Dutchess County, New York Genealogy

United States New York Dutchess County

Parent County
1 November 1683: Created one of original 12 counties.

Neighboring Counties
Columbia· Orange· Putnam· Ulster· Connecticut counties: Fairfield· Litchfield· Massachusetts county: Berkshire

Boundary Changes

 * For a time, was annexed to Ulster County, separated in 1713. Records for the time period of 1683-1713 are in Ulster county.
 * 1717, a portion of Albany County transferred to Dutchess County.
 * 4 April 1786: the towns of Clermont and Germantown were transferred to Columbia County when the county was created.
 * 12 June 1812: Putnam County was set off.

Bible Records

 * 1581–1917 New York, Family Bible Records at Ancestry– ($); Index. Database is a collection of genealogically important records taken from the Bibles of colony and state residents. Reveals the Bible's original owner, brief record of descendants,and a particular event such as birth or marriage as recorded in Bible.

Cemeteries
Cemetery Transcriptions for Dutchess county New York

Census
For information and tips on using and accessing online census records, see New York Census.

Church

 * 1757-1906 - Tower, Maria Bockee Carpenter. The Records of the Reformed Dutch Church of New Hackensack, Dutchess County, New York. 1932. Digital version at World Vital Records ($).
 * 1758-1891 - Martins, Bob. Hopewell Reformed Church Baptisms 1758-1891, courtesy: NYGenWeb.
 * 1766-1882 - Martins, Bob. Marriages in Hopewell Reformed Church 1766 through 1882, Index, courtesy: NYGenWeb.
 * Cox, John, Jr., comp. Quaker Records: Nine-Partners Monthly Meeting, Dutchess Co., N.Y. Digital version at Ancestry ($). Births, marriages, deaths on more than 4,200 individuals.
 * The Records of Christ Church: Poughkeepsie, New York. 2 vols. Poughkeepsie N.Y.: F.B. Howard, 1911-1916. Digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * Records of the First Baptist Church of Dover, Dutchess County, N.Y. 1915. Digital version at Internet Archive. Includes membership lists.

History
Prior to the Anglo-Dutch incursion, what is today Dutchess County was a leading center for the Wappani. They had their council-fire at Fishkill Hook and also held gatherings along the Danskammer. (source:Wikipedia)

Land and Property

 * The Patents, in the twelve years 1685-1697 lawful patents had been granted securing for their purchasers every foot of Hudson River shoreline in the original county. Three additional patents, to 1706, laid claim to the remaining interior lands. They were:
 * Rombout, 1685
 * Minisink, 1686
 * Kip, 1686
 * Schuyler, 1688 (Poughkeepsie)
 * Schuyler, 1688 (Red Hook)
 * Aertsen-Roosa-Elton, 1688
 * Pawlings-Staats, 1696
 * Rhinebeek, 1697
 * (Great) Nine Partners, 1697
 * Philipse, 1697
 * Cuyler, 1697
 * Fanconnier, 1703
 * Beekman (Back Lots), 1703
 * (Little) Nine Partners, 1706

Migration
Early migration routes to and from Dutchess County for European settlers included:


 * Albany Post Road (or Queen's Road, or King's Road) 1669

Military
Civil War

Available towns. Registers are available for: Beekman· East Fishkill· Fishkill· Hyde Park· LaGrange· Milan· North East· Pawling· Pine Plains· Pleasant Valley· Poughkeepsie· Red Hook· Stanford· Union Vale· Washington.

Regiments. Service men in Dutchess County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were formed in Dutchess County:


 * - 3rd Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 5th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 7th Veteran Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 9th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 17th Veteran Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 18th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 20th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 30th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 38th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 47th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 57th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 65th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 87th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 128th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 143rd Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 150th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 157th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 168th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 176th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 187th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 188th Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 192nd Regiment, New York Infantry
 * - 194th Regiment, New York Infantry

Probate Records
Wills


 * 1751-1903 - SAMPUBCO - Browsable index of testators of wills.
 * 1751-1832 - Extracts of Selected Wills, courtesy: NYGenWeb.
 * 1742-1839 - Cowen, Minnie. Abstracts of Wills of Dutchess County, New York. 13 vols. New York, 1939-1944. Digital version at Ancestry ($).
 * 1812-1832 - Barber, Gertrude A. Index to Wills of Dutchess County, N.Y.: From 1812-1832. 1989. Digital version at Ancestry ($).

Probate Packets

Probate files containing various types of records - wills (not every file has one), guardianships, settlements, receipts of payments, inventories, letters, etc.)


 * 1786-1815 - SAMPUBCO - Browsable index of estates.

Archives, Libraries and Museums
PUBLIC LIBRARIES

There are some 30 public libraries in Dutchess County New York a number of which are branch library. They belong to the Mid-Hudson Library System that serves the communities of Columbia, Duchess, Greene, Putnam, and Ulster Counties. They share a catalog that includes a sizeable collection of Genealogical materials. The shared catalog is found on the library systems main page. For information on the individual libraries in Dutchess County, click here.

Courthouses
The Dutchess County Clerk's office has marriage, divorce, court and land records as well as the state census. The Surrogate Court has probate records. For further information about where the records for Dutchess County are held, see the Dutchess County Courthouse page.

Family History Centers
Family History Centers (FHCs) are branches of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, and are located all over the world. Their goal is to provide resources to assist in the study of genealogy.

The closest FHC in Dutchess County is the Poughkeepsie New York Family History Center. For additional Family History Centers, search this online FHC directory. See also Introduction to LDS Family History Centers.

Introduction to LDS Family History Centers

Birth
Birth Substitutes


 * 1640–1962 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free; Index.
 * See Town Clerks' Registers of Men who Served in the Civil War in the Civil War section of Military for birth information.

Marriage

 * 1664–1784 New York. Secretary of State, Names of Persons for Whom Marriage Licenses Were Issued By the Secretary of the Province of New York, Previous to 1784 (Albany, New York: Weed, Parsons and Co., 1860). At Cornell University digital library-free; Internet Archive - free; Ancestry edition($); ; . Marriage bonds issued in the State of New York prior to 1784, and the earliest record dating 1664.


 * Marriage Substitutes


 * 1686-1980 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free; Index. Index entries derived from digital copies of original and compiled records.
 * 1800–1855 New York Marriage Notices at Ancestry– ($); Index. This database is a collection of marriage notices published in newspapers around the state. Contains name of bride and groon, marriage date, marriage location, residence, and newspaper found in.
 * 1801–1880 Barber Collection- Newspaper Marriages at Ancestry– ($); Index. Information extracted from the "Brooklyn Eagle" and the "New York Evening Post."
 * 1856–1863 Index to Marriages and Deaths in the New York Herald at Ancestry– ($); Index. These newspaper notices refer to people up and down the East Coast as well as midwesterners and persons from as far west as the State of California. Also browseable.
 * 1864-5, 1874-5 See Marriage Schedule information in the State Census section of Census for marriage information for 1864-5, and 1874-5.

Death
Death Substitutes


 * 1795–1952 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free; Index. The entries are primarily from the IGI along with some entries derived from compiled and original records such as Family Records, Church Records, and Civil Registration. There may be entries that cite a specific source.


 * 1801–1890 Barber Collection- Newspaper Deaths at Ancestry– ($); Index. Information extracted from the "Brooklyn Eagle" and the "New York Evening Post."


 * 1856–1863 Index to Marriages and Deaths in the New York Herald at Ancestry– ($); Index. These newspaper notices refer to people up and down the East Coast as well as midwesterners and persons from as far west as the State of California. Also browseable.


 * See Town Clerks' Registers of Men Who Served in the Civil War in  in the Civil War section of Military for death information.


 * 1849-50, 1859-60, 1869-70, 1879-80 See Mortality Schedule information in the Federal Census section of Census for death information.


 * 1864-5, 1874-5 See Mortality Schedule information in the State Census section of Census for death information for 1864-5, and 1874-5.

Additional Resources

Web Sites

 * The Dutchess County NYGenWeb Project, an member of The NYGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Dutchess County.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Dutchess County. (Mirror site)