Douglas County, Minnesota Genealogy

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

Description
The County was named for Stephen Douglas, of Illinois. The County is located in the west central area of the state.

County Courthouse
County Recorder has birth, marriage, and death records from 1890, land records from late 1800s and military records. Clerk of Courts has divorce, probate and court records.

Parent County

 * 1858--Douglas County was created 8 March 1858 from Cass and Pembina (Old) Counties. County seat: Alexandria

Boundary Changes

 * In 1858 the territory of Douglas County was attached to Stearns County for civil and judicial purposes.

Record Loss
1862 Records from pre-1862 were lost, except the first census of 1860.

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:

Neighboring Counties

 * Grant
 * Otter Tail
 * Pope
 * Stearns
 * Stevens
 * Todd

Census
State Census
 * 1865 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1885 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1905 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Church
Forty-four churches were established between 1860 and 1910 by key ethnic groups in Douglas County. These ethnic groups included Norwegian (11 churches), German (10 churches), Swedish (20 churches), Finnish (2 churches), Danish (1 church), and American/British ethnicity (8 churches).

Lutheran
First English Lutheran Church, Alexandria


 * Records of First English Lutheran Church, Alexandria, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

East Moe Lutheran Church, Garfield


 * Records of East Moe Lutheran Church, Garfield, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

Farwell Lutheran Church


 * Records of Farwell Lutheran Church in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

Our Savior's Lutheran Congregation, Evansville


 * Records of Our Savior's Lutheran Congregation, Evansville, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

Trysil Lutheran Church, Farwell


 * Records of Trysil Lutheran Church, Farwell, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

West Moe Lutheran Church, Garfield


 * Records of West Moe Lutheran Church, Garfield, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

Norwegian Churches:

 * Alexandria Township: First Lutheran Church (founded 1872); Bethesda Lutheran Church (founded 1907)
 * Brandon Township: Chippewa Lutheran Church (founded 1871); Grace Lutheran Church (founded 1881)
 * Evansville Township: Our Savior's Lutheran Church (founded 1869)
 * Moe Township: West Moe Lutheran Church (founded 1867); East Moe Lutheran Church (founded 1886)
 * Urness Township: St. Petri Lutheran Church (founded 1887)
 * Osakis Township: Our Savior's Lutheran Church (founded 1871)
 * Holmes City Township: Trysil Lutheran Church (founded 1870)
 * Solem Township: Solem Lutheran Church (founded 1876)

Danish Church

 * Osakis Township: Danish Lutheran Church (founded 1871)

Finnish Churches

 * Urness Township: Finnish Apostolic Church (founded 1877)
 * Moe Township: St. Paul's Lutheran Church (founded 1902)

Swedish Churches

 * Alexandria Township: First Baptist Church (founded 1881); Svea (Calvary) Lutheran Church (founded 1877)
 * Osakis Township: Fahlun Lutheran Church (founded 1871)
 * Holmes City Township: Trinity Lutheran Church (founded 1875); Oscar Lake Lutheran Church (founded 1866); Swedish Baptist Church (founded 1904)
 * Urness Township: Fryksende Lutheran Church (founded 1877)
 * Lund Township: Christian Lake Lutheran Church (founded 1871)
 * Millerville Township (founded ca. 1880)
 * Ida Township: St. Luke's Lutheran Church (founded 1869); Ida Mission Covenant Church (founded 1889)
 * Solem Township: Wennersborg Lutheran Church (founded ca. 1879); Kensington Covenant Church (founded 1875)
 * Evansville Township: Immanuel Lutheran Church (founded 1883); Zionsborg Lutheran Church (founded 1884); Calvary Mission Covenant Church (founded 1887)
 * Spruce Hill Township: Free Mission Covenant Church (founded 1886); Rose City Swedish Baptist Church (founded ca. 1890); Spruce Hill Methodist Church (founded 1890s); Spruce Hill Lutheran Church (founded 1876)

German Churches

 * Alexandria Township: St. Mary's Catholic Church (founded 1879); Zion Lutheran Church (founded 1880)
 * Carlos Township: Immanual Lutheran Church (founded 1874)
 * Belle River Township: St. Nicholas Catholic Church (founded 1870)
 * Ida Township: St. John's Lutheran Church (founded 1910)
 * Brandon Township: St. Ann's Catholic Church (founded 1902)
 * Leaf Valley Township: Ebenezer Lutheran Church (founded 1875)
 * Miltona Township: St. Paul's Lutheran Church (founded 1890)
 * Millerville Township: Trinity Lutheran Church (founded 1892); Church of Seven Dolors Catholic Church (founded 1867)

Yankee and British Churches

 * Alexandria Township: First Methodist Church (founded 1879); Emmanuel Episcopal Church (founded 1868); United Methodist Church (founded 1867); Congregational Church (founded 1867)
 * Ida Township: First Presbyterian Church of Garfield (founded ca. 1900)
 * Carlos Township: Carlos Prebyterian Church (founded ca. 1900)
 * Hudson Township: Free Methodist Church (founded ca. 1891); Forada Presbyterian Church (founded ca.1898)

Emigration and Immigration

 * 1912 - 1956 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Land

 * County Recorder has land records from the late 1800s.
 * The government land office, headquarters for a large area of the northwest, was located in Alexandria beginning 1868.
 * The land office moved to Fergus Falls, Minnesota in 1876 because most of the land in Douglas County had either been bought or homesteaded.
 * The Recorder's Office at the Douglas County Courthouse, located in Alexandria, Minnesota has all the Indexes and the Land Abstracts digitized. These records extend back to the late 1860s. In order to access these records you need to tell them the address of the house or farm or else the Plat map description so that they can determine the Block and Lot numbers. Copies of the Index listings for that Block and Lot Land description as well as the matching Land Abstracts can be obtained for $.50 per page, as of 1 Nov 2011.
 * The original Land Transfer Books for Douglas County (previously kept at the Courthouse) are available at the Douglas County Historical Society in Alexandria. They begin about 1869 and extend to about 1970. Information is recorded under the Township numbers and then Block and Lot numbers. The name of the last Grantee (person’s signature) and the Date of Transfer are also recorded.

Local Histories

 * Douglas County Album of the Ages. (Douglas County Historical Society: Taylor Publishing Co., 1982)
 * Larson, Constant. History of Douglas and Grant Counties, Minnesota: their people, industries, and institutions. (Indianapolis, IN: B.F. Bowen &amp; Company, Inc, 1916).

Maps

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

World War II

 * 1940-1945 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Naturalization Records

 * Douglas County Naturalization Records 1867 to 1947

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1872-1962 - at FamilySearch — index

Newspapers

 * Douglas County newspapers which begin in 1871 are available on microfilm for searching at the Douglas County Historical Society. They can also be obtained through Interlibrary Loan from the Minnesota Historical Society. As of 10 Nov 2011 the charge by the Minnesota Historical Society is $3.00 per microfilm. The local library requesting the microfilm may also charge an additional fee, which is usually less than $10. For a list of the Alexandria area newspapers and the years they existed, see the website of the Douglas County Historical Society. (Click on the link on this page under Societies and Libraries.)

Obituaries

 * 1865-2006 - at FamilySearch— index and images

Probate
Online Probate Records
 * 1801 - 1999 Minnesota Wills and Probate Records 1801-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images $

Taxation

 * Personal property tax records that cover the period of about 1869 to about 1950 are available at the Douglas County Historical Society. They provide information on the property held by an individual at a specific time period and the dollar value of the property.

Vital Records

 * County Recorder has birth, marriage, and death records from 1890

Marriage

 * 1860 - 1949 at FamilySearch — index and images

Death

 * 1850-2001 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1887-2001 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Societies and Libraries

 * Douglas County Historical Society 1219 Nokomis St Alexandria, MN 56308-3712 Phone: 320-762-0382 Website
 * Evansville Historical Foundation PO Box 337 304 Gran Street South Evansville, MN 56326 Phone: 218-948-2010 Website
 * Osakis Area Heritage Center PO Box 8 11 East Main Street Osakis, MN Phone: 320-859-3777 Website
 * West Central Minnesota Historical Research Center University of Minnesota–Morris Morris, MN 5626 Website
 * Douglas County Genealogical Society PO Box 505 Alexandria, MN 56308

Family History Centers

 * Alexandria Minnesota Family History Center

Websites

 * Douglas County GenWeb
 * Cyndi's List: Douglas County
 * Cyndi's List: Douglas County