Washington County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

United States Pennsylvania  Washington County  

County Courthouse
1 South Main St. Washington, PA 15301 (724) 228-6787

Directions

History
Named for General George Washington of the American Revolutionary War.

Parent County
28 March 1781: Washington County was created from Westmoreland County.

Boundary Changes
Note: Washington County was claimed by both Virginia and Pennsylvania until the Mason-Dixon Line was finalized in 1767.


 * 27 Jan 1750: Part of Cumberland County.
 * 9 March 1771: Became part of Bedford County when it was was erected.
 * 26 January 1773: The future county became part of Westmoreland County.
 * 24 September 1788: Allegheny County set off.
 * 9 February 1796: Greene County set off.
 * 12 March 1800: Beaver County set off.

Neighboring Counties
Allegheny | Beaver | Fayette | Greene | Westmoreland | West Virginia counties: Brooke | Hancock | Marshall | Ohio

Cemeteries

 * Beallsville Cemetery, Scenery Hill BillionGraves
 * Purviance Cemetery, Claysville BillionGraves

Family Histories

 * [Walton] Walton, John. "Job Walton of Fleming County, Kentucky," National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 52, No. 1 (Mar. 1964):15-24. 973 B2ng v. 52

Land
Recorder of Deeds 100 West Beau Street Room 204 Washington, PA 15301 Phone: (724) 228-6806

Due to the lack of vital records for Pennsylvania, land records are an important tool in early Pennsylvania research. Land records will list the seller and purchaser of the property and may hide clues to family connections. Land records for Washington County are available from the recorder's office for 1781 to the present.


 * Images are available on-line from 1967 to the present using the Landex system. There is a fee to view the images.
 * Deed Books, 1781-1886; Deed Index, 1781-1924


 * Ancestor Tracks has published Early Landowners of Pennsylvania: Atlas of Township Warrantee Maps of Washington County which contains all of the Township Warrantee Maps on file at the Pennsylvania Archives in Harrisburg. thus pinpointing the location of the earliest landowners of the county. Each Township Warrantee Map was painstakingly platted by draftsmen from the original warrants, surveys, and patents of the first settlers of the county within its current boundaries.

Local Histories

 * History of Washington County : from its first settlement to the present time ... 1870 by Alfred Creigh. Digitized book from archive.org.  Digitized book from Penn State.
 * History of Washington County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, 1882, by Boyd Crumrine. Digitized book from archive.org Digitized book from Historic Pittsburgh  Transcription from chartiers.com.
 * Commemorative Biographical Record of Washington County Biographical Sketches of Prominent and Representative Citizens...1893, by J. H. Beers. Volume 1 Transcription from chartiers.com.
 * 20th Century History of the City of Washington and Washington County, Pennsylvania and representative citizens, 1910 by Joseph Fulton McFarland, 2 volumes. Digitized book online from archive.org:  Volume 1   Volume 2
 * Some pioneers of Washington County, Pa. A family history, 1902 by Francis Smith Reeder. Digitized book from archive.org.
 * The centennial celebration of the incorporation of the borough of Washington, Pa., in its Old Home Week of October 2-8, 1910 from GoogleBooks
 * A century of education; or, The history of the schools of Burgettstown, Washington County, Pennsylvania, for one hundred years, 1898, by William Melvin. Digitized book at archive.org.
 * Centennial anniversary of the founding of Monongahela City, Pa. : celebrated November 15th, 1892 by C. W. Hazzard. Digitized book at Historic Pittsburgh.

Maps
Ancestor Tracks has an Atlas of Township Warrantee Maps of Washington County and a Companion Scans of Township Warratee Maps CD($). They show precise outlines in metes and bounds of each original tract and all surrounding tracts in each township, giving the names of the warrantee and patentee; dates of the warrant, survey, and patent; and the patent and survey book and page of the recorded patent.

Taxation

 * 1786 - Returns of Taxables for the Counties of Bedford (1773 to 1784), Huntingdon (1788), Westmoreland (1783, 1786), Fayette (1785, 1786), Allegheny (1791), Washington (1786) and Census of Bedford (1784) and Westmoreland (1783). (Pennsylvania Archives, Series 3, Vol. 22). Digital versions at Ancestry ($); Google Books - free.

Societies and Libraries

 * Genealogical Society of Southwestern Pennsylvania
 * Washington County Historical Society
 * Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers
 * Monongahela Pennsylvania Family History Center
 * Washington Pennsylvania Family History Center

Web Sites

 * Linkpendium - Washington County
 * USGenWeb project