McKean County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

Guide to McKean County, Pennsylvania ancestry, family history and genealogy in courthouse sources including birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, wills, deeds and land records, Civil War records, Revolutionary War records, family histories, cemeteries, churches, tax records, newspapers, and obituaries.

McKean County Pennsylvania Historical Facts
Parent Counties: Formed from Lycoming County 26 March 1804.

County Seat: Smethport

Neighboring Counties: McKean Countyresidents may also have records in:


 * Cattaraugus County, New York
 * Warren
 * Cameron
 * Elk
 * Allegany County, New York
 * Potter
 * Forest

Named for Thomas McKean, former 3-term Governor of Pennsylvania (1799-1808), and signer of the Declaration of Independence.

Description
The county was named Thomas McKean. It's county seat is Smethport and was founded September 1, 1826. It is located in the North Central tip of the state.

Boundary Changes

 * 18 April 1843: Elk County created.
 * 29 March 1860: Cameron County created.

For animated maps illustrating Pennsylvania county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Pennsylvania County Boundary Maps" (1673-1878) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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

Biographies

 * Index to the Biographical Sketches of McKean County, courtesy USGenWeb Archives

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

Additional Cemetery Resources


 * PA-Roots
 * Names in Stone
 * Ancestry($)
 * LDS Cemetery Records US Vol. 1 page 87 - Sawyer City
 * Painted Hills Genealogical Society

Church Records
Finding Church Records at Other Repositories

Additional church records can sometimes be found using search phrases such as McKean County Church Records in online catalogs like:


 * Historical Society of Pennsylvania
 * WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).

County-wide Database – Multi-denominational

 * 1708-1985 Pennsylvania, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 at Historical Society of Pennsylvania – $, free to members of the society; Also available at Ancestry.com–$; 7,542,774 entries. This database is incomplete for all counties.

Some lists of early church members may be found in the Beers' history of McKean County When congregations were too far distant for early county settlers, they would sometimes form a Union Church Society or a Union Sunday School. These groups met as Christian congregations, without being officially recognized by any one sect.

Baptist
Baptists began meeting in McKean County in 1840. The Regular Baptist Church of Bradford was organized in 1852. Additional congregations were in Turtle Point, Annin Township, Smethport, Port Allegany, Norwich (1820-21), and Kane Township. Baptists and Methodists shared the Union Church in Eldred.

Catholic
St. Bernard's was the first Catholic congregation established in Bradford. This happened in 1877. Additional churches were St. Mary's in Newell Creek, Eldred, St. Elizabeth's in Smethport, St. Gabriel's in Port Allegany, and Kane township.

Congregational
Many town had Congregational congregations. The ministers came from New England towns. Addition congregations were in Port Allegany, and Duke Centre. Methodist Church was organized in the spring of 1880 in Bradford.

Lutheran
Mount Jewett had a Swedish Evangelical Lutheran Church established in 1888. An additional congregation was in Port Allegany. Three Swedish Lutheran congregations were founded in Kane Township between 1876-1885. Methodist Church was organized in the spring of 1880 in Bradford.

Methodist
Methodist Church of Tunuanguant was organized in 1848. The First Methodist Church of Bradford congregation was established in 1878. An African Methodist Church was organized in the spring of 1880 in Bradford. Kendall township established a Methodist congregation in 1881. Additional congregations were in Annin Creek, Smethport, Port Allegany, Liberty Township, Otto Township, Duke Centre, and Kane Township. Baptists and Methodists shared the Union Church in Eldred.

Presbyterian
The First Presbyterian Church of Bradford was organized in June, 1879. A second congregation was established in Kendall township in 1885. Additional congregations were in Mount Jewett, Port Allegany,and Kane Township.

Protestant Espiscopal
The Protestant Episcopal church (St. Luke's) was formed in Smethport as early as 1842. Addition congregations were in Port Allegany and Otto Township.

Court of Common Pleas
The Courts of Common Pleas are the trial courts of Pennsylvania. Major civil and criminal cases are heard in these courts. Judges also decide cases involving adoption, divorce, child custody, abuse, juvenile delinquency, estates, guardianships, charitable organizations and many other matters. The Common Pleas courts are organized into 60 judicial districts. McKean County has its own judicial district. Judges of the Common Pleas courts are elected to 10-year terms. A president judge and a court administrator serve in each judicial district.

Prothonotary
The Prothonotary and Clerk of Courts is located under Departments at the McKean County website.The Court no longer accepts passport applications. Passports must be processed at the local post office.

Orphans' Court
McKean County Courthouse Register Clerk of Orphans' Court 500 Main Street Smethport, PA 16749 Phone: 814-887-3263

Land and Property
Land records in McKean County began in 1804. These records are filed with the Recorder of Deeds office in Smethport, Pennsylvania.

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts, indexes, mortgages, leases, grants, sheriff sales, land patents, and maps. Property records include liens as well as livestock brands and estray records.

The following are examples of available resources:

Online Land Records


 * 1973–present Images are available online using the Landex system. There is a fee to view the images.

Land Records on Microfilm


 * 1806-1972 Deed books, 1806-1886; Indexes, 1806-1972.
 * 1806–1900 Deeds, 1806-1868; Deed Index 1806-1900
 * 1811–1972 Mortgage Index.

Additional Resources

Note that the "Maps" section below also includes maps related to land ownership.

See Pennsylvania Land and Property for more information about using land records, especially about original land warrants, surveys, and patents filed at the state land office. Click the image to see an enlarged version Additional resources can sometimes be found using search phrases such as McKean County Pennsylvania Land in online catalogs such as:


 * Historical Society of Pennsylvania
 * WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog.)
 * (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search.)

Maps



 * Maps of Pennsylvania (1673-1878)
 * Ancestor Tracks has posted free and downloadable images from the 1856 Map of McKean County and the map of McKean Co. Pennsylvania Compiled and Published by D.G. Beers &amp; Co., 1871. These wall maps in the Library of Congress show major landowners and geographic sites at the dates 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.

Migration
Early migration routes for European settlers to and from McKean County included:


 * Catskill Turnpike, trail 1760s; turnpike 1804, from Catskill to Bath, New York with extensions to Buffalo, New York, or Erie, Pennsylvania
 * Forbidden Path, 1767 from Athens, Pennsylvania to Salamanca, New York

Naturalization and Citizenship
Naturalization records for McKean County, Pennsylvania include the following:

Online Naturalization Indexes and Records


 * 1820-1906 Index to Declarations and Petitions in the Western District of Pennsylvania, US Circuit and District Courts located in US Naturalization Records Indexes, 1794-1995 database on Ancestry.com - ($), National Archives publication M1208


 * 1820-1930 Naturalization Petitions of the U.S. District Court, 1820-1930, and Circuit Court, 1820-1911, for the Western District of Pennsylvania on Fold3.com - ($), indexed, National Archives publication M1537, incomplete for all counties


 * 1820-1930 Naturalization Petitions of the U.S. District Court, 1820-1930, and Circuit Court, 1820-1911, for the Western District of Pennsylvania located in Selected US Naturalization Records - Original Documents, 1790-1974 database on Ancestry.com - ($), indexed, National Archives publication M1537

Original Naturalization Records on Microfilm


 * 1842-1906 Alien dockets, 1842-1906.

Newspapers
Newspapers of McKean County


 * Pennsylvania Newspapers
 * Chronicling America US Newspaper Directory

Online Newspapers

To learn if there are newspapers online for a specific town or city in Pennsylvania, see news.google.com/newspapers and search for the town or the name of a newspaper.


 * Newspaper Archives of Green Free Library
 * Newspaper Archives of Smethport

Online Newspaper Abstracts


 * PA-Roots Newspaper Articles for McKean County, Pennsylvania.
 * Selected McKean County Newspaper Articles from the years, courtesy USGenWeb Archives Includes births, marriages and deaths

Obituaries
Obituaries are generally found in local newspapers where the person died. However, sometimes an obituary is found in the location from which he or she originated. To find an obituary, see the information under the Newspaper heading

Obituary Abstracts


 * PA-Roots Obituaries for McKean County, Pennsylvania.
 * McKean County PA Genealogy Obituaries
 * McKean County Obituaries, courtesy USGenWeb Archives

Probate Records
Online Probate Records

Original probate records for some Pennsylvania counties are available free online as digital images at FamilySearch.org. The dates vary significantly for each county and not all counties are listed. Some counties may only have probate indexes. This Pennsylvania collection of images may be browsed through the links listed below:

Complete Collection:


 * 1683-1993 Pennsylvania Wills and Probate Records 1683-1993 at Ancestry.com — index and images $


 * 1683-1994 at FamilySearch.org

McKean County Only:


 * 1827-1969 McKean County Probate Records

Original Probate Records on Microfilm


 * 1827-1917 Register's Dockets  - Index included: 1827-1969

Repositories

 * List of Pennsylvania Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical &amp; Genealogical Societies

Archives

 * National Archives at Philadelphia 14700 Townsend Road Philadelphia, PA 19154-1096 Phone: 215-305-2044 Fax: 215-305-2052
 * National Archives at Philadelphia 14700 Townsend Road Philadelphia, PA 19154-1096 Phone: 215-305-2044 Fax: 215-305-2052

Courthouse

 * McKean County Courthouse 500 W. Main Street Smethport, PA 16749 Phone: 814-887-3270


 * Prothonotary/Clerk of Courts Phone: 814–887–3270


 * Orphans' Court/Register of Wills Phone: 814–887–3260

Family History Centers
The main FHC for McKean County is the Cameron County Historical Society. The Cameron County Historical Society is an affiliate of the Family History Library, located in Salt Lake City, Utah. As an affiliate, patrons of the Cameron County Historical Society can rent most microfilms and microfiche that are listed in the FamilySearch Catalog. For additional nearby Family History Centers, search online in the FHC directory.

Libraries

 * Bradford Area Public Library 67 West Washington Street Bradford, PA 16701-1234 Phone: 814-362-6527 Email: [mailto:bapublib@atlanticbb.net bapublib@atlanticbb.net]


 * The library will do limited research for a fee. Their collection includes cemetery listings, city directories, local histories, and civil war volunteers listings.


 * Hanley Library, University of Pittsburgh at Bradford 300 Campus Drive Bradford, PA 16701 Phone: 814- 362-7610


 * The Hanley library holds the McKean County Genealogical Society collection. This collection includes local and regional histories, cemetery records, and family genealogies.

Museums

 * Eldred WW II Museum &amp; Learning Center 201 Main Street PO Box 273 Eldred, PA 16731 Phone: 814-225-2220

Taxation

 * 1800s McKean County Tax Payers of the 1800's at PAGenWeb - free.

Vital Records
See also How to order Pennsylvania Vital Records

Birth

 * 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Births Ancestry.com – ($) Index with images.
 * 1883-1906 McKean County Birth Index 1883-1906 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1893-1906 Smethport Birth Index 1893-1906 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1897-1931 Selected births from McKean County Newspapers, 1897-1931, courtesy USGenWeb Archives

Marriage

 * 1677–1950  at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1700-1821 Pennsylvania Marriage Records Ancestry.com – ($) This database is incomplete for all counties.
 * 1725-1976  - free index. Not complete for all years. This index is an electronic database of information. The entries are primarily from the International Genealogical Index (IGI) along with some entries derived from compiled and original records such as: Family Records, Church Records, Civil Registration. It may also include indexes generated by the internet indexing project sponsored by the LDS Church.
 * Pre-1810 Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry.com – ($) This database is incomplete for all counties. Includes 35,000 marriage records from vol. VIII of of the second series of the Pennsylvania Archives.
 * 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry.com – ($) Index with images.
 * 1885 McKean County Marriage Index 1885 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1885-1950  Extracted marriage records – free. Most of the records consist of marriage licenses, certificates, applications, docket books, and affidavits. This database is incomplete for all counties. May also contain marriage records earlier than 1885.
 * Selected marriages from McKean County Newspapers, 1874-1931, courtesy USGenWeb Archives

Divorce
Divorce records are available through the office of the Prothonotary. The office of the Prothonotary is located in the courthouse building.

Death

 * 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Deaths Ancestry.com – ($) Index with images.
 * 1874-1931 Selected deaths from McKean County Newspapers, 1874-1931, courtesy USGenWeb Archives
 * 1881-1905 Bradford Death Index 1881-1905 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1893-1906 Smethport Death Index 1893-1906 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.

McKean County Pennsylvania Genealogy Websites

 * McKean County, PA History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * USGenWeb
 * McKean County PA Genealogy