San Bernardino County, California Genealogy

Guide to San Bernardino County, California ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.



County Courthouse
San Bernardino County Courthouse 22 W Hospitality Lane San Bernardino, CA 92415 Phone: 909.387.8306

County Clerk has marriage license from 1887 divorce and probate records from 1856 court records from 1853 and land records from 1854; County Recorder has birth and death records from 1853 and marriage records from 1857

Historical Facts
San Bernardino County is presently the largest county in terms of geographic area within the United States. The county seat is the city of San Bernardino which is also the county's largest in terms of population, and that city lies in the southwest corner of the county.

San Bernardino itself was founded by settlers sent by Brigham Young in the 1850s, but they left when the matter known as the 'Utah War' erupted back in Utah.

San Bernardino Historical Society

Parent County
26 April 1853: San Bernardino County was created from Los Angeles County which had annexed part of San Diego County in 1851. County seat: San Bernardino

Boundary Changes
Los Angeles County and San Diego County were original counties created in 1850 when California became a state. In 1851, Los Angeles County expanded to the eastern border of California to include part of what was San Diego, County. In 1853, San Bernardino County was created from the eastern area of Los Angeles County. In 1878, additional land from Los Angeles County was added to San Bernardino County.

For animated maps illustrating California county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation California County Boundary Maps" (1850-1925) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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

Populated Places

 * Communities:
 * Apple Valley | *Barstow | Colton | Fontana | Hesperia | Highland | Ontario | Rancho Cucamonga | Redlands | Rialto | San Bernardino | Upland | Victorville
 * Merged Community:

Although the settlement of these communities began in the Spanish period, the Cucamonga US post office opened in 1864; the Alta Loma area opened as tracts in 1881 and became Alta Loma in 1913, and Etiwanda was a community planned in 1881. The three communities were merged into Rancho Cucamonga in 1977.

Neighboring Counties

 * Inyo
 * Kern
 * Los Angeles
 * Orange
 * Riverside

Church Records
LDS Ward and Branch Records


 * Colton
 * Bloomington
 * Fontana
 * Highland
 * Needles
 * Ontario
 * Redlands
 * Rialto
 * San Bernardino
 * San Bernardino 1
 * San Bernardino 2
 * Victorville
 * Yucaipa

Court Records
http://www.sb-court.org/

Maps

 * Maps of California (1850-1925)
 * www.mapsofworld.com/usa/county-maps/california/san-bernardino-county-map.html



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


 * Camino Real de California 1770s linking Spanish Mission churches in California and Baja California
 * Old Spanish Trail 1829 Los Angeles, California to Santa Fe, New Mexico
 * California Trail 1846 to 1869 from western Missouri to northern California
 * Mormon Trail to Southern California 1847 from Salt Lake City, Utah to Los Angeles, California
 * Butterfield Overland Mail 1857-1861 from San Francisco via Los Angeles to Memphis, Tennessee and St. Louis, Missouri
 * Central Overland Trail 1859-1869 from Salt Lake City, Utah to Carson City, Nevada (and usually on to northern California)
 * Union Pacific Railroad 1869 Ogden, Utah to Omaha, Nebraska
 * Central Pacific Railroad 1869 Ogden, Utah to Sacramento, California
 * Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway 1881 Los Angeles, California to Chicago, Illinois
 * Southern Pacific Railroad 1883 Los Angeles, California to New Orleans, Louisiana
 * Atlantic and Pacific Railroad 1885 Los Angeles, California to Albuquerque, New Mexico (and the Santa Fe Railway)

Newspapers

 * San Bernardino County Sunhttp://www.sbsun.com/home 4030 N. Georgia Blvd. San Bernardino, CA 92407 Phone: (909) 889-9666 All Departments: Hours: Monday through Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.


 * Serving: Adelanto, Apple Valley, Banning, Barstow, Beaumont, Big Bear, Colton, Crestline, Fontana, Grand Terrace, Hesperia, Highland, Loma Linda, Mentone, Redlands, Rialto, San Bernardino, Victorville, Yucaipa

Probate Records
Online Probate Records
 * 1782 – 1999 California Wills and Probate Records 1782-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1833 – 1991 at FamilySearch — images

County Courthouse
San Bernardino County Recorder-Clerk - Archives

Family History Centers
Introduction to LDS Family History Centers


 * Barstow California Family History Center
 * Big Bear California Family History Center
 * Chino California Family History Center
 * Fontana California Family History Center
 * Highland California Family History Center
 * Needles California Family History Center
 * Rancho Cucamonga California Family History Center
 * Redlands California Family History Center
 * Rialto California Family History Center
 * Ridgecrest California Family History Center
 * Twentynine Palms California Family History Center
 * Upland California Family History Center
 * Victorville California Family History Center
 * Yucca Valley California Family History Center

Vital Records
See also How to order California Vital Records

sanbernardinovitalrecords.com/

Marriage

 * 1850 - 1952 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1854 - 1885 - Western States Marriage Index.
 * 1960 - 1985 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Genealogy Societies, Archives and Libraries
San Bernadino Historical and Pioneer Society 796 North D Street San Bernardino, CA 92401 (909) 885-2204 Mailing Address P.O. Box 875 San Bernardino, CA 92402 Email:[mailto:sbhistoricalsociety@mac.com] Website

San Bernardino Valley Genealogical Society Feldheym Library California Room 555 W 6th St P.O. Box 26020 San Bernardino 92406 909-381-8201 Website

San Bernardino Valley Genealogical Society P.O. Box 26020 San Bernardino 92406

The Highland Area Historical Society P.O. Box 353 Highland, CA 92346-0353 Website

29 Palms Historical Society and Museum 6760 National Park Drive P.O. Box 1926 29 Palms, California 92277 Phone: (760) 367-2366 Website

The Genealogical Society of the Morongo Basin PO Box 234 Yucca Valley,CA 92286 Website

Mohave Historical Society P.O. Box 21 Victorville, CA 92393 Website

Redlands Area Historical Society P.O. Box 1024 Redlands, CA 92373 Website

San Bernardino Valley Genealogical Society P. O. Box 2128 San Bernardino, CA 92406

Big Bear Lake History Museum 630 Bartlett Road, CA (909) 585-8100

Big Bear Valley Historical Society P.O. Box 513 Big Bear City, CA 92314 Phone: 909-585-8100


 * List of California Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical &amp; Genealogical Societies

Web Sites

 * San Bernardino County, CA History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * California Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * California Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * San Bernardino County CAGenWeb
 * Linkpendium
 * USGenWeb Archives
 * USGenWeb Archives backup site