Society of the Order of Founders and Patriots of America 1839 Deep Creek Dr Sparks, NV 89434-1762 Phone: 775-626-2547
 * Sparks Heritage Society 814 Victorian Ave. Sparks, NV 89431
 * Clark County Nevada Genealogy Society PO Box 1929 Las Vegas, NV 89125-1929 Website
 * Nevada Historical Society 1650 North Virginia Street Reno, NV 89503 Phone: 775-688-1190 Fax: 775-688-2917 Website
 * Tri-State Genealogical Society For Arizona, California, Nevada PO Box 21902 Bullhead City, AZ 86439 Website

Websites

 * Washoe County NV GenWeb Project
 * Nevada Genealogy Network
 * - 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
 * Nevada Genealogy Trails section for Washoe County