McKean County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

United States Pennsylvania  McKean County

History
Named for Thomas McKean, former 3-term Governor of Pennsylvania (1799-1808), and signer of the Declaration of Independence.

Parent County
26 March 1804: McKean County was created from Lycoming County.

Boundary Changes

 * 18 April 1843: Elk County created.
 * 29 March 1860: Cameron County created.

Neighboring Counties
Cameron | Elk | Forest | Potter | Warren | New York counties: Allegany | Cattaraugus

Cemeteries
LDS Cemetery Records US Vol. 1 page 87 - Sawyer City

Land
McKean County Recorder of Deeds 500 West Main Street Smethport, PA 16749 Phone: (814) 887-3250

Due to the lack of vital records for Pennsylvania, land records are an important tool in early Pennsylvania research. Land records will list the seller and purchaser of the property and may hide clues to family connections. Land records for McKean County are available from the recorder's office for 1806 to the present.


 * Images are available on-line from 1973 to the present using the Landex system. There is a fee to view the images.
 * Deed books, 1806-1886; Indexes, 1806-1972
 * Deeds, 1806-1868; Deed Index 1806-1900

Maps
Ancestor Tracks has posted free and downloadable images from the 1856 Map of McKean County and the map of McKean Co. Pennsylvania Compiled and Published by D.G. Beers &amp; Co., 1871. These wall maps in the Library of Congress show major landowners and geographic sites at the dates of publishing. While the physical maps are in the public domain, the images we have taken of the maps belong to us and are not to be used commercially. We hereby give permission to use them strictly for personal use; please attribute to Ancestor Tracks.

Migration
Early migration routes for European settlers to and from included:


 * Catskill Turnpike, trail 1760s; turnpike 1804, from Catskill to Bath, New York with extensions to Buffalo, New York, or Erie, Pennsylvania
 * Forbidden Path, 1767 from Athens, Pennsylvania to Salamanca, New York

Newspapers
Free online access to newspaper titles published in McKean County, PA

smethport.newspaperarchive.com/

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers

Web Sites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.