Wayne County, North Carolina Genealogy

Guide to Wayne County, North Carolina ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.



Description
Wayne County is named after Revolutionary War General "Mad" Anthony Wayne (1745-1796). It is located in the east central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Wayne County Courthouse 215 S William Street PO Box 267 Goldsboro, NC 27530-4824 Phone: 919-731-1449 Wayne County Website Register of Deeds has birth, marriage, death, burial and land records. Clerk Superior Court has divorce, probate and court records.

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:

Bible Records

 * Bible Records-State Archives of North Carolina

Biographies

 * Heritage of Wayne County, North Carolina, 1982-by Wayne County Heritage Book Committee

Census Records

 * Wayne County NC Census Records- LDSGenealogy.com
 * U.S. Federal Census Mortality Schedules, 1850-1885:-Wayne County, North Carolina Mortality Schedules can be found for 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880
 * U.S., Selected Federal Census Non-Population Schedules, 1850-1880: -Wayne Co. Industry and Agriculture can be obtained for 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880.

Church Records

 * 1700-1970 - at FamilySearch — index

Baptist


 * Black Creek. Established by 1783.
 * Falling Creek. Constituted 1778.
 * Naughunty. Constituted 1791.
 * Norhunty Swamp. Constituted 1789.
 * Pleasant Plains. Established by 1808.
 * St. James African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Goldsboro
 * Mount Olive
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * Records of slavery and free persons of color (Wayne County, North Carolina), 1783-1869 Found on FamilySearch: Records of Slavery and Free Persons of Color (Wayne County, North Carolina), 1783-1869-cfh.iaamuseum.org

Directories

 * Wayne County, North Carolina, City Directories
 * Wayne County NC City Directories-LDSGenealogy.com

Emigration and Immigration

 * Alien registration (Wayne County, North Carolina), 1927-1954- FamilySearch.org

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

 * African American Resources for North Carolina-Resources for African American research fall into two periods: pre-and post-Civil War. Post-Civil War research consists of consulting the same record types as non-African-Americans. Pre-Civil War records consist of slave importation declarations, plantation records, emancipation records, apprenticeship bonds for freedmen, North Carolina hiring practices, census records, white family records, church and cemetery records, military records, vital records, and numerous North Carolina court records. African American vital records were usually recorded in separate books for many years.
 * AAHGS NC Triangle Facebook Page - Afro-American Historical & Genealogical Society
 * Voter Registration Under the Grandfather Clause: Wayne CountyNorth Carolina Free People of Color- ncfpc.net

Funeral Homes

 * Haskins Funeral Home 601 E Ash St, Goldsboro, NC 27530 (919) 736-5000 haskinsfh.com
 * Howell Funeral Home & Crematory 1500 Wayne Memorial Dr, Goldsboro, NC 27534 (919) 731-7490 howellfuneral.com
 * McIntyre Funeral Home 1215 Royall Ave, Goldsboro, NC 27534 (919) 731-7174 mcintyrefuneralhome.com

Land and Property Records

 * Wayne County NC Land Records-LDSGenealogy.com

Local Histories

 * 1914 History of Wayne county. Address by Judge Frank A. Daniels, at opening of Wayne county's new court house, 30 November 1914. at East Carolina University - Digital Collections

Maps and Gazetteers



 * Maps of Wayne County, North Carolina- Old Maps Online
 * 1915 Color map showing areas of different types of soil in Wayne county, N.C. From Soil survey of Wayne County, North Carolina. Washington : U.S. Government Printing Office. at East Carolina University - Digital Collections
 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

Military Records
Revolutionary War 


 * 1779-1782  at FamilySearch

Civil War 


 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry
 * 1885-1953  at FamilySearch


 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
 * - 4th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
 * - 13th Battalion, North Carolina Infantry, Company C
 * - 1st Regiment, North Carolina Artillery 10th Regiment Volunteers-1st Artillery, Company F
 * - 1st Regiment, North Carolina Cavalry, Company H
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, 2nd Company C
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, Company D
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, Company H
 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Junior Reserves, Company A
 * - 4th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, Company D
 * - 8th Regiment, North Carolina Senior Reserves, Captain James M Garner's Company
 * - 8th Battalion, North Carolina Cavalry (Partisan Rangers), 4th Company

Civil War Battles  The following Civil War battles were fought in Wayne County:


 * March 23-April 26, 1862 Goldsborough Bridge
 * December 16, 1862 White Hall, also known as Whitehall or White Hall Ferry
 * Map showing Civil War battles in North Carolina.

Genealogy of the United States Colored Troops:USCT pension file will be ordered. Two files per month to place on the IAAM Center for Family History website. Post the pension index card here to order pension file.

135th Colored US Troops March 27, 1865 General William T. Sherman organized the 135th United States Colored Troop in Goldsboro, North Carolina toward the end of the civil war in March of 1865. The 135th USCT consisted of 1,154 men that joined the army from the rolls of a pioneer corps, that had been with General Sherman, since leaving Savannah, Georgia. This “Lost Troop” of freedom seekers, the 135th USCT, marched with Sherman’s army out of Goldsboro to Raleigh, NC, at the end of the war. They then trudged on to Washington, DC and on May 24, 1865 the 135th USCT paraded with Sherman’s army in the Grand Review, carrying their regimental flag. After a brief stay performing guard duty in the nation’s capital they then transferred to Louisville, KY, performing garrison duty, in Kentucky and Indiana. The 135th USCT was subsequently mustered out of service at the end of October 1865. From research, and official pension records, we can tell the story of the men of the 135th USCT from slavery, to their army lives and their lives after service in the army. Their life stories are told “In Their Own Words,” from their pension application records, depositions and in-depth research. The 135th United States Colored Troops 135th US Colored Troop Facebook Page 135thusct@gmail.com (805) 990-1537

World War I 


 * 1917-1919  at FamilySearch
 * All American Soldiers of World War I: Lived in Wayne County, North Carolina

World War II 


 * 1940-1948  at FamilySearch

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * Wayne County, North Carolina, Naturalization Records, 1872-1996 Results $
 * Alien Registration and Naturalization - North Carolina Digital Collections

Newspapers

 * Newspapers and Obituaries: Goldsboro Genealogy (in Wayne County, NC)-LDSGenealogy.com
 * North Carolina Newspapers Find Student, Community, Schools, and Town North Carolina Newspapers Online-GenealogyJustAsk.com

Obituaries
(See Newspapers above)
 * Legacy.com

Probate Records
Online Probate Records


 * 1660-1790 North Carolina Will Abstracts 1660-1790 at Ancestry $
 * 1663-1979  at FamilySearch
 * 1665-1998 North Carolina Wills and Probate Records 1665-1998 at Ancestry $
 * 1735-1970  at FamilySearch
 * 1760-1800 North Carolina Will Abstracts 1760-1800 at Ancestry $
 * 1773-1957  at FamilySearch
 * Pre-1790 Pre-1790 Wayne County, North Carolina Genealogy Wills (North Carolina State Archives)

School Records



 * Goldsboro School Records: Goldsboro Genealogy (in Wayne County, NC)-LDSGenealogy.com
 * Wayne County NC School Records:LDSGenealogy.com

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch - How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records

 * 1769 Tax Lists, Dobbs County, 1769 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2 at Ancestry $
 * 1769 Tax Lists, Dobbs County, 1769 (images) at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1769 Tax List, 1769 (images) at FamilySearch
 * 1779 Tax Lists, Dobbs County, 1779 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2 at Ancestry $
 * 1779 Tax Lists, New Bern District, 1779 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2 at Ancestry $
 * 1779 Tax Lists, New Bern District, 1779 (images) at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1780 Tax Lists, Dobbs County, 1780 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2 at Ancestry $
 * 1780 Tax Lists, Dobbs County, 1780 (images) at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1786 Tax Lists, Wayne County, 1786 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2 at Ancestry $
 * 1786 Tax Lists, Wayne County, 1786 (images) at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1833-1867 Tax Book, 1833-1867 (images) at FamilySearch

Vital Records

 * 1800-2000 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Wayne County Vital Records, birth, marriage, and death records. (NCGenWeb)

Birth

 * 1800-2000  at FamilySearch
 * 1866-1964  at FamilySearch
 * 1891-1914 Wayne County Birth Index 1891-1914. Batch  at FamilySearch
 * 1913-1922  at FamilySearch — index and images
 * Wayne County Vital Records (NCGenWeb)

Marriage

 * 1741-2004 North Carolina, United States Marriages at FindMyPast
 * 1741-2004 North Carolina Marriage Index 1741-2004 at Ancestry $
 * 1759-1979  at FamilySearch
 * 1762-1979  at FamilySearch
 * 1763-1868  at FamilySearch
 * 1867-1936 Wayne County Marriage Index 1867-1936 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch
 * Wayne County Vital Records (NCGenWeb)
 * Marriages of Free Colored People in Wayne County: A-C- ncfpc.net
 * Marriages of Free People of Color in Wayne County: E-H-ncfpc.net
 * Marriages of Free Colored People in Wayne County: L-Z-ncfpc.net

Death

 * 1898-1994  at FamilySearch
 * 1906-1930  at FamilySearch
 * 1908-2004 North Carolina Death Indexes 1908-2004 at Ancestry $
 * 1909-1975 North Carolina Death Certificates 1909-1975 at Ancestry $
 * 1931-1994  at FamilySearch
 * Wayne County Vital Records (NCGenWeb)

Divorce

 * 1926-1975  at FamilySearch
 * 1958-2004 North Carolina Divorce Index 1958-2004 at Ancestry $

Yearbooks

 * Wayne County, North Carolina Yearbooks - DIGITALNC

Archives



 * State Archives of North Carolina 109 E. Jones St. Raleigh, NC 27601 4614 Mail Service Center (919) 814-6840

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to Family History Centers
 * Goldsboro North Carolina Family History Center

Libraries



 * Wayne County Public Library, NC - Genealogy & Local History

Museums



 * Wayne County Museum 116 N. William Street Goldsboro, NC 27530 919-734-5023
 * Waynesborough Historical Village 801 US Hwy 117 S Goldsboro, NC 27530 (919)731-1653
 * International African American Museum Center for Family History: Website IAAM CFH Facebook Group
 * The North Carolina Civil War History Center (NCCWHC) will create a comprehensive portrait of the Antebellum, Civil War, and Reconstruction periods.

Societies

 * Wayne County Historical Association Newsletters 116 N William Street Goldsboro, NC 27530
 * Old Dobbs County Genealogical Society PO Box 617 Goldsboro, NC 27533 Website

Websites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.
 * Lowcountry Africana- Lowcountry Africana is entirely dedicated to records that document the family and cultural heritage of African Americans in the historic rice-growing areas of South Carolina, Georgia and extreme northeastern Florida, an area that scholars and preservationists have identified as a distinct culture area. Lowcountry Africana was developed with a grant from the Magnolia Plantation Foundation of Charleston, South Carolina.
 * North Carolina Museum of African Americans' History & Culture - An ONLINE Educational Museum