Marion County, Oregon Genealogy

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

Oregon Online Genealogy Records

Description
Marion County was named for Francis Marion. The county is located in the northwestern area of the state.

Quick Facts


The county is named after "The Swamp Fox" Revolutionary War (c1732-1795).

County Courthouse
County Clerk has marriage records from 1849 and land records from 1850. District Court has divorce, probate and court records. State Archives has wills 1853-1891, Naturalization Records 1849-1975 and assessment rolls 1857-1925.

In August of 2010, the building at 555 Court Street NE, known as Courthouse Square was evacuated and declared unsafe for use. All of the county offices in this building were relocated to other places in the county. You can follow updates on the Marion County page at Marion County. In the meantime, the county clerk can be contacted for specific information on the files you are requesting:

Clerk's Office Mailing Address: P.O. Box 14500, Salem, Oregon 97309 E-mail: [mailto:ClerksOffice@co.marion.or.us?subject=Clerk's_Office ClerksOffice@co.marion.or.us] Web Site: Phone: (503) 588-5225

Archives/ Records Management 100 High ST NE # 1331, Salem, Oregon 97301 Email: [mailto:ClerksOffice@co.marion.or.us?subject=Archives/Records_Management ClerksOffice@co.marion.or.us] Phone: (503) 588-5490

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

Quick Facts
3 September 1849: Marion county was renamed from Champoeg County. Named for Francis Marion, a Continental Army general in the American Revolutionary War.

Trivia Tidbits: Little biographic bits associated with the names of non-population localities.

Parent County
Original county

Boundary Changes
Originally one of the four districts named in July of 1843, Champooick District (later called Champoeg) ranged from the Willamette river on the west to the Continental Divide on the east and south to California.

In 1845 the districts were renamed counties, and in 1849, the name of Champoeg District was changed to Marion County to honor Revolutionary War hero General Francis Marion. Marion County was already smaller than when it started, because 28 Dec 1847 the Provisional Legislature created Linn County out of the southern portion of Champoeg, establishing the boundary at the North Fork of the Santiam River. Then, on 11 Jan 1854, the Territorial Legislature created Wasco County from the eastern parts of Marion, Linn, Clackamas and Lane Counties. This set the eastern border of Marion County at the Cascade Range, where it remains today.

Originally the county had a county court form of government, but as the state judiciary branch of state government grew, there was less need of a county court. In 1941 the county court system was stripped of judicial function and the remaining probate and civil cases were transferred to the Circuit Court. In 1963 the county changed to a county commissioner form of government.

For animated maps illustrating Oregon County boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Oregon County Boundary Maps" (1843-1975) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org 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:

Neighboring Counties
Clackamas | Jefferson | Linn | Polk | Wasco | Yamhill |

Trivia Tidbits
Information about localities, too small or too brief to describe in separate pages. Exception to this are Post Offices. Trivia Tidbits

Cemeteries

 * Oregon Metro
 * Oregon Genealogy Cemeteries


 * Vol. 21 page 180 - Mount Angel Cemetery

Church History and Records (Rural)
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Early Catholic records. The earliest Catholic church registers have been transcribed and published in a series of seven books.
 * FamilySearch Places

County Records

 * County Records Inventory lists record collections and locations held.

Directories

 * 1959 Polk's Salem, Oregon, City Directory, 1959 at MyHeritage — index & images, ($)

Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

History

 * The French-Canadians, Oregon's First Settlers

Maps

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Civil War

 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index

World War I

 * 1919-1920 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1921-1938 at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers
Oregon Online Historical Newspapers - identifies historical archived and digitized newspapers available online on both free and pay-to-access websites.

Probate Records
Online Records
 * 1833–1963 Oregon Wills and Probate Records 1833-1963 at Ancestry.com — index & images, ($)

Rivers and Waterways
Details about the rivers and waterways where farms and settlements are often found along them. Rivers and Waterways

Vital Records
See also How to order Oregon Vital Records, order electronically online or download an application for Oregon Birth Certificate, Marriage Certificate, Divorce Certificate, Death Certificate Application to mail.

Birth Records

 * 1842-1917 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images (*); Also at: Ancestry ($)
 * 1860-1952 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1876-1940 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Delayed Birth Certificates

Marriage Records

 * 1826-1975 Oregon, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index ($)
 * 1842-1917 Oregon, U.S., State Births, 1842-1917 at Ancestry - index & images, ($); Also at: 
 * 1849-1884; 1991-2006 at FamilySearch — index and images; collection is incomplete.
 * 1906-1968 Oregon, U.S., State Marriages, 1906-1968 at Ancestry - index & images, ($)
 * Extractions of early marriages are listed on the Western States Marriage Index
 * Marriage Index 1885-1896 at FamilySearch - images. Record of affiants reporting the marriages.

Societies, Libraries and Museums
Willamette Heritage Center 1313 Mill St. Suite 200 Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-585-7012, ext 257 Website Facebook

St. Paul Mission Historical Society PO Box 158 St. Paul, OR 97137 Email:[mailto:mernst@mtangel.net mernst@mtangel.net] Website St. Paul is the core of the French Prairie, the earliest settlement in Oregon. The Society website includes history, photos, and artifacts.

Silverton Historical Society 428 South Water St Silverton, OR 97381 Phone: 503-873-7070 Website

Salem Public Library 1400 Broadway ST NE Salem, OR 97301 Phone: 503-588-6315 Website Facebook

Woodburn Public Library 280 Garfield Street Woodburn, OR 97071 Phone: 503-982-5262 Website Facebook

FamilySearch Centers

 * Salem Oregon East FamilySearch Center
 * Salem Oregon FamilySearch Center
 * Woodburn Oregon FamilySearch Center
 * The Genealogical Forum of Oregon - an affiliate library
 * Wilsonville Public Library - an affiliate library

Websites

 * Marion County, OR History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * Oregon Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * The Marion County GenWeb Project a member of The ORGenWeb Project
 * Linkpendium
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project