Morrow County, Oregon Genealogy

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

Description
Morrow County was named for Jackson L. Morrow, who was a member of the state legislature. The county is located in the north-central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Morrow County Courthouse 100 Court Street Heppner, Or 97836 Phone: 541-676-5264 Morrow County Website
 * County Clerk has divorce, court and land records from 1885.
 * County Records Inventory listing the records held at the Morrow County Court House as of August 2008.

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:

Discontinued Post Offices


 * Acton: Acton was a post office on Butter Creek in the east part of the county about 16 miles north-northeast of Heppner. Established 11 July 1879, with John Barker first postmaster. It remained in service until 19 June 1888. It may have been transferred to Pine City. It may have been named for a family by name of Acton. Identity is unknown.
 * Adamsville: Adamsville post office was established Apr. 15, 1884, with Silas W. Miles first postmaster. It was discontinued June 30, 1885. Old maps show the place in the vicinity of the present site of Hardman.
 * Alpine: Just what there was to suggest the name Alpine for a post office in eastern Morrow County about 20 miles north of Heppner, can not be imagined, but that is the record. This office was established October 3, 1884 with G. H. Parsell first postmaster. It continued in service until July 27, 1894, when it was closed out to Galloway, a nearby office. A directory for 1886 says Alpine was a special supply post office, but there is no explanation of the term. As of 1940 a diagram of Morrow County showed a precinct called Alpine in the Northeast part of the county.

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

 * County Records Inventory listing the records held at the Morrow County Court House as of September/October 2003.

Maps and Gazetteers

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

Migration
Early migration routes to and from Morrow County for European and African American settlers included:
 * Columbia River
 * Oregon Trail 1830s to 1890s from western Missouri to Oregon City, Oregon

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

Military Records
 Civil War
 * 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

World War I
 * 1919-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1921-1938 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & 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 Probate Indexes and Records


 * 1833-1963 Oregon Wills and Probate Records 1833-1963 at Ancestry.com — index & images ($)
 * 1886-1941 Morrow County Oregon list of will book testators SAMPUBCO - Browsable index of testators of wills - free

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

Birth

 * 1842-1917 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; Also at: Ancestry ($)
 * 1860-1952 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1876-1940 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1903-1918 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Marriage

 * 1826-1975 Oregon, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index ($)
 * 1842-1917 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; Also at: Ancestry ($)
 * 1849-1884;1991-2006 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
 * 1906-1968 Oregon, U.S., State Marriages, 1906-1968 at Ancestry - index & images ($)
 * Western States Marriage Index at BYU-Idaho
 * 1885-1896 Marriage Index 1885-1896 Actually is a book of affiants reporting the marriages. Historical Records Collection

FamilySearch Centers

 * Boardman Oregon FamilySearch Center
 * Hermiston Oregon FamilySearch Center
 * The Genealogical Forum of Oregon - an affiliate library
 * Oregon Genealogical Society - an affiliate library

Libraries
Oregon Trail Library District 200 South Main St Boardman, OR 97818 Phone: 541-481-3365 Website

Museums
Morrow County Museum 444 N Main St Heppner, OR 97836 Phone: 541-676-5524 Website Facebook

Websites

 * Morrow County GenWeb part of OR GenWeb
 * USGenWeb Archives
 * – 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.