Ashtabula County, Ohio Genealogy

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

Historical Facts

 * Parent Counties: Formed from Geauga and Trumbull Counties 10 February 1807.
 * County Seat: Jefferson

Description
The county was named for a Native American word meaning "river of many fish." It's county seat is Jefferson and was formed June 7, 1807. It is located in the Northeastern area of the state.

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:

Neighboring Counties
Lake County •  Geauga County  •  Trumbull County  •  Erie County  •  Crawford County  •  Mercer County

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Ohio county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Ohio County Boundary Maps" (1788-1888) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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

Bible Records
For an extensive list of resources for Bible Records see Ohio Bible Records.

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


 * Some Cemeteries in Ashtabula County with photos and transcriptions can be found on the Ashtablula County Genealogy Society's Website.

Local Histories

 * Large, Moina W., History of Ashtabula County, Ohio (Topeka-Indianapolis [Indiana] : Historical Pub. Co., 1924) Digital version of Volume 1 at ; Volume 2 at ; also available on microfilm at.
 * Williams, William W., History of Ashtabula County, Ohio : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its pioneers and most prominent men (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania : Williams Bros., 1878) Digital version at ; also available on microfilm at.

Maps

 * Maps of Ohio (1788-1940)

Military

 * 1888-1919 - at FamilySearch — index and images


 * Civil War Civil War service men from Ashtabula County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in Ashtabula County.


 * - 1st Regiment, Ohio Cavalry. Company F
 * - 105th Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Company G

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1800-1977 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers
Online Newspapers The Star Beacon Ashtabula, Ohio 4626 Park Ave. Ashtabula, OH 44004 Online Newspaper Abstracts


 * various years - some newspaper articles Courtesy of OhioGenWeb Archives
 * various years - newspaper clippings from Farm Book 1 &amp; 2 containing marriage and obituary notices and social events Courtesy of OhioGenWeb Archives

Newspaper Extracts and Abstracts in Book Form

Obituaries

 * 1858-2021 - Web: Ashtabula County, Ohio, Obituary Index, 1858-2012at Ancestry.com ($)

Probate
Online Probate Records
 * 1786 - 1998 Ohio Wills and Probate Records 1786-1998 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1789 - 1996 at FamilySearch.org — images
 * 1790–1967 - at FamilySearch Historical Records – free. This collection consists of probate records and estate files from county courthouses in Ohio. The content and time period varies by county, with more records being added as they become available. This Collection will include records from 1789 to 1996. Currently, (September 2012) the collection is only searchable by browsing the images. A list of Fires that have destroyed records in the courthouses of several counties are listed on the Record Description page.
 * 1798-1892 - Wills and probate records Courtesy of OhioGenWeb Archives

Courthouse
Ashtabula County Courthouse 25 W Jefferson Street Jefferson, OH 44047 Phone: 440.576.3637

Probate Court has birth and death records 1867-1908, marriage records from 1811 and probate records from 1880’s. County Health Department has birth and death records from 1909. Court Clerk has divorce records from 1811 and court records from 1800’s. County Recorder has land records from 1800.

Western Reserve Historical Society
The Connecticut Western Reserve  was a part of northeast Ohio originally intended for settlement by Revolutionary War refugees from Connecticut. The former Connecticut Western Reserve  lands were in the modern counties of Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Erie, Geauga, Huron, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage, and Trumbull fully, but also in parts of Ashland, Mahoning, Ottawa, Summit, and Wayne counties in Ohio.

The Research Library at the Western Reserve Historical Society History Center  is the premier repository for Cleveland, Ohio and Connecticut Western Reserve history material. One of the principal strengths is its manuscript collections. The WRHS collection has original land records, genealogies of New England, New York, and Pennsylvania, biographies, histories, and family Bibles.

Family History Centers
Ashtabula Ohio Family History Center.For additional nearby Family History Centers, search online in the FHC directory.

Societies

 * Ashtabula County Genealogical Society 860 Sherman Street, Geneva, Ohio (440) 466-4521 [mailto:acgs@ashtabulagen.org acgs@ashtabulagen.org]

Online Genealogy Research Groups

 * U.S. Midwest Genealogy Research Community - FamilySearch Facebook Research Group
 * Ohio Ancestors - FamilySearch Community group, must have a free FamilySearch account to join
 * U.S. and Canada Genealogy Research - FamilySearch Community group, must have a free FamilySearch account to join
 * U.S. and Canada Genealogy Research - FamilySearch Community group, must have a free FamilySearch account to join

Taxation

 * 1800–1850 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free. Name index of tax records as recorded with the County Auditor of each county. Entries are recorded in voucher books, one person per page. The majority of the tax records in this collection are for the years 1816 through 1838. Currently (2013) this collection is 17% complete. Additional records will be added as they are completed.

Birth
Online Birth Indexes and Records


 * 1800-1962 - Ohio, Births and Christenings Index, 1800-1962 at ancestry.com ($)
 * 1821–1962 - at FamilySearch Historical Records – free. This is an incomplete index of extractions of original records and of patron-submitted records. This index is not complete for any particular place or region. Information may have been previously published in the International Genealogical Index or Vital Records Index collections.
 * 1856–1909 - at FamilySearch Historical Records – free; Index. The collection includes a name index and images of county birth records in Ohio. The time period and type of record varies by county.
 * 1908-1964 - Ohio, Birth Index, 1908-1964 at ancestry.com ($)

Original Birth Records on Microfilm

Marriage
Online Marriage Indexes and Records


 * 1789-2013 - at FamilySearch — index and images. Name index and images of county marriage records acquired from local courthouses.
 * 1800–1958 - at FamilySearch Historical Records – free; Index. Name index to marriage records from the state of Ohio. Microfilm copies of these records are available at the Family History Library and some FamilySearch Centers. Due to privacy laws, recent records may not be displayed. The year range represents most of the records. A few records may be earlier or later.
 * 1800-1942 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1803-1900 - Ohio Marriages, 1803-1900 at ancestry.com ($)
 * 1898-1912 - Ohio Marriages at ancestry.com ($)
 * 1970-2007 - Ohio Marriage Index, 1970, 1972-2007 at ancestry.com ($)
 * 1886-1908 - Some Ashabula marriages Courtesy of OhioGenWeb Archives

Original Marriage Records on Microfilm

Death
Online Death Indexes and Records


 * 1840-2001 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1854–1997 - at FamilySearch Historical Records – free; Index. Name index to death and burial records from the state of Ohio. Microfilm copies of these records are available at the Family History Library and Family History Centers. This set contains 2,535,556 records. Due to privacy laws, recent records may not be displayed. The year range represents most of the records. A few records may be earlier or later.
 * 1908–1953 - at FamilySearch Historical Records – free. Name index and images of Ohio statewide death certificates.
 * 1908–1932, 1938–1944, and 1958–2007 - at FamilySearch Historical Records – free. Index of deaths from the Ohio Department of Health in Columbus. Index provided by Ancestry.com.
 * 1908-2007 - Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, and 1958-2007 at ancestry.com ($)
 * 1911-1952 - Some county deaths Courtesy of OhioGenWeb Archives

Original Death Records on Microfilm

Divorce

 * 1962-2007 - Ohio Divorce Index, 1962-1963, 1967-1971, 1973-2007 at ancestry.com ($)

Websites

 * A great source for transcribed records pertaining to Ashtabula County, Ohio, is the Ashtabula County site at USGenWeb. The site contains a multitude of databases, including obituaries, probate, military, tax lists,marriages as early as 1811, squirrel hunter records and many more -- all searchable through the main page.


 * Another website with multiple databases of transcribed records is Genealogy Trails. The Ashtabula County section includes many marriages, births from 1867, obituaries &amp; death records. Not all databases are complete.


 * Ashtabula County, OH History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Ashtabula County OH Genealogy
 * Ohio Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * Ohio Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * Ohio Genealogy Network Group on Facebook