Hancock County, Kentucky Genealogy

Guide to Hancock County, Kentucky ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records. Located in the Western Coal Fields region.

Hancock County Kentucky Courthouse


Hancock County Courthouse 225 Main Cross Street PO Box 146 Hawesville, KY 42348 Phone: 270.927.6117

Hancock County Kentucky History


The county is named after John Hancock (1737-1793), a signer of the Declaration of Independence.

Parent County
1829--Hancock County was created 3 January 1829 from Breckinridge, Daviess and Ohio Counties. County seat: Hawesville

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Kentucky county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Kentucky County Boundary Maps" (1776-1939) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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

Neighboring Counties

 * Breckinridge
 * Daviess
 * Ohio
 * Perry County, Indiana
 * Spencer County, Indiana

African Americans
The following have information concerning African American research. Both should be used:


 * the KY African American Griots Project ~ The Kentucky African American Griots Project
 * Sandi Gorin's Tips ~ Hangings in Kentucky 1792 - 1900
 * African American Research (US) has more information about the kinds of records
 * Kentucky Minorities has information specific to Kentucky African Americans.

Biographies

 * KY Biographies ~ Jeff Murphy's Kentucky Biographies Project

Cemeteries
The following web sites have additional information on Hancock county cemeteries.


 * Interment.net Kentucky cemetery records by county.


 * Cemetery Junction ~  Links to cemetery transcriptions


 * Naming the Forgotten ~ Naming the Forgotten - The Eastern State Hospital Project


 * ePodunk list of Hancock County cemeteries gives the names of the cemeteries in the county with a link to more information such as address, phone number, and web site.

Census

 * USGenWeb Census Project ~ Kentucky Census Transcriptions 1850 - 1930
 * The USGenWeb Census Images ~ The USGenWeb Census Images Project
 * Kentucky Census Transcriptions ~ The USGenWeb Census Project
 * Census Online ~ Census Online

Church

 * Kentucky Christian Church Directory ~ ChurchAngel
 * Catholic Parishes in the Diocese of Lexington
 * Catholic Parishes in the Archdiocese of Louisville

Court

 * Abstracts of Early KY Court Cases Abstracts of Early Supreme Court Cases ~ KYGenWeb Special Project
 * Kentucky Court of Justice Research &amp; Reference

Land

 * The KY Land Office

Local Histories

 * ~ The Archives of Appalachia

Maps

 * Maps of Kentucky (1776-1939)
 * KYGenWeb compiled list of maps
 * Click on the county to go to the KYGenWeb site

Military

 * Military Resources ~ Revolutionary War through Civil War

Civil War
Online Records
 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861-1865 - U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1861-1865 - U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1912-1950 - at FamilySearch — index and images

World War I

 * Fallen Soldiers in WWI from KY ~ Fallen Soldiers in WWI from Kentucky

Korean War

 * Korean War Memorial Korean War Memorial for Soldiers from KY ~ KYGenWeb

Miscellaneous

 * Kentucky Postcards ~ The USGenWeb Archives Penny Postcard Project
 * The KYGenWeb Footsteps ~ The Kentucky Footsteps Archives ~ KYGenWeb Special Project

Newspapers

 * Kentucky News -  Kentucky Newspaper Index with links
 * Another Kentucky Newspaper Index with links
 * Kentucky Newspapers on Microfilm  -   Kentucky Newspapers Available On Microfilm

Obituaries

 * KY Footsteps Archives ~ KY Footsteps List Archives - thousands of obituaries here ~ KYGenWeb Project
 * KY Obituary Sources ~ Kentucky Obituary Sources ~ Compiled by the KYGenWeb Project
 * Links to research and locate obituaries
 * Browning Genealogy Database ~ The Browning Genealogy Database - A Collection of Obituaries Compiled by Charles Browning.
 * USGenWeb Archives Obituary Project ~  Kentucky Obituary Project
 * Afrigeneas ~ African American death notices, obituaries and funeral programs compiled by users from current newspapers and historical sources
 * Obituary Depot ~ Kentucky Newspaper Citations
 * Obituary Daily Times ~ Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries including interactive search function
 * Nashville Advocate ~ Death Abstracts from the Nashville Christian Advocate

Probate
Online Probate Records


 * 1774 – 1999 Kentucky Wills and Probate Records 1774-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1727 – 1990 at FamilySearch — images

Vital Records
See also How to order Kentucky Vital Records

Birth

 * 1839-1960 - KY Births and Christenings ~ Kentucky Births and Christenings, 1839-1960 Family Search
 * 1852-1861 - Hancock County Birth Index 1852-1861. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1874-1875 - Hancock County Birth Index 1874-1875. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1875 - Hancock County Birth Index 1875. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * Searchable KY Vital Records ~ Searchable databases of KY Births, Deaths and Marriages

Marriage

 * 1783-1979 - KY Marriage Records ~ KY Marriages 1783 - 1979 ~ Family Search
 * 1797-1954 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1853-1861 - Hancock County Marriage Index 1853-1861. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1875 - Hancock County Marriage Index 1875. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1876-1878 - Hancock County Marriage Index 1876-1878. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1973-2000 - Kentucky Marriage Records 1973 - 2000  ~ Kentucky Marriage Records - 1973 - 2000
 * Searchable KY Vital Records ~ Searchable databases of KY Births, Deaths and Marriages

Death

 * 1843-1970 - KY Deaths and Burials ~ KY Deaths and Burials 1843 - 1970
 * 1911-1963 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * The Kentucky Vital Records Project Transcriptions of and Images of KY Death Certificates - A Work in Progress ~ The KY Vital Records Project
 * Searchable KY Vital Records ~ Searchable databases of KY Births, Deaths and Marriages
 * The Social Security Death Index The Social Security Death Index - Searchable

Divorce

 * 1973-1993 - KY Divorces 1973 - 1993 ~ Kentucky Divorce Records 1973 - 1993 ~ University of Kentucky Vital Records Databases

Hancock County Kentucky Genealogy Societies and Libraries
Hancock County Historical Society Box 605 Hawesville KY 42348

Genealogical Society of Hancock County Hancock County Archives 200 Main Cross Street PO Box 667 Hawesville, Kentucky 42348 Telephone: 270-927-8095 E-mail:[mailto:megibbs1@tds.net megibbs1@tds.net] Website Website


 * Links and addresses to Kentucky genealogical and historical societies

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers

Hancock County Kentucky Genealogy Websites

 * Hancock County, KY History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Hancock County KYGenWeb
 * Hancock County USGenWeb Archives
 * KYGenWeb project. Has maps, name indexes, history or other information for each county. Select the county.
 * State of Kentucky Website
 * USGenWeb Kentucky Archives ~ Kentucky in the USGenWeb Archives ~ Vital statistics, maps, obituaries, Bible records, tombstone transcriptions and many other records.
 * The USGenWeb project May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * Hancock-Hart County, Kentucky Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Hancock County KY Genealogy (Kentucky Genealogy)
 * Hancock County KY Genealogy (Kentucky Genealogy)