Whitman County, Washington Genealogy

United States Washington  Whitman County   Guide to  genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records, since 1871, when the county was formed.

Parent County(s)
Whitman County, Washington was created 29 November 1871 from Stevens County.

County Seat: Colfax. See also Towns and Communities in. For Courthouse, see Archives, libraries, etc.

Boundary Changes

 * Historical County Boundaries from Newberry Library

Courthouse
Whitman County Courthouse N 404 Main Street Box 390 Colfax, WA 99111-2031 Phone: 509–397–6240 County Clerk has marriage records 1872-1891, probate records from 1870, divorce and court records from 1864, and naturalization records 1862-1942. County Auditor has birth and death records 1891-1907 and land records.

See also Archives, libraries, etc. in.

Neighboring Counties
is surrounded by: Adams | Asotin | Columbia | Garfield | Franklin | Lincoln | Spokane | Walla Walla | Idaho counties: Benewah | Latah | Nez Perce

Topics for
The types of records that follow are used for genealogy and family history. Most tell what you may learn and how to locate the records. Links to Internet sites usually go directly to entries with names, images, or information.

Business and Commerce

 * 1885-1979 Part of: County Records, 1856-2009 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

Cemeteries
Albion Cemetery Bethel Cemetery Coleman Cemetery Colfax Cemetery Colton Cemetery Colyar Cemetery Dusty Cemetery Eaton Cemetery (Rock Lake Cemetery) Eden Valley Cemetery Elberton Cemetery Ewartsville Cemetery (Lone Pine Cemetery) Farr Cemetery Garfield Cemetery Goldenrod Cemetery, Tekoa Greenwood Cemetery Gresham Cemetery Hatley Cemetery Hay Cemetery Holy Rosary Cemetery Johnson Cemetery Lone Pine Cemetery McConnell Cemetery Mountain View Cemetery (Endicott) Mountain View Cemetery (Farmington) Myers Family Cemetery Oakesdale Cemetery Old German Methodist Cemetery Onecho Cemetery Pine City Cemetery Pullman I.O.O.F. Cemetery Riggs Cemetery Sacred Heart Catholic Cemetery Saint Boniface Cemetery Saint John Cemetery Selbu Cemetery Sheahan Cemetery (Old Thornton) Silver Creek Cemetery Thornton Cemetery Uniontown Community Cemetery Whelan Cemetery Winona Cemetery Zion Lutheran Cemetery

*Alpha list of cemeteries in the county with links to online transcripts.

Census

 * Index to the 1880 census of Whitman County, Washington Territory (If the link does not work, go to ancestry.com ($), click Search, select Card Catalog, paste Title into search box, click Search)


 * See Washington Census for online indexes and images of US federal censuses. of: 1856, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, and 1940.
 * See statewide printed indexes, including 1856.
 * Check county indexes when online indexes fail. Created by people who knew the families of the area, they are often more accurate and they may have added insights. See periodicals and local libraries or other record holders.


 * Census indexes at Washington State Digital Archives: (Free)
 * Federal: 1910
 * Territorial: 1883 • 1885 •  1887 •  1889
 * These were indexed by local societies and individuals.


 * For censuses prior to 1872, look under Stevens County.
 * 1883 Washington Territorial Census Whitman County
 * 1885 Washington Territorial Census Whitman County
 * 1887 Washington Territorial Census Whitman County
 * 1889 Washington Territorial Census Whitman County
 * 1890 Federal Veterans Census on ancestry.com $
 * 1900 Federal Population Census on ancestry.com $
 * 1910 Federal Population Census at Washington State Digital Archives.
 * 1920 Federal Population Census on ancestry.com $
 * 1930 Federal Population Census on ancestry.com $
 * 1940 Federal Population Census on ancestry.com $

Church Records

 * Church records (microfilmed originals or published transcripts) for are listed in the . (Press space bar to select town.)

Election Records

 * 1892-1938 Part of: County Records, 1856-2009 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

Japanese
World War II Files, 1942-1946

Public Welfare/Social Security Department, (Japanese Internment) Assistance Cases, Evacuee Referrals for Resettlement and Assistance, 1945-1946 from the Washington State Archives – Digital Archives

Guardianship
Guardianship of orphans or adults unable to manage their own affairs were handled by the probate and the Federal District courts. See Washington Court Records.

History
Washington State University is located in Pullman.


 * Historic sketches of Walla Walla, Whitman, Columbia and Garfield Counties, Washington Territory, and Umatilla County, Oregon (If the link does not work, go to ancestry.com ($), click Search, select Card Catalog, paste Title into search box, click Search). For free at Archive.org.


 * An Illustrated history of Whitman County, state of Washington (If the link does not work, go to ancestry.com ($), click Search, select Card Catalog, paste Title into search box, click Search)


 * "Whitman County Historical Society " online
 * "Silver Creek Cemetery (Whitman County)" online
 * "Family History & Genealogy" online
 * "Whitman County, Alabama (Washington) Facts" online
 * "Whitman County Genealogy & Family History Resources" online

History Timeline
Historical County Boundaries from Newberry Library Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were gleaned from Wilma, David. Whitman County -- Thumbnail History,History Link.org Essay 7327.


 * Whitman County, was home to bands of Palouse and other Sahaptin-speaking people, including the Nez Perce tribe.
 * 1805 October 11-13 - Lewis and Clark canoed on the Snake River along the southern boundary of Whitman County.
 * 1859 June - The first recorded Euro-American exploration along Union Flat Creek, the birthplace of settlement for Whitman County, by Lieutenant John Mullan of the United States Army.
 * 1871 November 29 - The county was formed from Stevens County.
 * The county has a primarily agricultural history, with an emphasis on wheat (today it ranks first in wheat production among Washington counties and second among counties in the nation).

Maps



 * Family Maps of Whitman County, Washington (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.

Naturalization and Citizenship
Declarations of Intent before 1906 often include the nation of origin, his* foreign and "Americanized" names, residence, and date of arrival. See Washington Naturalization and Citizenship for more information. (*Women were not naturalized until 1922 in the United States.)

Newspapers

 * Newspapers (Sortable by towns, years, and titles)

Walla Walla Statesman newspaper, online at the Washington State Library, may have articles covering early Whitman County.

Probate Records

 * 1876-1967 Part of: County Records, 1856-2009 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

Public Records

 * Whitman Postmaster Index. Part of Washington, Postmaster Indexes, Prior to 1965, FamilySearch Historical Collections for Washington. (Free, browse images)

School Records

 * 1888-1932 Part of: County Records, 1856-2009 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

Birth

 * 1891-1907 Part of: County Records, 1856-2009 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)
 * Birth Records, 1873-1907 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection.(Free)


 * Washington State Digital Archives has a database of Whitman County Birth Records. This database contains the names and birth records of people who were born in Whitman County from 1890 to 1907.
 * Births from Whitman County Jan. 1875 to Aug 1907.

Marriage

 * 1872-1947 Part of: County Records, 1856-2009 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)
 * Marriage Records, 1872-2002 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection.(Free)


 * 102 marriage entries from 23 Oct 1872 to 13 Dec 1909 are available at the Western States Marriage Index website.

Divorce
Divorce records give the names of the parties and may give the date and place of their marriage. See Washington Vital Records for excellent information.

Death

 * 1891-1907 Part of: County Records, 1856-2009 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)
 * Death Returns 1891-1907 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection.(Free)


 * Washington State Digital Archives has a database of Whitman County Death Returns containing names of people who died in Whitman County from 1891-1907. For FHL entries,
 * Washington Death Certificates 1907-1960 A free internet index to the 1907-1960 death certificates can be found at FamilySearch Record Search, no images are available. A transcribed death certificate may contain such information as name of the deceased, date and place of death, age, gender, birth date and birth place, mother’s maiden name and name of spouse, place of residence, occupation and certificate numbers.

Websites
Sites with online indexes or images of records:
 * WAGenWeb Whitman County
 * USGenWeb
 * Current Collections at Washington State Digital Archives (Free) Type county name, click Search, then select a collection. Collections were posted to the appropriate headings for this Wiki page in November, 2013.
 * Historical Collections at FamilySearch.org. (Free) Click "Last Updated." Collections through October 2013 have been posted to the appropriate headings for this Wiki page.
 * Web Sites at RootsWeb -Whitman WA (Free)

Sites that search the Internet for records online:


 * Linkpendium (free)
 * CyndisList (free)

Major catalogs to offline genealogical records: Catalogs refer to books, microfilm, manuscripts, and/or Internet images and indexes for various topics.


 * for (Select topics. Add comma to select towns.)
 * WorldCat To find libraries near you that have items of interest, see WorldCat Online Catalog.
 * Allen County Public Library (Indiana)
 * See also local libraries and Washington Archives and Libraries

Archives, Libraries, etc.
Resources for are available in libraries, archives, and other repositories at all levels: the town, the county, the state (including universities), and the nation.


 * Check websites and catalogs, such as items in (Utah) or Allen County Public Library (Indiana) for.

Family History Centers

 * Colfax Washington Family History Center Almota Rd, Colfax, WA 99111 United States

Libraries

 * Whitman County Rural Library District
 * Branches and Locations
 * Genealogy / Data Base Tools
 * Special or Unique Collections (help needed from each branch)


 * Pullman (Niell Public Library)
 * Online Resources
 * Special or Unique Collections (help needed from each branch)

Towns and Communities
See a list of towns and communities in Whitman County per Wikipedia.