Sullivan County, New Hampshire Genealogy

Guide to Sullivan County, New Hampshire ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

Description
Sullivan County was created on 5 July 1827 and named for John Sullivan, an Irish-American General in the Revolutionary War, a delegate in the Continental Congress, Governor of New Hampshire and a United States federal judge. Its county seat is Newport. It is located in the southwest region of the state.

County Courthouse
Sullivan County Courthouse 22 Main Street Newport, NH 03773-0045 Phone: 855-212-1234 Sullivan County Website

The Town or City Clerks have birth, marriage, death and burial records. The Clerk of the Superior Court has divorce and court records from 1827. The Register of Probate has probate records. The Register of Deeds has land records. The Richards Library, in Newport, New Hampshire has other records of genealogical interest.

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:

Towns Organized Before 1800:

Biographies
There are books or films with biographies, genealogies, and vital records for the towns and cities of Sullivan County. The FamilySearch Library has books or films with genealogical sections for: Acworth, Claremont, Charlestown, Cornish, Goshen, Langdon, Lempster, Newport, Plainfield, Unity, and Washington. Please see the FamilySearch Catalog for the town, and look under the headings Genealogy and History. For Grantham and Sunapee for which the FamilySearch Library does not have a genealogical book, the Library has films with very good vital records (birth, marriage, and death records). For Croydon, there is a Centennial Celebration history book published in 1867 with some information on leading figures in the community to 1866. A very good place to contact for biographies and family histories in Sullivan County is the Newport Historical Society, 20 Central St., P. O. Box 413, Newport, NH 03773, tel. 603-863-1294, e-mail, newporths1761@gmail.com. They have a good number of local histories, and a good amount of family history information. Another good place to contact for biographical information is the Historical Society of Cheshire County, in Keene, New Hampshire. They have town histories, family histories, biographical manuscripts, photographs, city directories, newspapers, business records, and other biographical information. The New Hampshire Historical Society in Concord, New Hampshire is a good source for similar materials.

Cemeteries

 * The Newport Historical Society has collected cemetery records. (See address in Biography section above.)
 * Conway Public Library

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Court Records
Online Court Indexes and Records
 * Before 1827 Cheshire County at FamilySearch Research Wiki
 * 1827-1859 at FamilySearch Catalog(*) — images
 * 1828-1855 at FamilySearch Catalog(*) — images
 * 1855-1905 at FamilySearch Catalog(*) — images

Genealogies
For Sullivan County there are many excellent town histories. Many have a genealogical section.The FamilySearch Library has history books or films with genealogical sections for: Acworth, Claremont, Charlestown, Cornish, Goshen, Langdon, Lempster, Newport, Plainfield, Unity, and Washington. In the Family History Library Catalog, go to the town, then look for the heading Genealogy or History. Many of the books are on microfilm or available online. Many other historical societies and libraries will very likely also have these books.

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records
 * 1827-1850 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1827-1850 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1827-1850: The FamilySearch Library has microfilms of the grantor, and, grantee indexes for 1827-1850 and films of the deed volumes for 1827-1850. See the Library Catalog for the film numbers.
 * 1827-1874 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1827-1900: To search Sullivan County land records for 1827-1900 you can go to the internet site Sullivan County Registry of Deeds. For detailed instructions go to Newport Historical Society. Look for the instructions on searching the deeds.
 * 1827-1902 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1852-1947 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1852-1947 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1852-1947 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

Local Histories

 * Early-1885: The FamilySearch Library of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has many local history books about Sullivan County and the towns in the county. Several of the books can be read online through familysearch.org. For example, the History of Cheshire and Sullivan Counties, New Hampshire, by D. Hamilton Hurd, published in 1886 (FS Library book 974.2 H2h, film 962,933). This has histories of each town from early settlement to about 1885. You can search for names or keywords. There is also a separate index on the internet.
 * 1766-1878: The book History of the Town of Cornish, New Hampshire is available online, and The History of Newport, New Hampshire, from 1766 to 1878, with a Genealogical Register can be seen online.
 * 1771-1827 The area that now is Sullivan County was part of Cheshire County from 1771 to 5 July 1827. Thus, if you are looking for an ancestor in censuses, deeds, probate records, etc. before 5 July 1827, look in Cheshire County records.
 * The Newport Historical Society and other town historical societies are good places to contact for local history for Sullivan County. See the Internet site of the New Hampshire History Network for contact information for historical societies.
 * The New Hampshire State Library in Concord, New Hampshire has a vast collection of books about New Hampshire towns and counties. Check their internet catalog for a town of interest.
 * The New Hampshire Historical Society also in Concord has a very large collection of local history books and other publications.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * 1890: An interesting help for 1890 is the Town and City Atlas of the State of New Hampshire, published in 1892 in Boston by the D. H. Hurd Company. The atlas has maps for almost every city, town, and village in New Hampshire. The maps show the locations of homes, and the map gives the name of the person living in the home. The above web site is from the University of New Hampshire Library.
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records
For a military history of New Hampshire, see:
 * The Military History of the State of New Hampshire; by Potter, Chandler Eastman; Concord, N.H.: McFarland and Jenks, 1866. Online at: Internet Archive, Ancestry ($). This history comprises events from the first settlements in New Hampshire to the rebellion in 1861. It includes biographical notices of many of the officers and explanatory notes.

Revolutionary War
 * 1675-1835 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * History of Cheshire and Sullivan Counties, New Hampshire. 1886. By D. Hamilton Hurd. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library. There is a history of each town with names of soldiers who served from that town in the Revolutionary War. There is also background information about activities surrounding the war.
 * The most complete listing of New Hampshire Revolutionary War soldiers is found in volumes 14-17 of the New Hampshire State Papers. You can go to google.com, and look for New Hampshire State Papers with the link to ancestry.com. There you will find a name index to volumes 14-17, then you can go to the needed volume and page for information on the soldier. Often the place of residence is given.

War of 1812
 * Hurd's History of Cheshire and Sullivan Counties, New Hampshire, mentioned above, is available online, and lists soldiers in the various towns who served in the War of 1812. Find the history of the town where the soldier lived and look in the military history section.

Civil War
 * 1861-1866: at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images;  Also at: Ancestry ($)

Regiments. Civil War service men from Sullivan County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are many companies or regiments that were formed from men of Sullivan County.
 * - 1st Regiment, New Hampshire Infantry, Companies D and K.
 * - 1st Regiment, New Hampshire Cavalry, Troops A, F, G, I, and L.
 * - 1st Regiment, New Hampshire Heavy Artillery, Companies A, B, and H.
 * - 2nd Regiment, New Hampshire Infantry, Companies H and I.
 * - 3rd Regiment, New Hampshire Infantry, Companies A and F.
 * - 5th Regiment, New Hampshire Infantry, Companies E and G.
 * - 6th Regiment, New Hampshire Infantry, Companies F and G.
 * - 9th Regiment, New Hampshire Infantry, Company D.
 * - 11th Regiment, New Hampshire Infantry, Company F.
 * - 14th Regiment, New Hampshire Infantry, Companies B and I.
 * - 15th Regiment, New Hampshire Infantry, Company F.
 * - 16th Regiment, New Hampshire Infantry, Companies A, F, and I.
 * - New Hampshire Sharpshooters, 1st Company E

World War I
 * 1917-1918 U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 at Ancestry - index & images ($)

World War II
 * 1938-1946 U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * 1942 U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 at Ancestry - index & images ($)

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1827-1906: Many of the Sullivan County naturalization records for 1827-1906 have been transferred to the New Hampshire State Archives. See this link for a list of what is at the State Archives. Naturalization records since 1906 may very well be at the courthouse.
 * 1838-1903: Naturalization index, 1838 to approxamatley 1903.
 * 1838-1903: Naturalization records of the various courts, 1838-1903.
 * 1906-1993 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Newspapers
The oldest newspaper for the Sullivan County region is the Keene Sentinel, published since 1799. The offices are at 60 West St., Keene, NH 03431, tel. 603-352-1234, e-mail classified@keenesentinel.com. The web site is sentinelsource.com. See the Newspaper section for Cheshire County in the wiki for information on indexes to the Keene Sentinel. Over the years various newspapers have been published in Sullivan County, for example for the Newport region, the New Hampshire Argus, 1834-1835. The name has changed many times, and today there is the Argus Champion. For the Claremont region there is the Claremont Eagle Times, and the Claremont Courier. To learn more about early newspapers published in Sullivan County cities and towns, see the United States portion of the wiki, under the heading Newspapers. For example see Winifred Gregory's book American Newspapers, 1821-1936, published in 1937, reprinted in 1967 (FS Library Ref Q book 970 B33a 1967, film 483713).

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1635-1753: New Hampshire Probate Records 1635-1753 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
 * 1643-1982: New Hampshire Wills and Probate Records 1643-1982 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Town Records
To see the types of family history information you might find in town records please go to the heading Town Records in our New Hampshire wiki article.


 * 1636-1947 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Vital Records
Certified copies of birth, death, and marriage records are available from the State Division of Archives and Records management or from the local city and town clerk where the event took place. Original records are kept by the city or town clerk and copies are sent to the state. In 1905, when the state created the Bureau of Vital Records and Health, printed cards were distributed to the local clerks and earlier vital records were transcribed onto the cards and submitted to the state.

Birth

 * Early-1900 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1656-1938 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1901-1915 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Marriage

 * 1637-1964 New Hampshire, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index ($)
 * 1637-1947 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1656-1938 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1948-1959 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images

Death

 * 1654-1947 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * 1656-1938 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index

FamilySearch Centers

 * Concord New Hampshire FamilySearch Center
 * Lebanon New Hampshire FamilySearch Center
 * Rutland Vermont FamilySearch Center
 * American Canadian Genealogical Society - an affiliate library
 * Brooks Memorial Library - an affiliate library
 * Griffin Free Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Meredith Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Thornton Public Library - New Hampshire - an affiliate library

Societies
Sullivan County Historical Societies as listed by CountyOffice.org Website Towns: An excellent way to gain information is to contact the local town historical society. The best list of these is found at the New Hampshire History Network. At that site, click on the Directory, and scroll down to the town of interest. The Historical Society of Cheshire County in Keene, New Hampshire has a large genealogical collection relating to Cheshire County. Their collection might help you if your family was an early family in Sullivan County.

Websites

 * The Sullivan County NHGenWeb Project, a member of The NHGenWeb Project], an affiliate of USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Sullivan County
 * Sullivan County, New Hampshire Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * – 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.

Research Guides
1. Check www.familysearch.org (Family Tree) and see if your ancestor's name is listed there. 2. Check familysearch.org's historical records and see if your family's vital records of births, marriages, and deaths are there. 3. Check familysearch.org and see if your family is listed on the U. S. census records of 1850-1940. You can also see those censuses at the FamilySearch Center using Heritage Quest, and ancestry.com. 4. If you know the town where they lived, seek a town history that has a genealogical section (see below). 5. Read through the wiki articles on Sullivan County, and on New Hampshire, for ideas of sources. Study the Records Selection Table in the New Hampshire article. This can help you think of new sources to try. 6. Share your search on familysearch.org (Family Tree), genforum.com, or ancestry.com. You can also share your quest with the local historical society or town library and ask for help. Send them your family group forms and a pedigree chart.