Spokane County, Washington Genealogy

Guide to Spokane County Washington ancestry, family history, and genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records, since 1879, when the county was formed.

Washington Online Genealogy Records

Description
The County was named for the Spokane tribe. The County is located in the east-central area of the state.

Parent County(s)
Parent County: Spokane County, Washington was created 30 October 1879 from Stevens County.

County Seat: Spokane. See also Towns and Communities in. For Courthouse, see Archives, libraries, etc.

Boundary Changes

 * Historical County Boundaries from Newberry Library

Courthouse
Spokane County Courthouse 1116 W. Broadway Spokane, WA 99260

The Spokane County Courthouse was completed in 1895, see history of building.

See also Archives, libraries, etc. in.

Record Loss
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Biography

 * Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)
 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.

Cemeteries
Spokane Cemeteries


 * Fairmount Memorial Association
 * Ewanida Rail Records

Census

 * 1880 census, Spokane County, Washington Territory. Online at FamilySearch Digital Library
 * Part of: Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)
 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.


 * Census indexes at Washington State Digital Archives: (Free); and Ancestry ($)
 * Federal: 1910
 * Territorial: 1885 • 1887
 * These were indexed by local societies and individuals

Church Records

 * Church records (microfilmed originals or published transcripts) for are listed in the . (Press space bar to select town.)

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

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Dishman
 * Spokane
 * Spokane Central
 * Spokane N.
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records
Spokane County Courthouse has Superior Court Records from 1880 to present. Criminal cases, divorces, probates, and other civil cases. Adoption records sealed by court order.


 * Power of Attorney Records 1973 - present at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)
 * Inventory of the county archives of Washington, no. 32. Spokane County (If the link does not work, go to ancestry.com ($), click Search, select Card Catalog, paste Title into search box, click Search)


 * Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)
 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.


 * Spokane Frontier Justice. Part of "Frontier Justice’’: Guide to the Court Records of Washington Territory, 1853-1889 at Washington State Digital Archives. (Free Index, no images)
 * The court procedure of Frontier Justice touch nearly all pioneers of Washington Territory. The index has many abstracts that provide names and what is happening in disputes, settlements in civil and criminal cases as well as probate, equity and admiralty cases.

Directories

 * Spokane, Washington Directories, 1889-93 (If the link does not work, go to ancestry.com ($), click Search, select Card Catalog, paste Title into search box, click Search)

American Indian

 * 1911 - 1919 - at FamilySearch — images

Japanese
World War II Files, 1942-1946

Public Welfare/Social Security Department, (Japanese Internment) Assistance Cases, Evacuee Referrals for Resettlement and Assistance, 1945-1946 from the Washington State Archives – Digital Archives

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Guardianship


Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)


 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.
 * Includes Order appointing guardian 1911 Dec-1927; Record of bonds 1880 Apr-1892; Record of bonds and oaths 1890-1895.

History

 * "History Resources" online at SpokaneLibrary.org


 * An Illustrated History Of Spokane County, State Of Washington"by Rev. Jonathan Edwards [(San Francisco?) : W. H. Lever, 1900] online at Washington History (Free)
 * Also available at Google Books (Free) and on ancestry.com ($)


 * Three Cities Of Washington; Origin Of Their Names... by Edmond Stephen Meany [Seattle: Washington University State Historical Society, 1917?] Online as Washington History (Free)
 * Covers the origins of the city names Seattle, Spokane and Tacoma

History Timeline
Historical County Boundaries from Newberry Library Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were gleaned from Ann M. Colford. Spokane County -- Thumbnail History, History Link.org Essay 7686.


 * Three bands of Spokane Indians -- Upper, Middle and Lower -- called the Spokane River watershed home at the time of first contact with European and American explorers.
 * 1810 - British fur trader and explorer David Thompson of the North West Company sent two men, Jaco Finlay and Finan McDonald, to establish a trading house in the territory of the Spokanes.
 * 1840s–1850s - the trickle of white settlers into the area became more persistent, ultimately leading to increased conflict with the indigenous population.
 * 1853 - March 2, U.S. President Millard Fillmore establishes.
 * 1858 - A group of Spokanes and Coeur d’Alenes surprised U.S. troops under the command of Colonel Edward Steptoe.
 * 1858 - In retaliation, the Army dispatched Colonel George Wright, who came north from Fort Walla Walla.
 * 1858 - Wright met with tribal representatives under the pretense of seeking peace but instead captured the warrior Qualchan.
 * 1858 - Wright’s campaign effectively ended resistance among the Plateau tribes and opened the region to further American settlement and development.
 * 1858 - January 29, Spokane County (extinct) was created by legislative act four times. Twice it was not organized by the agents appointed for that purpose.
 * 1859 - January 18, An act named new commissioners for the proposed new county all to hold office till the next election. No location for a county seat was specified.
 * 1860 - January, The geopolitical entity known as Spokane County came into existence. County seat was temporarily located “on the land claim of Dr. Bates.” in the Colville valley.
 * 1864 - January 19, Spokane County (extinct) dissolved, lost all territory to Stevens County.
 * 1870s - Spokane became the hub for the mining, timber, and railroad industries of the Inland Northwest.
 * 1881 - Spokane County boomed during the 1880s with the arrival of the Northern Pacific Railroad.

Land and Property

 * Land Records 1960 - present at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)
 * Plats and Surveys Records 1890 - present at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)
 * Recorded Agreements and Contracts 1993 - 2013 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)


 * Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)
 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.
 * Includes Assessment rolls 1886; Assessment tax rolls 1886; Delinquent tax rolls 1881-1890.
 * The Spokane County Auditor has indexed all the land records for Spokane County and the index is online . The index also contains other records recorded in the auditors office. The original records are at the Eastern Washington State Archives at Cheney. Computer copies are available at the courthouse for a dollar a page.

Maps



 * Family Maps of Spokane County, Washington (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.

Military

 * 1921-1925 - at FamilySearch — index
 * Military Records at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)
 * "Spokane County WWI Soldiers"
 * Discharge papers recorded at Spokane County Auditors Office These are indexed in with the land records in the auditors office. They told me no charge to relatives for copies.

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)
 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.
 * Includes Declaration of intention index 1880-1909; Naturalization index 1850-1907; Petitions for naturalization 1885-1906.


 * Certificates of Naturalization, 1885-1906 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)
 * Naturalization Records, 1879-1909, 1912 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)
 * Register of Declarations of Intent, 1890-1907 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)

Declarations of Intent before 1906 often include the nation of origin, his* foreign and "Americanized" names, residence, and date of arrival. See Washington Naturalization and Citizenship for more information. (*Women were not naturalized until 1922 in the United States.)

Washington State Digital Archives has digitized various types of naturalization-related records, including declarations of intentions, delayed birth files, naturalization affidavits, notifications of application for admission to US citizenship, orders fixing naturalization terms, petitions and records, petitions, receipts for certificates of citizenship, record of final decrees of citizenship and record of petitions dockets. Depending on the county, records range from 1854-1988.

Newspapers

 * Spokesman Review
 * Spokane Daily Chronicle
 * Spokane Valley Herald
 * Washington Digital Newspaper at Washington State Library
 * Spokane County, Washington Newspapers (Sortable by towns, years, and titles)
 * 1855-2009 Washington Newspapers, 1855-2009 at MyHeritage — index & images, ($)

Obituaries
Also check:


 * Newspapers of
 * Local Funeral Homes, Libraries, or family records.
 * Obituaries of neighboring counties


 * Spokesman Review – obituaries 2005 to present


 * Obituaries from the Spokesman Review newspaper have been indexed by the Spokane Public Library. Search by name. Results include name/date/newspaper/page number needed to obtain the obituary. Contact the library at [mailto:telref@spokanelibrary.org telref@spokanelibrary.org] for an image of the actual obituary. The obituaries are complete from January 1, 2008, with additional obituaries added from requests. To find date of death search the Washington State Digital Archives.

Probate Records
Courthouse has probate files from 1880 to present.



Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)


 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.
 * Includes Certificate of will 1912-1928 Probate bonds 1933-1951; Probate records 1911-1951Real property rolls 1893-1897; and Record of probate claims 1917-1920.

Public Records

 * The Stevens County Commissioner Minutes, 1860-1913 (includes period when called Spokane County) available at Washington State Digital Archives with PDF extractions for Book A, Book B, and partial for Book C.
 * Spokane Postmaster Index. Part of Washington, Postmaster Indexes, Prior to 1965, FamilySearch Historical Collections for Washington. (Free, browse images)



Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)


 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.
 * Includes Attorney's register 1920-1934; Medical Register 1891-1981.

School Records


Part of: Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)


 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.

Taxation


Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)


 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.
 * Includes Personal property assessment rolls 1893; Personal tax rolls 1892 and Tax rolls 1888.

Birth

 * Washington State Digital Archives has a database of Spokane County Birth Records. This database contains the names of people who were born in Spokane County 1890-1907. The names were taken from the Spokane County Birth returns.


 * — index and images



Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)


 * Register of Births, 1890-1907 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection (Free)

Marriage

 * 1801-1962 - Washington, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index $
 * 1855–2008 - at FamilySearch — index and images


 * 1880-2009 - Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)
 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.
 * Includes Marriage applications 1939-2009; Applications and certificates 1930-1939; Certificate index 1880-1889; Certificates 1880-2000; Index 1890-1905; License index 1891-1911; Licenses 1899-1924; Marriage returns (new series) 1927-1947 &amp; 1891-1916; Marriages 1882-1897; Record of marriage licenses 1897-1906.


 * At Washington State Digital Archives Collections (Free):
 * 1939-2010 - Marriage Applications, 1939-2010
 * 1880-2013 - Marriage Records, 1880-2013
 * '1882-1897 - Marriage Licenses, 1882-1897


 * 1880-1910 - Marriages from 9 Jan 1880 to 10 Dec 1910 are available on the Western States Marriage Index website.


 * 1969-2014 - at FamilySearch — index

Divorce

 * 1969-2014 - at FamilySearch — index


 * Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)
 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.

Death

 * 1907-1960 Washington, Death Certificates, 1907-1960 at MyHeritage — index, ($)
 * at FamilySearch - How to use this collection, index
 * at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, some images) To find the death certificate you need to search for the person you are looking for and it will give you the film number and image number. Go to to the Death Certificate film number index find the film number and if there is a camera by the film number click on the camera it will take yo to that film. Then input the image number in search box and hit enter, your death certificate will come up. If it has a film that film is not online yet, but check back often as it may be filmed soon.
 * See what FamilySearch Historical Records) may be in these records.


 * The Family History Library has Washington State Death Certificates on microfilm 1907-1961.


 * At Washington State Digital Archives Collection (Free)
 * Register of Deaths, 1890-1907 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Indexes and images)
 * Death Returns 1888-1907 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection (Indexes and images)



Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)


 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.
 * Includes Death returns 1888-1907 and Deaths 1891-1907 A-Z.

Archives, Libraries, etc.
Resources for are available in libraries, archives, and other repositories at all levels: the town, the county, the state (including universities), and the nation.


 * Check websites and catalogs, such as items in  for ..

Family History Centers

 * Riverside Washington Family History Center
 * Spokane Washington East Family History Center
 * Spokane Washington Family History Center
 * Spokane Washington North Family History Center
 * Spokane Washington West Family History Center


 * Northwest African American Museum - an affiliate library

Libraries

 * Liberty Lake Municipal Library 23123 East Mission Avenue Liberty Lake, WA 99019 Phone: 509-232-2510 Website
 * Spokane Public Library (Downtown Branch) 906 W. Main Avenue Spokane, WA 99201 Phone: 509-444-5300 Website Genealogy area Ned M. Barnes Northwest Room


 * Branches:


 * East Side Branch Library 524 S. Stone Spokane, WA 99202 Phone: 509-444-5375 Website
 * South Hill Branch Library 3324 S. Perry Spokane, WA 99203 Phone: 509-444-5385 Website
 * Shadle Branch Library 2111 W. Wellesley Spokane, WA 99205 Phone: 509-444-5390 Website
 * Hillyard Branch Library 4005 N. Cook Spokane, WA 99207 Phone: 509-444-5380 Website
 * Indian Trail Branch Library 4909 W. Barnes Road Spokane, WA 99208 Phone: 509-444-5395 Website
 * Spokane County Library District Website Branch locations, hours, links

Museums
Spokane Valley Heritage Museum 12114 E Sprague Ave Spokane Valley, WA 99206 (509) 922-4570 Website Facebook

Societies
Eastern Washington Genealogical Society PO Box 1826 Spokane, WA 99210-1826 Website Facebook Eastern Washington Genealogical Society celebrated its 80th birthday in 2015. The Society meets the first Saturday of the month in February, March, April, May, June, October, November and December. Meetings for January are usually luncheon meetings, held in different locations. There are no meetings held in July and August, and the September meeting can sometimes be the second Saturday, depending on how Labor Day falls. (We don't meet on Labor Day weekend.) The regular meetings officially begin at 1:00pm, but the "Coffee, Cookies &amp; Conversation" part of the meeting begins at 12:30.

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: