Coös County, New Hampshire Genealogy

United States &gt; New Hampshire &gt; Coos County

History

 * The name Coos derives from the Algonquian Indian term meaning crooked, the Indian name of the Connecticut River, which rises in the northernmost end of the county.

Parent County

 * 24 December 1803, Coos County was created with northern portion from Grafton County, organized at Berlin as the county seat.


 * The seat was moved to Town of Lancaster.

City

 * Berlin

Towns
An excellent way to gain information is to contact the local town historical society. The best list of these is found at the Association of Historical Societies of New Hampshire. At that site, click on the Directory and scroll down to the town.

Birth, marriage, and death records of many New Hampshire towns and villages are available on-line at www.familysearch.org, That site has birth records early to 1900, and marriage and death records, early to about 1948. Below is a list of the towns. Many of the town birth, marriage, and death records were microfilmed and are listed in the Family History Library Catalog.

Neighboring Counties
Carroll | Grafton | Oxford County, Maine | Essex County, Vermont | Compton County, Quebec

Census

 * In the 1810 Federal Census there were 3,991 residents.

By 1870 there were nearly 15,000.

Civil War

 * Northern New Hampshire Civil War Veterans - Veterans listed from Berlin, Dummer, Milan, Gorham, Shelburne, and Errol/Grants. A Photo Gallery is also posted.
 * History of Coos County, New Hampshire, by Georgia Drew Merrill - Town of Lancaster, Page 291 names their first volunteers in the War of the Rebellion.
 * History and Genealogy of Milan, New Hampshire - "the quota for the town of Milan was 10."

Vital Records
Certified copies of of birth, death, and marriage records are available from the State Division of Vital Records Administration or from the local city and town clerk where the event took place. Original records are kept by the city or town clerk and copies are sent to the state.

In 1905, when the state created the Bureau of Vital Records and Health, printed cards were distributed to the local clerks and earlier vital records were transcribed onto the cards and submitted to the state.

Births

 * are available online from FamilySearch.

Marriages

 * are available online from FamilySearch.

Deaths

 * are available online from FamilySearch.

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers
 * Randolph New Hampshire Family History Center

Web Sites

 * The Coos County NHGenWeb Project, an member of The NHGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Coos County
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Coos County (backup site)
 * Family History Library catalog for Coos County
 * Coos County, New Hampshire Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)