Summit County, Ohio Genealogy

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

Summit County, Ohio Record Dates

 * Parent Counties: Formed from Medina, Portage, and Stark Counties in 1840.
 * County Seat: Akron

Description
The county was named for: The highest elevation on the Ohio and Erie Canal is located in the county. It's county seat is Akron and was founded March 3, 1840. It is located in the North-central 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
Cuyahoga County • Geauga County • Portage County • Stark County • Wayne County • Medina County

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Ohio county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Ohio County Boundary Maps" (1788-1940) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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

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


 * Bath Township Cemeteries
 * Locust Grove Cemetery
 * Many cemetery records for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see.
 * 1882-1949 - at FamilySearch — index and images

A wiki article describing an online collection is found at: Ohio, Summit County, Coroner Inquests, Hospital and Cemetery Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Census and Directories

 * 1840 United States Federal Census $
 * United States Census (Mortality Schedule), 1850
 * United States Census 1850
 * U. S. Federal Census Mortality Schedules, 1850-1880 $
 * United States Census, 1860
 * United States Census 1860
 * 1860 United States Federal Census $
 * United States Census, 1870
 * United States Census 1870
 * 1880 United States Federal Census $
 * United States Census, 1880
 * United States Census 1880
 * 1890 Veterans Schedule $
 * United States Census, 1900
 * United States Census 1900
 * 1910 United States Federal Census $
 * United States Census, 1920
 * 1930 United States Federal Census $
 * U. S. City Directories for Akron 1889-1899, 1938-1939 $
 * U. S. City Directories for Akron; Barberton, Cuyahoga Falls, 1938-1939 $
 * U. S. City Directories in Akron, Portage Lake; Barberton: 1941 $
 * Historic Akron City Directories

Church Records

 * Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
 * Akron
 * Tallmadge Church (dedicated in 1825)
 * Barberton Churches
 * Churches near Summit County, Ohio
 * Summit County Ohio Churches

Finding Church Records at Other Repositories

Additional church records can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Summit County, Ohio Church Records in online catalogs like:


 * WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).

Court Records

 * The Records Project, Summit County Public Record Information Online
 * Summit County, Ohio Free Public Records Directory
 * Many court records for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see [[Many court records for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see topic details.
 * Many guardianship records for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see.

Ethnic, Political, or Religious Groups

 * Jewish Community Board

Funeral Homes

 * Funeral Homes near Summit County, Ohio

Genealogy
Summit County Ohio has a great chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society

Local Histories

 * Doyle, William B., Centennial History of Summit County, Ohio: and Representative Citizens, (Chicago, Illinois: Biographical Pub. Co., 1908). Digital copy at Google Books Internet Archive


 * Perrin, William Henry, History of Summit: With an Outline Sketch of Ohio, (Chicago, Illinois: Baskin and Bettey, 1881). Digital copy at Google Books Internet Archive


 * Bierce, Lucius Verus, Historical Reminiscences of Summit County. (Akron, Ohio: T. and H.G. Canfield, 1854). Digital copy at Google Books


 * Fifty Year Club, Summit County Looks Back Through 100 Years: An Historical Review of Akron and Summit County; 1840-1940, (Akron, Ohio: Fifty Year Club, 1940).


 * Grismer, Karl Hiram, Akron and Summit County, (Akron, Ohio: Summit County Historical Society, 1952). Digital copy at


 * Kenfield, Scott Dix, Akron and Summit County, Ohio, 1825-1929, (Chicago, Illinois: S. J. Clarke Pub. Co., 1928). Digital copy of volume 1 (volume 2 and 3 are biographical) at


 * The Formation of Summit County, Ohio
 * Historical Collections of Ohio by Henry Howe Vol. II 1888
 * Summit County History and Information
 * Akron Women's History
 * Cuyahoga Falls History
 * Discover the Heritage of Summit County, Ohio
 * Summit Co., Ohio Biographies
 * Histories of Specific Towns and Townships

Land and Property

 * Summit County, Ohio, Land Patents
 * Land Patent Search
 * U. S. General Land Office Records, 1797-1907, Ohio, Summit$
 * Many land records for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see.

Maps

 * Maps of Ohio (1788-1940)
 * Summit County Map 1856
 * 1872 Topographical Atlas
 * Combination Atlas Map of Summit County, 1874
 * Akron
 * Map of Summit County, Ohio
 * Atlas and Industrial Geography of Summit County, 1910
 * Akron Plat Map, 1915
 * Plat Book of Akron, 1921
 * Many maps for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see [[Many maps for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see topic details.

Military

 * 1888-1919 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Revolutionary War

 * Soldiers of the American Revolution, buried in or said to be buried in Summit County, Ohio

Civil War

 * Civil War Pension Index Cards
 * Civil War Soldiers Buried in Summit County
 * Civil War(scanned documents, photos)
 * List of Pensioners on the Roll January 1, 1883 in Summit County
 * Civil War service men from Summit 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 Summit County.
 * 1st Regiment, Ohio Light Artillery, Battery D
 * 104th Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Company H
 * 107th Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Company I

World War I

 * 1914-1919 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1914-1918 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1917-1918 - World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 $

World War II

 * U. S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946 $
 * U. S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 $
 * States, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942
 * World War II Casualties
 * Soldiers buried in Unmarked Graves in Summit County

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1800-1977 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * The Summit County Clerk of Courts has placed online an index and actual images of 1850 - 1991 Naturalization Records
 * Many naturalization and citizenship records for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see.

Newspapers
Online Newspapers Online Newspaper Abstracts Newspaper Extracts and Abstracts in Book Form


 * Akron Beacon Journal Subject Indexes 1841- 1939 Summit County, Ohio Newspapers
 * Akron Beacon Journal Obituary Indexes 1937 to present
 * Obituares Akron Beacon Journal (only 1 year of past obituaries held online)
 * Aurora Advocate
 * Bedford Times-Register
 * Cuyahoga Falls News-Press
 * Gateway News
 * Hudson Hub Times
 * Mapel Heights Press
 * The News Leader
 * The Record Courier
 * Stow Sentry
 * The Tallmadge Express
 * Twinsburg Bulletin

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.
 * Many probate records for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see.

Courthouse
Summit County Courthouse 53 University Avenue Akron, OH 44301 Phone: 330.643.2900 County Recorder has land records from 1840 Probate Court has birth, marriage, death and probate records

Family History Centers

 * Akron Ohio Family History Center

For additional nearby Family History Centers, search online in the FHC directory. Put your town name in the top search box.

Libraries

 * Libraries
 * Akron-Summit County Public Library
 * Special Collections
 * Summit Memory
 * Digital Library
 * Libraries, Museums, Archives
 * Herrick Memorial Library

Societies
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.

Other Societies

Summit County Chapter Ohio Genealogical Society P. O. Box 2232 Akron, OH 44309-2232 Email:[mailto:info@summitogs.org info@summitogs.org] Website
 * The Genealogical History of Richfield, Summit County, Ohio
 * The Historical Society of Olde Northfield
 * Peninsula Library &amp; Historical Society
 * Hudson Genealogical Study Group
 * Hudson Library &amp; Historical Society
 * Akron Canton and Youngstown Railroad Historical Society
 * Libraries, Museums, Archives
 * Richfield Historical Society Summit County, Ohio

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

Schools

 * Barberton, Ohio Central High School, 1919

Taxation

 * 1800-1950 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Many tax records for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see.

Birth
Online Birth Indexes and Records


 * 1800-1962 - Ohio, Births and Christenings Index, 1800-1962 at ancestry.com ($)
 * 1841-2003 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1866-1908 - Summit County, Ohio, Birth Records at ancestry.com ($)
 * 1908-1964 - Ohio, Birth Index, 1908-1964 at ancestry.com ($)


 * Birth Records (1938-Current)

Original Birth Records on Microfilm

Marriage
Online Marriage Indexes and Records


 * 1789-2013 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1800-1958 - at FamilySearch — free; Index.
 * 1800-1942 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1840-1980 - Summit County, Ohio, Marriage Records at ancestry.com ($)

Original Marriage Records on Microfilm

Death
Online Death Indexes and Records


 * 1840-2001 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1866-1908 - Summit County, Ohio, Death Records at ancestry.com ($)
 * 1882-1949 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1908-1953 - Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953. Free name indexes and images at FamilySearch. Records include such information as birth date of deceased, city, county, and state of death, name of spouse if married, names of parents, maiden name of mother, name of informant, if deceased was single, married, windowed or divorced, occupation of deceased.
 * 1908-1932, 1938-1944, 1958-2002 - Ohio Deaths, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, and 1958-2002 $
 * Many vital records for Summit County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see.
 * 1938-Present - Death Records (1938-Current)

Original Death Records on Microfilm

Websites

 * Summit County, OH History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Ohio Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * Ohio Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * Summit County OH Genealogy
 * Records and Research Facilities Summit County, Ohio
 * UsGenWeb
 * Genealogy Trails, Summit County, Ohio
 * Cindy's List for Summit County, Ohio
 * Histopolis Collaborative Genealogy and History
 * Histopolis Collaborative Genealogy and History