Delaware County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

United StatesPennsylvaniaDelaware County
 * This article is about a county of southeast Pennsylvania. For other uses, see Delaware (disambiguation).

Historical Facts

 * Named for the Delaware River
 * The County seat prior to 1851 was Chester City and it was county seat for Chester County, too.
 * Since 1851, the county seat has been Media.

1641: Swedes and Finns spreading north from Fort Christina (present-day Wlimington, Delaware) first settle in Finland (Chamassungh), now Trainer, Pennsylvania  and Upland (Meckopenacka), now Chester, Pennsylvania. The New Sweden Colony continues to expand northward with new settlements as far as Philadelphia in the following years.

1651-1655: The New Netherland Colony builds Fort Casimir  (now New Castle, Delaware), settle Sandhook,   and abandon Fort Beversrede (now Philadelphia) in 1651. In 1654 New Sweden captures Fort Casimir from the Dutch without a fight and renames it Fort Trinty (Trefaldighets). In 1655 New Netherland returns with a large army and all of New Sweden in presend-day Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey submits to Dutch rule.

1664: As part of the Second Anglo-Dutch War New Netherland including southeast Pennsylvania is surrendered to the English.

1673-1674: A new war breaks out and the Dutch send a large armada to retake New Netherland for a few months. But as the war ends the colony is ceeded to England for the last time.

1680s: William Penn founded the English colony of Pennsylvania after receiving a grant in 1681 from the king of England. His colony offered religious freedom, liberal government, and inexpensive land. Quakers established the city of Philadelphia.

Parent County
26 September 1769: Delaware County was created from Chester County.

Neighboring Counties
Chester | Montgomery | Philadelphia | New Castle County, Delaware | Gloucester County, New Jersey

Boundary Changes
No known boundary changes.

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

Har Jehuda Cemetery, Upper Darby BillionGraves Mount Moriah Cemetery, Philadelphia/Yeadon BillionGraves

Census

 * 1671 Transcription and Index

Episcopalian
St. David's Church, Radnor

Communion lists begin in 1722, baptisms in 1727, marriages and burials in 1800.

St. John's Church, Concord

Early registers are lost.

St. Paul's Church, Chester

Registers begin in 1704.


 * 1704-1733 - Marriage Record of St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Chester, 1704-1733 (Pennsylvania Archives, Series 2, Vol. 8, Part 5) at Ancestry ($); Google Books - free.

St. Martin's Church, Marcus Hook

Vestry books begin in 1724.

Gazetteers
United States Geographic Survey Place Names - GNIS for Delaware County (over 1500) (may not always be present in alphabetic order on first try.)

Land and Property
Recorder of Deeds Government Center Room 107 201 W. Front Street, Media, PA 19063 Phone: (610) 891-4152

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 Delaware County are available from the recorder's office for 1789 to the present.


 * On-line indexes are available for 1982 to 2001.
 * Deeds, 1770-1866; Deed Index, 1789-1914

Maps
Ancestor Tracks has posted free downloadable image from the 1880 Atlas of Delaware County, Pennsylvania by Benjamin H. Smith. This atlas 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.

Revolutionary War
Men in what is now Delaware County (then Chester County) served in the 5th Pennsylvania Regiment.

Courthouse
Delaware County Courthouse The Courthouse and Government Center Complex 201 West Front Street Media, PA 19063

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers
 * Valley Forge Pennsylvania Family History Center (Broomall)

Taxation

 * 1798 - Pennsylvania, U.S. Direct Tax Lists, 1798 at Ancestry ($).

Vital Records
For birth and death records prior to 1906 contact:

Delaware County Archives Location: 340 North Middletown Rd Building 19 Lima PA 19063

Mailing Address: 201 West Front Street Media PA 19063 Birth and Death Records (610) 891-5620 Marriage Records (610) 891-4403 Divorce Records (610) 891-4370 archives@co.delaware.pa.us Hours: Tues, Wed, Thurs 8:00 am - 3:00 pm

Birth
The following records are available at the Delaware County Archives:


 * 1852-1854 Birth Records, online index
 * 1893-1906 Birth Records, online index
 * 1889-1906 Chester Birth Records, online index


 * 1893-1896 - - free index. Not complete for all years.
 * 1852-1854 – Pennsylvania Births Ancestry.com – ($) Index with images.

Marriage
The following records are available at the Delaware County Archives:


 * 1852-1854 Marriage Records, online index
 * 1885-1940 Marriage Records, online index


 * 1887-1907 - - free index. Not complete for all years.

Divorce
Divorce records are handled by the office of the Prothonotary. While no on-line indexes or records are available, records may be obtained by visiting or writing to the Prothonotary at:

Delaware County Courthouse 201 West Front Street Media PA 19063


 * 1927 to present Divorce Records

Death
The following records are available at the Delaware County Archives:


 * 1852-1854 Death Records, online index
 * 1893-1906 Death Records, online index


 * 1852-1854 – Pennsylvania Deaths Ancestry.com – ($) Index with images.

Yearbooks

 * Swathmore College: 1883-1956 (Online at the Internet Archive)

Web Sites

 * The Delaware County PAGenWeb Project, an member of The PAGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.

Populated Places

 * City: Chester
 * Boroughs: Aldan . Brookhaven . Chester Heights . Clifton Heights . Collingdale . Colwyn . Darby . East Lansdowne . Eddystone . Folcroft . Glenolden . Lansdowne . Marcus Hook . Media . Millbourne . Morton . Norwood . Parkside . Prospect Park . Ridley Park . Rose Valley . Rutledge . Sharon Hill . Swarthmore . Trainer . Upland . Yeadon
 * Townships: Aston . Bethel . Chadds Ford . Chester . Concord . Darby . Edgmont . Haverford . Lower Chichester . Marple . Middletown . Nether Providence . Newtown . Radnor . Ridley . Springfield . Thornbury . Tinicum . Upper Chichester . Upper Darby . Upper Providence
 * Communities: Ardmore . Boothwyn . Bortondale . Bowling Green . Broomall . Cheyney . Drexel Hill . Elwyn . Folsom . Garden City . Garnet Valley . Garrett Hill . Glen Mills . Glen Riddle . Gradyville . Haverford . Havertown . Lenni . Lima . Linwood . Moylan . Pine Ridge . Radnor . Riddlewood . Rosemont . Rose Tree . Secane . South Media . St. Davids . Strafford . Villanova . Village Green-Green Ridge . Wallingford . Wawa . Wayne . Woodlyn