Clay County, Kentucky Genealogy

Guide to Clay County, Kentucky ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.



Description
The County was named for Green Clay. The County has Manchester as its seat and the County was created 1807. The County is located in the southeast area of the state.

County Courthouse
Clay County Courthouse 316 Main Street, Suite 143 Manchester, KY 40962 Phone: 606-598-2544 Clay County Website

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:

Biographies

 * John Jay Dickey Autobiography and Diary

Cemeteries
The following web sites have additional information on Clay county cemeteries.


 * Interment.net Kentucky cemetery records by county.
 * Cemetery Junction, Links to cemetery transcriptions
 * Naming the Forgotten, The Eastern State Hospital Project
 * ePodunk list of Clay County cemeteries gives the names of the cemeteries in the county with a link to more information such as address, phone number, and web site.

Census Records

 * Kentucky Census Transcriptions 1850-1930, USGenWeb
 * Census Images, USGenWeb
 * KY Census Online, Links to online census records

Church Records

 * Kentucky Christian Church Directory, ChurchAngel
 * Catholic Parishes in the Diocese of Lexington
 * Catholic Parishes in the Archdiocese of Louisville

Court Records

 * Abstracts of Early Kentucky Supreme Court Cases, KYGenWeb
 * Kentucky Court of Justice Research &amp; Reference

African Americans

 * The KY African American Griots Project
 * Kentucky Minorities has information specific to Kentucky African Americans.
 * Sandi Gorin's Tips, Hangings in Kentucky 1792-1900

Genealogies

 * [Bond] Bond, Arthur. Bond, McWhorter, York, Andrew, Miller and Willson, 1748-1984: of Kentucky counties: Casey, Lincoln, Clay, Owsley, Rockcastle, Laurel, Jackson; and Ohio counties of: Butler, Hamilton. Typescript. Microfilmed 1984.
 * [Jett] Jett, C. Otis. The Genealogy of the Breathitt, Clay and Madison County, Kentucky Branch of the Jett Family. Georgetown, Ky.: I.L. Jett, 1988.

Land and Property Records

 * The KY Land Office

Local Histories

 * The Archives of Appalachia

Maps and Gazetteers

 * KYGenWeb compiled list of maps
 * Click on the county to go to the KYGenWeb site

Military Records

 * Military Resources, Revolutionary War through Civil War

Civil War
'''Online Records
 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861-1865 - U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1861-1865 - U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1912-1950 - at FamilySearch — index and images

World War I

 * Fallen Soldiers in WWI from KY

Korea War

 * Korean War Memorial, Korean War Memorial for Soldiers from KY, KYGenWeb

Newspapers

 * USNPL, Kentucky, Kentucky newspaper index with links
 * World-Newspapers, Kentucky, Kentucky newspaper index with links
 * Kentucky Newspapers on Microfilm

Obituaries

 * Kentucky Footsteps Archives, KYGenWeb
 * Kentucky Obituary Sources, KYGenWeb
 * Links to research and locate obituaries
 * Browning Genealogy Database, Compiled by Charles Browning.
 * Kentucky Obituaries, USGenWeb
 * Afrigeneas, African American death notices, obituaries and funeral programs compiled by users from current newspapers and historical sources
 * Obituary Depot, Kentucky Newspaper Citations
 * Obituary Daily Times, Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries (Ancestry)
 * Nashville Christian Advocate Death Abstracts

Other Records

 * Kentucky Postcards, USGenWeb

Probate Records
'''Online Probate Records


 * 1774–1999 Kentucky Wills and Probate Records 1774-1999 at Ancestry ($) — index and images
 * 1830-1965 - have been digitized by FamilySearch - free.

Tax Records

 * [1808] Stephens, Mrs. Bruce. "Clay County, Kentucky Tax List, 1808," The Mountain Empire Genealogical Quarterly, Vol. 3, No. 4 (Winter 1984):235-237..
 * Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records, Ancestry ($)

Birth

 * 1839-1960 - Kentucky Births and Christenings, 1839-1960 at FamilySearch
 * 1852-1861 - Clay County Birth Index 1852-1861. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1874 - Clay County Birth Index 1874. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1911-1912 - Searchable KY Birth Index

Marriage

 * 1609-2016 - Kentucky, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 1785-1979 - Kentucky Marriages, 1785-1979 at FamilySearch
 * 1797-1954 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1852-1861 - Clay County Marriage Index 1852-1861. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1876-1878 - Clay County Marriage Index 1876-1878. Batch at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1973-2000 - Searchable KY Marriage Records
 * 1973-2000 - Kentucky Marriage Records 1973-2000

Death

 * 1843-1970 - Kentucky Deaths and Burials, 1843-1970 at FamilySearch
 * 1911-1965 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1911-2000 - Searchable KY Death Index
 * The Social Security Death Index - Searchable
 * The Kentucky Vital Records Project, Transcriptions of and Images of Kentucky Death Certificates

Divorce

 * 1973-1993 - Kentucky Divorces 1973-1993, University of Kentucky Vital Records Databases

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to Family History Centers

Societies

 * Clay County Genealogical and Historical Society Courthouse Hill Manchester, KY 40962 Telephone: 606-598-5507
 * Links and addresses to Kentucky genealogical and historical societies

Websites

 * Clay County, KY History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Clay County KYGenWeb
 * KYGenWeb project. Has maps, name indexes, history or other information for each county. Select the county.
 * State of Kentucky Website
 * USGenWeb Kentucky Archives
 * USGenWeb USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * Clay County KY Genealogy (Kentucky Genealogy)
 * . Free - The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records