Erie County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

Guide to Erie County, Pennsylvania ancestry, family history and genealogy in courthouse sources including birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, wills, deeds and land records, Civil War records, Revolutionary War records, family histories, cemeteries, churches, tax records, newspapers, and obituaries.

Erie County Pennsylvania Historical Facts


Parent Counties: Formed from Allegheny County 12 March 1800.

County Seat: Erie

Neighboring Counties: Erie County residents may also have records in:


 * Crawford
 * Ashtabula County, Ohio
 * Warren
 * Chautauqua County, New York

Named for Lake Erie. Erie is also the name of a tribe of Indians who lived south and east of the lake before 1654. Over half of Erie County was located in an area called the Erie Triangle. This area was under claim by Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Pennsylvania. These four states surrendered their claims to the federal government, which in turn sold this area to Pennsylvania in 1792.

Description
The county was named for Lake Erie. It's county seat is Erie. It was organized November 7, 1803. It is located in the Northwest corner of the state.

Boundary Changes
In 1850 a boundary line dispute between Erie and Crawford counties was settled. The line was straightened and a long, narrow strip of land was added to Erie County and some land was added to Crawford County. A number of Crawford County citizens became residents of Erie County and a less number of Erie County residents were shifted to Crawford County.

For animated maps illustrating Pennsylvania county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Pennsylvania County Boundary Maps" (1673-1878) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Record Loss
1823 Fire burned the Courthouse on March 23, 1823. The building and all books, papers, and records were destroyed.

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


 * Wintergreen Gorge Cemetery, Harborcreek BillionGraves
 * Dunn Valley Cemetery, McKean BillionGraves

Church Records
A good reference for early churches in Erie County is History of Erie County, Pennsylvania. The various churches are discussed in each of the township chapters. Some of the early denominations include: Baptist, Methodist Episcopal and Presbyterian.



County-wide Database - Multi-denominational

 * 1708-1985 - Pennsylvania, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 at Historical Society of Pennsylvania – $, free to members of the society; Also available at Ancestry.com – $; 7,542,774 entries. This database is incomplete for all counties.

Catholic

 * "100 years of the Pittsburgh Catholic Diocese 1843–1943," Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 17, No. 1. . Chronology, map, county-by-county information.
 * Baptism Register - St John’s Catholic Church, December 1869–1908, Erie County (PA) Genealogy
 * Catholic Church Records &amp; Directory, Erie County (PA) Genealogy

Methodist
Marriage Records of Rev. George Stuntz Methodist Circuit Rider, Erie County (PA) Genealogy

Mormon (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)

 * Record of Members, 1929-1942 (Erie District), –
 * Rediscovering History: Mormons in Erie County, Pennsylvania, 1832-1833

Court of Common Pleas
The Courts of Common Pleas are the trial courts of Pennsylvania. Major civil and criminal cases are heard in these courts. Judges also decide cases involving adoption, divorce, child custody, abuse, juvenile delinquency, estates, guardianships, charitable organizations and many other matters. The Common Pleas courts are organized into 60 judicial districts. Erie County has its own judicial district. Judges of the Common Pleas courts are elected to 10-year terms. A president judge and a court administrator serve in each judicial district.

Orphans' Court

 * 1822–1868 Court Dockets

Emigration and Immigration

 * 1952 - 1957 at | FamilySearch — index

History



 * History of Erie County 1843 from GenealogyTrails.
 * Erie County from An Illustrated History of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 1876, from archive.org.
 * History of Erie County, Pennsylvania, 1884, by Samuel P. Bates. Transcription on line from the Erie County PAGenWeb site. Digitized book on line at archive.org.
 * History of Erie Co from its First Settlement, 1894, by Laura G. Sanford. Digitized book on line at archive.org.
 * Nelson's Biographical Dictionary &amp; Historical Reference Book of Erie County, 1896. Digitized book online at archive.org.
 * A Twentieth Century History of Erie County, Pennsylvania: A Narrative Account of Its Historic Progress, Its People, and Its Principal Interests, 1909 by John Miller, two volumes. Digitized book online at archive.org, Volume 1 Volume 2
 * Popular History of Erie County, Pennsylvania by D. P. Robbins. Digitized book on line at archive.org.
 * History of Erie County Pennsylvania, 1925 by John Elmer Reed. Digitized book on line at archive.org.
 * Images of America: Erie County, PA by Erie Yesterday. Limited preview at GoogleBooks
 * Souvenir of Erie, Penna. 1888, Illustrated. Also called: The City of Erie, PA, 1888.
 * Lost Erie: The Vanished Heritage of City and County, 1991, by John R. Claridge
 * Historic Erie County: An Illustrated History, 2004, by Edward T. Wellejus
 * Erie: a Guide to the City and County, 1938. Digitized book on line at archive.org.
 * Erie County, PA Tornadoes, Blizzards, Floods and Other Events
 * Greetings from Wesleyville by Debbi Lyon. Debbi Lyon
 * Greetings from Wesleyville Vol. 2 by Debbi Lyon.

Land and Property
Land records in Erie County began in 1823. These records are filed with the Recorder of Deeds office in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts, indexes, mortgages, leases, grants, sheriff sales, land patents, and maps. Property records include liens as well as livestock brands and estray records.

The following are examples of available resources:

Online Land Records


 * 1976–present Erie County offers online access to records. Fees apply.

Land Records on Microfilm


 * 1823–1946 Deed Books, 1823-1886; Deed Index, 1823-1946.
 * 1815–1919 Mortgages, 1815-1836; Mortgage Index, 1823-1919. Earlier records are for what would later become Erie County that fell within the boundaries of the parent counties.

Additional Resources

Note that the "Maps" section below includes maps related to land ownership.

See Pennsylvania Land and Property for more information about using land records, especially about original land warrants, surveys, and patents filed at the state land office.

Additional resources can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Erie County Pennsylvania Land in online catalogs such as:


 * Historical Society of Pennsylvania
 * WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog.)
 * (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search.)

Maps
Click the image to view an enlarged version


 * Maps of Pennsylvania (1673-1878)

Ancestor Tracks has posted free downloadable images from the Map of Erie County, Pennsylvania from Actual Surveys by under Supervision of J. Chace Jr. (Troy, NY: McLeran &amp; Morris Publishers, 1855). This wall map located in the Library of Congress shows major landowners and geographic sites at the date 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
Migration routes for early European settlers to and from included:


 * Catskill Road 1750s from Springfield, Massachusetts to Catskill, New York
 * Catskill Turnpike  (aka Susquehannah Turnpike ) from Catskill, NY to Unadilla, NY; route travelled by Europeans by the 1750s; toll booths opened by 1804.
 * Forbidden Path, 1767 from Athens, Pennsylvania to Salamanca, New York
 * Lake Shore Path 1792 from Buffalo, New York to Sandusky County, Ohio
 * Lehigh and Lackawanna Paths 1766 from Unadilla, New York to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that is, from the Catskill Turnpike  to the Great Valley Road.
 * Ulster and Delaware Turnpike 1802 from Salisbury, Connecticut to Bainbridge, New York

Newspapers
Newspapers of Erie County


 * Pennsylvania Newspapers
 * Chronicling America US Newspaper Directory

Newspapers Available on Microfilm


 * Several different newspapers are available on microfilm in the Heritage Room at the Blasco Memorial Library in Erie, PA. Some of the titles include the Erie Gazette, the Erie Observer, the Erie Dispatch, Erie Dispatch-Herald, the Erie Daily Times, the Erie Morning News and the Erie Times-News. Some of the Erie County newspapers that are available on microfilm include the Cosmopolite (Girard, PA), the Corry Evening Journal and the Edinboro Independent. The library also has one German language newspaper on microfilm.

Newspaper Indexes


 * USGenWeb Erie County Newspaper and Obituary Index

Online Newspaper Abstracts


 * PA-Roots Newspaper Articles for Erie County.

Obituaries
Obituaries are generally found in local newspapers where the person died. However, sometimes an obituary is found in the location from which he or she originated. To find an obituary, see the information under the Newspaper heading

Online Obituary Index


 * The Erie County Library has compiled and maintains an paper and online obituary index for Erie County from 1822 to the present. The index comes from Erie newspapers and covers 1822 to the present. Microfilmed copies of the newspapers are located in the Heritage Room of the Blasco Memorial Library. The Information Services staff of the Library will do limited genealogical research or requests for obituaries by mail. There is a fee for this service.

Online Obituary Abstracts


 * PA-Roots Obituaries for Erie County.
 * USGenWeb Erie County Newspaper and Obituary Index

Obituary Excerpts and Extracts


 * Smith, Gary V. and Corry Weekly Herald (Corry, Pennsylvania) 3000 Death Notices Covering Northwestern Pennsylvania and Southwestern New York Extracted from the Corry Weekly Herald (Corry, Pennsylvania) (Montgomery, Alabama:G.V. Smith, c1992)

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes


 * Erie County Estate Indexes at PAGenWeb for surnames M, N, O, S, T


 * Erie County Wills and Estate Records at Pennsylvania USGenWeb Archives


 * 1683 - 1993 Pennsylvania Wills and Probate Records 1683-1993 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

Online Probate Records

Original probate records for some Pennsylvania counties are available free online as digital images at FamilySearch.org. The dates vary significantly for each county and not all counties are listed. Some counties may only have probate indexes. This Pennsylvania collection of images may be browsed through the links listed below:

Complete Collection:


 * 1683-1994-at FamilySearch.org

Erie County only:


 * Erie County Probate Records

Original Probate Records on Microfilm


 * 1822–1868 Court Dockets
 * 1823–1916 Will Books
 * 1823–1958 Proceedings Index
 * 1823–1971 Estate Index
 * 1839–1864 Registers Dockets

Repositories

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

Archives

 * National Archives at Philadelphia 14700 Townsend Road Philadelphia, PA 19154-1096 Phone: 215-305-2044 Fax: 215-305-2052
 * National Archives at Philadelphia 14700 Townsend Road Philadelphia, PA 19154-1096 Phone: 215-305-2044 Fax: 215-305-2052

Courthouse
Erie County Courthouse 140 West 6th Street Erie, PA 16501 Phone: 814-451-6260

Clerk of Courts (criminal records) Room 103 814-451-6221 Email: [mailto:rcatalde@eriecountygov.org rcatalde@eriecountygov.org]

Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans' Court Register of Wills, Room 122 Phone: 814-451-6260 Fax: 814-451-7010

Erie County Prothonotary Erie County Courthouse, Room 120 Phone: 814–451-6250 Email: [mailto:prothonotary@eriecountygov.org prothonotary@eriecountygov.org]

Family History Centers
The Erie County Public Library (Raymond M. Blasco, M.D. Memorial Library) may also order microfilms from FamilySearch.

Libraries
Erie County Public Library

The Erie County Public Library maintains a large collection of genealogical materials. The majority of this collection is housed in the Heritage Room on the second floor of the Blasco Memorial Library. The focus of this collection is Northwestern Pennsylvania and the tri-state area. An important part of their holdings are the obituary indexes that cover 1822 to the present. The Heritage Room has microfilm copies of the Erie newspapers, going back to 1820. They also have microfilm copies of the 1800 to 1930 censuses for Erie County and selected censuses for other Pennsylvania counties. Additionally the library has city directories for Erie beginning in 1853 and suburban directories beginning in 1957. The library subscribes to Ancestry.com Library Edition and to HeritageQuest Online. The Blasco Memorial Library is located at 160 East Front St. Erie, PA 16507.

Museums
Erie Maritime Museum 150 East Front Street Erie, PA 16507 Phone: 814-452-2744

Museum of Erie County History 419 State St. Erie, PA 16501 Phone: 814-454-1813

The museum explores the history of Erie County from pre-settlement to today. The museum is housed in the Erie County History Center.

Societies

 * Erie Society for Genealogical Research P.O. Box 1403 Erie, PA 16512-1403


 * The ESGR through their volunteer research committee will perform some research requests.
 * A valuable tool that the ESGR provides on their website is a name index to the Keystone Kuzzins publication.


 * Erie County Historical Society 419 State St. Erie, PA 16501 Phone: 814-454-1813 Ext. 0

Vital Records
Vital records are kept by the County Orphan's Court. Between the years 1852-1855 Pennsylvania made a failed attempt to record birth, marriage and death events at the county level. There are no known vital records kept from that time period for Erie County. County marriage records were kept in earnest in 1885. Births and deaths, at the county level, were begun in 1893 and kept through 1905. See also How to order Pennsylvania Vital Records

Birth
Birth records for the City of Erie began May 1, 1888. The birth registers for Erie City are maintained by the Erie County Historical Society. They have an agreement with Erie Society for Genealogical Research to handle all genealogy requests from walk-in researchers, people who phone, write in or e-mail requests for information on family history. These birth registers are not indexed and do not list the child's name. You must know the parent's name. If a delayed birth certificate was made then the child's name was added to the register. The records cannot be viewed by the general public. To obtain copies of a birth record that occurred in the city of Erie from 1888 through November 1905, you may write to:

ESGR P.O. Box 1403 Erie, PA 16512-1403

Birth records for Erie County began in 1893. The Erie County Clerk of Records maintains birth records through 1905. Individuals are allowed to search these records. The Clerk of Records office will conduct a search for you; check the website for fees. To obtain a copy of birth record in the 1893–1905 time period you may contact:

County of Erie Births Clerk of Records Room 122, Erie County Courthouse 140 W 6th St. Erie, PA 16501

The birth records for Erie County were microfilmed by FamilySearch. These microfilms may be ordered into a local FamilySearch Center or authorized public library for a small fee.


 * 1893-1906 Birth Records

Beginning in 1906 Pennsylvania birth records are available through the Department of of Health. Birth records become public after 105 years. A statewide index is available. Once an individual is located in the index a certificate can be obtained by writing to:

Division of Vital Records Attn: Public Records P.O. Box 1528 New Castle, PA 16103

Some Erie County births can be found online in Pennsylvania, Births and Christenings, 1709-1950.

Marriage
Erie County marriages are maintained by the Clerk of Records. Erie County began recording marriages in 1885. To obtain a marriage record you may go to or mail the Clerk of Records office at:

Erie County Courthouse 140 West 6th Street, Room 120 Erie, PA 16501

A free online index with images to some Erie County marriages can be found in the FamilySearch Records Collection, Pennsylvania, County Marriages, 1885 – 1950. Most of the records consist of marriage licenses, certificates, applications, docket books, and affidavits. These records have been microfilmed.


 * 1677–1950 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1700-1821 - Pennsylvania Marriage Records Ancestry.com – ($) This database is incomplete for all counties.
 * 1725-1976 - - free index. Not complete for all years. This index is not necessarily intended to index any specific set of records. This index is not complete for any particular place or region. This collection may include information previously published in the International Genealogical Index or Vital Records Index collections.
 * Pre-1810 – Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry.com – ($) This database is incomplete for all counties. Includes 35,000 marriage records from vol. VIII of of the second series of the Pennsylvania Archives.
 * 1852-1854 - Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry.com – ($) Index with images.
 * 1885 - Erie County Marriage Index 1885 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free. Batch.
 * 1885-1950 - Extracted marriage records – free. This database is incomplete for all counties. May also contain marriage records earlier than 1885.
 * 1885–1968 Marriage License Dockets (Erie County, Pennsylvania), 1885-1950; index, 1885-1968

Divorce
Divorce records are available through the office of the Prothonotary. The office of the Prothonotary is located in the courthouse building.

Death
Death records for the city of Erie exist beginning July 5, 1875. They are available from the [http://erie.pa-roots.com/ Erie Society for Genealogical Research (ESGR). ]According to their website "There are five volumes of the death records dating from July 5, 1875 to January 24, 1908. There are six volumes of indices for these records. Typical information found for each entry is: name, color, sex, age, marital status, occupation, date of death, cause of death, place of birth, ward number, street address, time of residence, name of physician, place of intended interment, date of intended interment, date of certificate, and name of undertaker." They have records to January 24, 1908. These records cannot be viewed by the general public. You may request ESGR to research the city vital records in your behalf.

Erie County began recording deaths in 1893. Records from 1893 – 1905 are available at the Clerk of Records office in Erie City. You may request a death record from the Clerk of Records. The address is:

County of Erie Deaths Clerk of Records Room 122, Erie County Courthouse 140 W 6th St. Erie, PA 16501

These county death records were microfilmed by FamilySearch.


 * 1892-1906 Death Records

Pennsylvania death certificates become public records after 50 years. An annual index is released by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Records less than 50 years old are kept by the Division of Vital Records and are not public certificates. Only certain people can request a non-public death certificate. To order a non-public representative you must be:


 * Legal representative of decedent's estate
 * Immediate family member
 * Extended family member who indicates a direct relationship to the decedent
 * Power of Attorney (Please note that a Power of Attorney document is no longer valid upon the death of the individual)

See the Pennsylvania Department of Health website to obtain a copy of a non-public death certificate.

Indexes for Pennsylvania public death records are available online through the Department of Health for 1906 through 1961. Once an individual is located in the index a certificate can be obtained by writing to:

Division of Vital Records ATTN: Public Records PO Box 1528 New Castle, PA 16103


 * 1893-1906 - Erie County Death Index 1893-1906 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.

Erie County Pennsylvania Genealogy Websites

 * Erie County, PA History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Erie County PAGenWeb site maps, history and other information.
 * Erie County Old Photos
 * Erie County PA Genealogy