Penobscot County, Maine Genealogy

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

Description
Penobscot County was created on 15 February 1816 and named for the Penobscot tribe. Its county seat is Bangor. Penobscot County is located in the central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Penobscot County Courthouse 78 Exchange Street Bangor, ME 04401 Phone: 207-561-2300 Penobscot County Website

Clerk Courts have divorce records from 1900 and court records from 1821. Probate Court has probate records.

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 census area:

Plantations Carroll Plantation | Drew Plantation | Seboeis Plantation |  Webster Plantation

Extinct towns and plantations Argyle | Grand Falls Plantation | Greenfield | Kingman | Mattamiscontis | Prentiss | Summit Plantation | Twombly Ridge | Whitney Ridge Plantation

History Timeline

 * The Ancient Penobscot, or Panawanskek

Business, Commerce, and Occupations
Occupations
 * 1873-1965 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; image only

Cemeteries

 * 1620-2014 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * 1676-1918 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index/images
 * 1718-2014 Maine, U.S., Tombstone Inscriptions, Surname Index, 1718-2014 at Ancestry - index ($)
 * 1780-1990 Maine, U.S., Faylene Hutton Cemetery Collection, 1780-1990 at Ancestry - index and images ($)
 * ca. 1780-1999 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * 1861-2012 Web: Penobscot County, Maine, Mount Hope Burial Index, 1861-2012 at Ancestry free
 * Courtesy of Bangor, Maine's website: Interments for Pinegrove, Oakgrove and Maplegrove Cemeteries.
 * Mt. Hope Cemetery: Searchable Interment Database: This cemetery opened in 1834
 * Courtesy of Penobscot County Genealogical Society: A list of cemeteries by town and locations with contact information
 * AHGP Maine Cemetery Transcription &amp; Photo Project- Penobscot
 * The Maine Old Cemetery Association (MOCA): transcriptions for many of the cemeteries in the state
 * GNIS (Cemetery Location)

Census Records

 * Special 1837 Census of Unincorporated Townships and Plantations of Penobscot County.

Church Records
Few church records have been published or microfilmed for Maine, making them a major untapped source for genealogical research. No complete survey of what exists has been made, but the Congregational Church was the largest denomination and its records were usually quite comprehensive. According to John Frost, “Genealogy in Maine: A Pragmatic Approach,” Family History in the Northeast, vol. 1, Hartford ’83 Conference (Hartford, Conn.: Connecticut Society of Genealogists, 1983) records for over two dozen Congregational churches are located at Maine Historical Society, as well as thirteen Baptist, three Universalist, and ten Quaker meetings.

Literally hundreds more church records probably exist in various repositories or the churches themselves. The most likely genealogical material can be found in the lists of memberships with letters of admission or dismissal and the baptisms. List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * 1840-1875 Maine: Marriages Performed by Rev. Enoch M. Fowler, 1840-1875 at American Ancestors — index & images ($)
 * 1854-1892 Maine: Marriages by Reverend H.F.A. Patterson, 1854-1892 at American Ancestors - index & images ($)
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records
Online Court Indexes and Records

An extensive array of courts has existed in Maine since the beginning of the settlements in the early 1600s. Jurisdictional changes are quite complicated. A detailed publication of the early records can be found in Province and Court Records of Maine, 6 vols. (Portland, Maine: Maine Historical Society, 1928), as well as on microfilm through the FS Library. All of the original court records for York County are at Maine State Archives. Counties formed from York after 1760 (Cumberland and Lincoln) and 1789 (Washington) from York were also under Massachusetts jurisdiction, although these records appear not to have been microfilmed. Most extant court records to 1929 for all counties except Lincoln can be found at the Maine State Archives. Later court records after 1929 continue to be received by the archives. Lincoln County court records are at the courthouse in Wiscasset.

Before statehood, Maine’s court of appeals was the Massachusetts Superior Court of Judicature (1692–1780). This also served as the original court for some other cases such as murders. Records for this court are filled as “Suffolk Files” at the Massachusetts State Archives where they are indexed. The supreme judicial court replaced the superior court of judicature after 1780. According to the Massachusetts State Archives, their holdings include circuit court records for this court for Maine counties through 1793. Online access to some private held indexes to court records can be found through Maine GenWeb
 * 1718-1957 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images

Penobscot County Superior Courthouse Penobscot County District Court - Bangor County District Court - Lincoln Penobscot County District Court - Millinocket Penobscot County District Court - Newport

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records Maine is a state-land state. Lands were generally acquired by proprietor grants, deeds from proprietors, or deeds from other individuals. Land transactions are recorded at the county level and are available in the county deed office. PENOBSCOT COUNTY REGISTRY OF DEEDS ($) (note that many deeds are also online)
 * 1642-1737 All deeds before 1737 have been transcribed and published in 18 volumes York Deeds 1642-1737 (Portland, ME: Maine Historical Society, 1887-1910).
 * 1718-1957 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * Following the American Revolution, land was sold to help pay for the cost of the war in lotteries, tax sales, grants, patents and a few war grants. All original papers are held at the Massachusetts State Archives and they have been published in The Maine Historical and Genealogical Recorder, vol 4-8. Online at: (*); images, partial index; Ancestry ($).
 * 1814-1859 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1814-1909 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1814-1860 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1824-1871 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1824-1891 Between 1824 and 1891 the Maine Land Office took over the task of land distribution, records are located at the Maine State Archives (maps, field notes and deeds starting 1794 as Massachusetts deeds). A brochure entitled "Land Office Records in the Maine State Archives" is available from the archives. Land grant applications from the Revolutionary War are also available.
 * Index to Maine State Archives Revolutionary War Land Grants and Pension Applications
 * 1835-1838 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index/images
 * 1845 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1861-1901 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images

Local Histories

 * History of Penobscot County, Maine. 1882. Cleveland, Ohio : Williams, Chase & Company.  Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive;.
 * A History of Three Corners. 1971. By Roger C. Storms. Lee, Maine : Lee Academy. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library;.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * One superb map can be extensively used for research and traveling, detailing town divisions, geographical details, road surface types, routes of transportation, and locations of cemeteries. This map is the Maine Atlas and Gazetteer, which is published in updated versions by DeLorme Publishing of Freeport, Maine.
 * A bicentennial project edited by Gerald E. Morris entitled The Maine Bicentennial Atlas: an Historical Survey (Portland: Maine Historical Society, 1976) is a superb composite of historical maps from the earliest grants and charters to the present. Railroad, lumbering, mining, recreation, population changes, court regions, and election districts illustrate the depth of this resource for genealogical purposes.
 * Atwood’s Length and Breadth of Maine includes helpful maps of towns. Maine State Archives has a computerized index of its fine map collection for Maine after statehood, but it is the Massachusetts State Archives that holds the important plotting maps for the pre-statehood development of Maine. Included in many of the maps are location of residences and names of owners.
 * Saco Valley Publishing, 76 Main St., Fryeburg, ME 04037, has been reprinting excellent county editions of nineteenth-century maps indicating occupants’ names for each structure.
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records
For service in wars before statehood, refer to Massachusetts. However, a few printed sources have attempted to extract Maine soldiers from the Massachusetts holdings, notably Charles J. House's Names of Soldiers of the American Revolution who Applied for State Bounty...in Land Office (1893; reprint; Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1967); online at: FamilySearch Digital Library; Charles A. Flagg's An Alphabetical Index of Revolutionary Pensioners Living in Maine (1920; reprint; Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1967); online at: Ancestry ($); and Carleton and Sue Fisher's Soldiers, Sailors and Patriots of the Revolutionary War Maine (Louisville, Ky.: National Society Sons of the American Revolution, 1982).
 * 1676-1918 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index/images
 * 1718-1957 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * The Maine State Archives has a card index of each Civil War soldier and grave records for Revolutionary, Civil War, and War of 1812 soldiers as well as service records through World War I. More recent records can be found at the Bureau of Veterans Services, State House Station no. 117, Augusta, Maine 04333.
 * The adjutant general's holdings for Maine, which include militia on state service in wars, state yearly published reports on Civil War soldiers. World War I and II reports are held at the Maine State Archives. The Spanish-American War service records are held but not published.
 * For further information, consult: Neagles, James C. U.S. Military Records: A Guide to Federal and State Sources. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1994.

Revolutionary War
 * 1835-1838 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index/images
 * Index to Maine State Archives Revolutionary War Land Grants and Pension Applications

Civil War Civil War service men in Penobscot County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (part of a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in this county:
 * 1862-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * - 1st Regiment, Maine Cavalry
 * - 2nd Regiment, Maine Infantry, Companies A, C, E, F, G and K.

World War I
 * 1914-1950 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * 1917-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1718-1957 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * 1918-1991 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index/images

Newspapers

 * 1785-1898 Maine Newspaper Archive. Indexes free; digital page images $ (GenealogyBank $) Twenty-two early Maine 18th and 19th century newspapers, 1785-1898 online. Indexes (free); digital images ($). These newspapers are from Augusta, Bangor, Belfast, Brunswick, Castine, Eastport, Falmouth, Hallowell, Kennebunk, Portland, Saco and Wiscasset.
 * 1800s-1999 Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1815-1831 Bangor Weekly Register (Index Free, Digital pages ($)) - 1815-1831 at GenealogyBank.
 * 1837-1900 Bangor Daily Whig and Courier ($)- newspaper spanning 1837-1900 (incomplete) at Newspaper Archive
 * 1970-2008 Bangor Daily News - 8,500+ issues digitized and freely available at Google News Archive; spans 1970-2008
 * Maine Newspaper Project, the Maine Newspaper Project
 * Local library and historical societies as well as the Maine Historical Society and Maine State Library have indexes to various newspaper vital statistics. The largest collection of microfilmed newspapers can be found at the University of Maine’s Folger Library at Orono, which has a computer printout of listings with their holdings. They also supply a typescript, “Maine Newspapers in the Smaller Maine Public Libraries.”
 * Newspapers ever published in Penobscot County - via the Library of Congress, Chronicling America:
 * A fire at the Bangor Library on April 30, 1911 destroyed some newspapers. Newspaper issues destroyed in the fire: The Bangor Weekly Register, The Register and Penobscot Advertiser, and The Register (1815-1828),The Bangor Daily Union (Volume 2, 1838-39), The Jeffersonian, (22 volumes, 1849-69), and some issues of The Bangor Daily Whig and Courier.
 * Maine Newspaper Project at DigitalMaine Repository
 * Bangor Daily News - Includes obituary listings for the past week.

Periodicals

 * The Maine Genealogist at American Ancestors — index & images ($)

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1584-1999 Maine, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1584-1999 at Ancestry ($) — index and images
 * 1640-1760 Maine Wills, William Sargeant (1887), reprint Baltimore Genealogical Publishing Company, 1972.
 * 1687-1800 Maine Probate Abstracts, John E. Frost, Salt Lake City: Microfilm Service Corp., 1986-87
 * 1760-1979 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; image only
 * 1816-1866 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1816-1893 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1816-1953 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1816-Present Oct 2010: You are allowed to access our files except for adoptions after August 8, 1953 which are confidential. Our records cover the period of 1816 to present. Our office hours are 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. You do not need an appointment. We are open during the lunch hours. We are closed Thursday, November 11 and Thursday, November 25 and Friday November 26. Copies are ($)1 per page.

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
 * 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Birth

 * 1670-1921 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * 1715-1922 Maine, Birth Records, 1715-1922 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1739-1900 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index

Marriage

 * 1589-1966 Maine, United States Marriages at at Findmypast — index($) — index $
 * 1670-1921 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * 1670-1921 Maine, Marriage Index, 1670-1921, at Ancestry ($)
 * 1713-1922 Maine, Marriage Records, 1713-1922, at Ancestry ($)
 * 1771-1907 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1827-1888 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1854-1892 Maine: Marriages by Reverend H.F.A. Patterson, 1854-1892 at American Ancestors - index & images ($)
 * 1892-1966; 1977-1996 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * 1892-1996 Maine, Marriage Index, 1892-1996, at Ancestry ($)
 * 1892-1966 Maine Marriages, 1892 - 1966 at MyHeritage - index ($)
 * 1977-Onward Maine, Marriages at MyHeritage — index & images ($)

Death

 * 1670-1921 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index/images
 * 1761-1922 Maine, Death Records, 1761-1922, at Ancestry ($)
 * 1841-1910 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1960-1996 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1960-1997 Maine, Death Index, 1960-1997, at Ancestry ($)

Divorce
How to Order Original Vital Records Vital records are also kept by town clerks or selectmen. Although some towns have existed since the 1650s, most vital records date from about 1700. The vital statistics are often arranged by family. Before 1892, records of births, marriages, and deaths were kept by the towns and cities of Maine. Some municipalities kept good records, some kept no records, and some kept adequate records only to have them lost to fire, flood, or storage in private homes. The information on these municipal records is in most cases sparser than found on more modern records. Marriages and deaths, for example, rarely listed parents' names or the parties' places of birth. When, in the 1920's, the State requested copies of pre-1892 vital records from the towns, only about 80 towns responded (these records are available at the Maine State Archives).The Maine State Archives holds original vitals from 1892-1922 and microfilmed records from 1922-1955 including a bride’s index (1892-present), groom’s index (1956-present) and a death index (1955-present).
 * Maine State Archives LMA Building 84 State House Station Augusta, ME 04333
 * To contact staff for questions regarding their holdings, email the Research Room or by phone at 207-287-5790, Fax: 207- 287-5517. Online indexes are available for marriages (1892-1996, excluding 1967-1976) and deaths (1960-96). Maine State Archives is the state’s official repository for state governmental records, beginning with 1639 court records and including many war and genealogical records for the state. In addition it holds all census records, adjutant general’s records, most court records, Maine land office records, a few county marriage returns, and the updated microfilm collection of extant Maine town records. Researchers will find the Maine Historical Records Repository Guide on the Maine State Archives website.


 * Maine Department of Human Services Office of Data Research and Vital Statistics 220 Capital Street 11 State House Station Augusta, ME 04333 Telephone: (207) 287-3181 Toll Free: 1-888-664-9491
 * The Vital Records Unit located at 244 Water Street in Augusta, is available to take walk in requests. There is a 24 hour turnaround time for all requests made in person. You will be given a choice to have your records mailed to you, or you can pick them up the following business day.


 * Penobscot County Clerk 97 Hammond Street Bangor, ME 04401 (207) 942-8535
 * Bangor, Main City Clerk ($) 73 Harlow Street Bangor, ME 04401 Info: (207) 992-4220 Fax: (207) 945-4449

FamilySearch Centers

 * Bangor Maine FamilySearch Center
 * Ellsworth Maine FamilySearch Center
 * Farmington Maine FamilySearch Center
 * Machias Maine FamilySearch Center
 * Waterville Maine FamilySearch Center
 * Maine State Library - an affiliate library

Libraries

 * Bangor Public Library 145 Harlow Street Bangor, Maine 04401-4903 (207) 947-8336, ext. 106 reference@bpl.lib.me.us
 * Genealogy Page listing all resources - includes obituary indexes, cemetery records, city directories, church records, histories, yearbooks
 * Special Collections
 * Local Histories


 * Maine State Library State House Station 64 Augusta, ME 04333 www.state.me.us/msl
 * Located at the Maine Cultural Center. The east wing of the building houses the Maine State Library, which has the largest collection of town histories and family genealogies in the state, microfilm holdings of newspapers, town reports after 1902, and the two collections of cemetery indexes.


 * Maine Historical Society Library 485 Congress Street Portland, ME 04101 www.mainehistory.org
 * Open to nonmembers for a nominal fee, this superior col-lection includes extensive printed works on state and family history, and manuscripts (see Maine Periodicals, Newspapers, and Manuscript Collections). Its website includes access to an ongoing, online genealogical discussion forum to post and retrieve queries.


 * Penobscot County Libraries Bradford - John B. Curtis Free Public Library 435 Main Rd Bradford, ME 44103 Phone: (207) 327-2939
 * Brewer Public Library 100 South Main Street Brewer, ME 44122 Phone: (207) 989-7943
 * Carmel - Simpson Memorial Library 8 Plymouth Road Carmel, ME 44190 Phone: (207) 848-7145
 * Charleston Public Library Main Road Charleston, ME 44229 Phone: (207) 285-3680
 * Corinna - Stewart Free Library 8 Levi Stewart Drive Corinna, ME 49289 Phone: (207) 278-2454
 * Corinth - Atkins Memorial Library 360 Main Street Corinth, ME 44273 Phone: (207) 285-7226
 * Dexter - Abbott Memorial Library 1 Church Street Dexter, ME 49301 Phone: (207) 924-7292
 * East Millinocket Public Library 53 Main Street East Millinocket, ME 44301 Phone: (207) 746-3554
 * Enfield - Cole Memorial Library 789 Hammett Road Enfield, ME 44934 Phone: (207) 732-4270
 * Garland - Lyndon Oak Memorial Library Main Road Garland, ME 49399
 * Glenburn Library 991 Hudson Road Glenburn, ME 44011 Phone: (207) 942-9897
 * Hampden - Edythe Dyer Community Library 269 Main Road North Hampden, ME 44441 Phone: (207) 862-3550
 * Howland - Thomas Free Library 8 Main Street Howland, ME 44480
 * Lincoln Memorial Library 21 West Broadway Lincoln, ME 44571 Phone: (207) 794-2765
 * Mattawamkeag Public Library Main Street Mattawamkeag, ME 44590 Phone: (207) 736-7013
 * Millinocket Memorial Library 5 Maine Avenue Millinocket, ME 44621 Phone: (207) 723-7020
 * Newport Public Library 145 Main Street Newport, ME 49531 Phone: (207) 368-5074
 * Old Town Public Library 46 Middle Street Old Town, ME 44681 Phone: (207) 827-3972
 * Orono Public Library 16 Goodridge Drive Orono, ME 44734 Phone: (207) 866-5060
 * Orrington Public Library 15 School Street Orrington, ME 44743 Phone: (207) 825-4938
 * Patten - Veterans Memorial Library 30 Main Street Patten, ME 47650 Phone: (207) 528-2164
 * Stetson Public Library 70 Village Road Stetson, ME 44880 Phone: (207) 296-2020
 * Kenduskeag - Case Memorial Library 911 Stetson Road Kenduskeag, ME 44500 Phone: (207) 884-8598
 * Levant Heritage Library 3519 Union Street Levant, ME 44560 Phone: (207) 884-8988


 * Penobscot Roots and Connections Website
 * University of Maine at Orono Raymond H. Folger Library

Societies
Penobscot County Genealogical Society Website

Websites

 * The Penobscot County MEGenWeb Projectan member of The MEGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Penobscot County
 * Nicholas Noyes and Jamie Kingman Rice, Guide to Genealogical Research in Maine'', New England Ancestors, Summer 2008, 19-25. It is available through PERSI and on the NEHGS website (available to members only):summer 2008_vol9_3_toc.
 * Maine Memory Network: a project of the Maine Historical Society, provides access to thousands of historical items belonging to over 200 organizations from across Maine.
 * Penobscot County, Maine History and Genealogy (Genealogy Trails)
 * – 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.