Blue Earth County, Minnesota Genealogy

Guide to Blue Earth 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 the Blue Earth River. The County is located in the south central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Clerk District Court has birth and death records from 1870, marriage records from 1865, divorce and court records from 1854 and probate records from 1858. Register of Deeds has land records.

Parent County

 * 1853--Blue Earth County was created 5 March 1853 from unorganized territory and Dakota County.

County seat: Mankato

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Minnesota County boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Minnesota County Boundary Maps" (1849-1960) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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

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

 * Brown
 * Faribault
 * Le Sueur
 * Martin
 * Nicollet
 * Waseca
 * Watonwan

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

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints


 * Mankato

Emigration and Immigration

 * 1912 - 1956 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Civil War
Civil War service men from Blue Earth County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies or regiments that were formed from men of Blue Earth County.


 * - 1st Regiment, Minnesota Cavalry (Mounted Rangers), Companies B, E, and H.
 * - 1st Regiment, Minnesota Heavy Artillery, Company F.
 * - 2nd Regiment, Minnesota Cavalry, Companies E and H.
 * - 3rd Regiment, Minnesota Infantry, Company H.
 * - 4th Regiment, Minnesota Infantry, Company H.
 * - 6th Regiment, Minnesota Infantry, Company I.
 * - 9th Regiment, Minnesota Infantry, Companies D and E.
 * - Brackett's Battalion, Minnesota Cavalry, Company B.

World War II

 * 1940-1945 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1872-1962 - at FamilySearch — index

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 $

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

 * Blue Earth County Historical Society 415 E. Cherry St. Mankato, MN 56001 Website
 * University Archives and Southern Minnesota Historical Center Mankato State University Mankato, MN 56001 Website
 * Madison Lake Area Historical Society City Hall 525 Main Street Madison Lake, MN 56063 Phone: 507-243-3333 Facebook

Websites

 * Minnesota Genealogy Network Community on Google+
 * Minnesota Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
 * Blue Earth County GenWeb
 * Cyndi's List: Blue Earth County
 * Cyndi's List: Blue Earth County