Baldwin County, Alabama Genealogy

Guide to Baldwin County, Alabama ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.
 * This article is about a southwest Alabama county. For other uses, see Baldwin

Description
Baldwin County was created on 21 December 1809 and named in honor of Senator Abraham Baldwin, minister, patriot, politician, and Founding Father who signed the United States Constitution though he never lived in what is now Alabama. Its county seat is Bay Minette. It is located in the southwestern area of the state.

County Courthouse
Baldwin County Courthouse 312 Courthouse Square, Suite 10 Bay Minette, AL 36507 Phone: 251-937-9561

Fairhope Satellite Courthouse 1100 Fairhope Avenue Fairhope, AL 36532 Phone: 251-928-3002

Foley Satellite Courthouse 201 East Section Avenue Foley, AL 36535 Phone: 251-943-5061 Baldwin County Website

The Probate Court has marriage records from 1810, probate records from 1809 and land records from 1808. The Clerk of the Circuit Court has divorce and court records.

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit Hometown Locator.

Bible Records

 * Baldwin County, Alabama Bible Records at Access Genealogy
 * Baldwin County, Alabama Bible Records at Alabama Genealogy
 * Baldwin County Bible Records at USGenWeb Archives Project
 * Family Bibles at Genealogy Trails

Biographies

 * Memorial Record of Alabama, Baldwin County. Madison, WI: Brant & Fuller, 1893. Pg. 376. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.


 * Baldwin County Biographies at USGenWeb Archives Project

Census Records
Territory Census Returns
 * 1810, at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1816, at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1855 Population Index to the 1855 Baldwin County Census at Ancestry ($). Includes heads of household.

State Census
 * 1855   at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1866  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1907, 1921, 1927  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Church Records

 * 1831-1994  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1810-1935 (*); Probate Court Records at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

 * 1865-1872  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; images only
 * 1896-1935 in "Alabama, County Marriages, 1809-1950," courtesy of FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

The following articles have information concerning African American research:


 * African American Research (US) has more information about the kinds of records
 * Alabama Minorities has information specific to Alabama African Americans.

Funeral Homes

 * Banks Memorial Funeral Home in Bay Minette
 * Cason Funeral Service in Foley
 * Mack Funeral Home and Crematory in Robertsdale
 * Norris Funeral Home in Bay Minette
 * Pine Rest Funeral Home and Memorial Park in Foley
 * Wolfe-Bayview Funeral Homes and Crematory in Daphne, Elberta, Fairhope, Foley, and Gulf Shores

Land and Property Records
To place a grant or deed on a map within context of Baldwin County see:


 * Boyd, Gregory A. Family Maps of Baldwin County, Alabama: with Homesteads, Roads, Waterways, Towns, Cemeteries, Railroads, and More. Norman, Okla.: Arphax Pub. Co., 2006. This is a definitive work and can be used as an index to land grants. Digital version at HistoryGeo.com ($). Website includes surname index..

Online Land Indexes and Records
 * United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary
 * Dates Vary United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary

Local Histories

 * A Brief History of Baldwin County. By L.J. Newcomb Comings and Martha M. Albers. Fairhope, Alabama: Baldwin County Historical Society, 1928. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Ancestry ($).
 * Northern Alabama, Historical and Biographical. Birmingham, Ala.: Smith and De Land, 1888. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, HathiTrust.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Maps of Alabama (1799-1980) at Maps of US
 * Family Maps of Baldwin County (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
 * Alabama Maps and Blueprints Collection at Alabama Department of Archives and History – maps can be browsed by location or subject
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records
Multiple Wars
 * ca.1918-ca.1962  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Civil War
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1861-1865 Alabama Civil War Service Database at Alabama Department of Archives and History - index
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * 1871-1880 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1880-1930  at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * 1907, 1921, 1927 at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection
 * Alabama Civil War and Reconstruction Newspapers at Alabama Department of Archives and History


 * - 21st Regiment, Alabama Infantry, Company F "Baldwin Rifles"
 * - 23rd Regiment, Alabama Infantry, Company I
 * - 32nd Regiment, Alabama Infantry, Company C

Civil War Battles The following Civil War battles were fought in Baldwin County.
 * August 2-23, 1864 - Mobile Bay, also known as Passing of Forts Morgan and Gaines, (partly fought in Mobile County).
 * March 27-April 8, 1865 - Spanish Fort.
 * April 2-9, 1865 - Fort Blakely.
 * Battles of the American Civil War maps - filter by state or by battle name.

World War I
 * 1917-1918 Alabama World War I Service Records at Alabama Department of Archives and History - alpha index by name and images
 * 1917-1918 Alabama World War I Gold Star Files at Alabama Department of Archives and History - alpha index by name and images
 * 1917-1919 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

World War II
 * 1940-1945  at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * 1940-1966 Alabama Active Military Service Reports at Alabama Department of Archives and History - alpha index by name and images

Newspapers

 * 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
 * Alabama Civil War and Reconstruction Newspapers at Alabama Department of Archives and History
 * Alabama Online Historical Newspapers at Google.com - identifies historical archived and digitized newspapers available online on both and pay-to-access websites.

Other Records
Voter Registration
 * 1834-1981  at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection; index and some images


 * 1867 Alabama Voting Registersat Alabama Department of Archives and History
 * Baldwin County has three books:
 * Book 1
 * Book 2
 * Book 3

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1753-1999 Alabama Wills and Probate Records 1753-1999 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * 1809-1934 ; Probate Court(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1809-1985 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; images
 * 1830-1976  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1841-1950 ; Probate Court(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * United States Wills and Deeds Experimental Search at FamilySearch - incomplete index and images, counties and dates vary
 * 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, click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Tax Records

 * 1810-1816, at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
 * 1816 Inhabitants of Alabama in 1816 Broken Arrow Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, 1955. Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library. Includes Baldwin County.
 * 1862-1918 U.S. IRS Tax Assessment Lists, 1862-1918 at Ancestry - index & images ($). Baldwin County is in District 1.

Birth

 * 1881-1930  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1881-1930  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and some images

Marriage

 * 1733-2013 Alabama, United States Marriages at Findmypast - index & images ($)
 * 1800-1969 Alabama, U.S., Marriage Index, 1800-1969 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * 1802-1825 Alabama, U.S., Compiled Marriages, 1802-1825 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * 1809-1920 Alabama, U.S., Compiled Marriages from Selected Counties, 1809-1920 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * 1809-1950  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and some images
 * 1816-1957  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1818-1936  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Death

 * 1881-1952 at FamilySearch - How to Use this collection; index
 * 1881-1974 Alabama, U.S., Deaths and Burials Index, 1881-1974 at Ancestry - index ($)
 * 1908-1959 Alabama, U.S., Death Index, 1908-1959 at Ancestry - index ($)
 * 1908-1974 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Archives
Alabama Department of Archives and History 624 Washington Ave PO Box 300100 Montgomery, AL 36104 Phone: 334-242-4435 Email: [mailto:mark.palmer@archives.alabama.gov mark.palmer@archives.alabama.gov] Website Facebook

FamilySearch Centers

 * Atmore Alabama FamilySearch Center
 * Daphne Alabama FamilySearch Center
 * Monroe Alabama FamilySearch Center
 * Foley Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Mobile Public Library - multiple locations - an affiliate library

Libraries
Daphne Public Library 2607 US Hwy 98 PO Box 1225 Daphne, AL 36526 Phone: 251-620-2500 Website Facebook Foley Public Library 319 E Laurel Ave (Hwy 98) Foley, AL 36535-2680 Phone: 251-943-7665 Email: [mailto:foleylibrary@gmail.com foleylibrary@gmail.com] Website Facebook Fairhope Public Library 501 Fairhope Ave Fairhope, AL 36532 Phone: 251-928-7483 Email: [mailto:director@fairhopelibrary.org director@fairhopelibrary.org] Website Facebook

Societies
Baldwin County Genealogical Society PO Box 108 Foley, AL 36536-0108 Email: [mailto:BaldwinGenealogy@gmail.com BaldwinGenealogy@gmail.com] Website Facebook

Websites

 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * USGenWeb Archives Project. Record transcriptions from Bibles, obituaries, court records and more.
 * Baldwin County at Linkpendium
 * Baldwin County at Alabama Genealogy
 * – 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.