Wayne County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

Guide to Wayne County, Pennsylvania ancestry, family history and genealogy in courthouse sources including birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, wills, deeds and land records, Civil War records, Revolutionary War records, family histories, cemeteries, churches, tax records, newspapers, and obituaries.

Wayne County Pennsylvania Historical Facts


Parent Counties: Formed from Northampton County 21 May 1798.

County Seat: Honesdale

Neighboring Counties: Wayne County residents may also have records in:
 * Delaware County, New York
 * Monroe
 * Susquehanna
 * Sullivan County, New York
 * Lackawanna
 * Pike
 * Broome County, New York

Description
The county was named for the Revolutionary War General Anthony Wayne. It's county seat is Honesdale and was founded March 21, 1798. It is located in the Northeastern tip of the state.

Boundary Changes
26 March 1814: Pike County set off.

For animated maps illustrating Pennsylvania county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Pennsylvania County Boundary Maps" (1673-1878) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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

Cemeteries
Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.

Hollisterville Cemetery, Salem BillionGraves

Church Records



 * Linkpendium


 * USGenWeb. Wayne County PA, Churches gives name, contact information, Website and other information.

Baptist
Baptists arrived in the area in 1795. Eventually there were two groups, the Free Communion Baptist Church at Mount Pleasant and the Honesdale Baptist Church.

Catholic
Irish Catholics lived in Mount Pleasant, Preston, Buckingham, Carbondale, Honsdale, Ledgedale, and White Mills townships. Many people were Delaware and Hudson Canal Co. employees. The German Catholic Church was organized 1853.

Episcopal
Honesdale Grace Episcopal Church and Dyberry Parish in Bethany were both established in1832. St. John's Protestant Episcopal Church in Hamlin was established in 1844.

Jewish
The Temple Beth Israel synagogue was established 1849 from land donated by Delaware and Hudson Canal Co. The Sherith-Israel Synagogue. Russian and Polish Jews 1880's established the Sherith-Isreal synagogue.

Lutheran
Honesdale German Evangelical Lutheran Congregation was established in 1845.

Methodist
The first group organized in 1825; by 1900 the Methodist outnumbered the other denominations. Members could attend in Salem Corners, Pleasant Mount, and Honesdale.

Presbyterian
There were five churches organized between 1829 and 1849.


 * 1829 Hensdale (Dyberry Forks)
 * 1835 Waymart
 * 1842 Prompton
 * 1842–1900 Prompton Sessions Records Available from the Wayne County Historical Society, Research Library. You may view it at the library for free if a member or for a $5.00 charge. You may hire a professional from their web page.
 * 1848 Lebonon
 * 1849 Hawley

First Presbyterian Church, Honesdale


 * 1708-1985 Pennsylvania, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 at Historical Society of Pennsylvania – $, free to members of the society; Also available at Ancestry.com – $; 7,542,774 entries. This database is incomplete for all counties.
 * Contains the church records of:
 * Honesdale: First Presbyterian Church

Presbyterian Church, Mount Pleasant Township


 * 1841-1875 Presbyterian Church, Mount Pleasant Township, Baptism Index 1841-1875 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free. Batch.
 * 1841-1888 Presbyterian Church, Mount Pleasant Township, Marriage Index 1841-1845 and 1857-1888 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free. Batch.

Presbyterian Church, Prompton


 * 1842-1873 Presbyterian Church, Prompton, Baptism Index 1842-1873 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free. Batch.
 * 1842-1873 Presbyterian Church, Prompton, Marriage Index 1842-1873 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free. Batch.

Russian Orthodox
Russians settled in South Canaan and had a monastery and school.

Court of Common Pleas
The Courts of Common Pleas are the trial courts of Pennsylvania. Major civil and criminal cases are heard in these courts. Judges also decide cases involving adoption, divorce, child custody, abuse, juvenile delinquency, estates, guardianships, charitable organizations and many other matters.

The Common Pleas courts are organized into 60 judicial districts. Wayne County has its own judicial district. Judges of the Common Pleas courts are elected to 10-year terms. A president judge and a court administrator serve in each judicial district.


 * ’’’1799-1906’’’ Naturalizations
 * ’’’1824-1912’’’ Miscellaneous Records

Orphans' Court

 * ’’’1803-1869’’’ Orphans Court Dockets

Emigration and Immigration
Many early residence came from New England, New York, and New Jersey. (Ref. History of Wayne County Pennsylvania 1798-1998 by Walter B. Barbe and Kurk A. Reed. Wayne County Historical Society C 1998.)

History
The county is named after Revolutionary War General "Mad" Anthony Wayne (1745-1796).

Land and Property
Land records in Wayne County began in 1798. These records are filed with the Recorder of Deeds in Honesdale, Pennsylvania. Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts, indexes, mortgages, leases, grants, sheriff sales, land patents, and maps. Property records include liens as well as livestock brands and estray records. The following are examples of available resources:

Land Records on Microfilm 1795-1941 Deeds, 1796 to 1866; Indexes, 1795 to 1941

1798–1941 Mortgages, 1798-1834; Index, 1798-1941

Additional Resources

Note that the "Maps" section below includes maps related to land ownership. Pennsylvania Land and Property for more information about using land records, especially about original land warrants, surveys, and patents filed at the state land office.

Additional resources can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Wayne County Pennsylvania Land in online catalogs such as: *Historical Society of Pennsylvania*WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog.)* (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search.)

Maps

 * Maps of Pennsylvania (1673-1878)
 * Ancestor Tracks has a CD of the First Landowners of PA: Warrantees of Wayne Pike Counties, Map Index by Jason Torrey, 1814 ($). The CD contains first landowner names and tracts, the warrant register index for Northampton County (the source for both Pike and Wayne Counties), and the warrant registers for both counties.

Migration
The migration routes used by early European settlers to and from Wayne County included:


 * Lehigh and Lackawanna Paths 1766 from Unadilla, New York to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that is, from the Catskill Turnpike  to the Great Valley Road.
 * Minsi Path from Kingston, New York to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that is, from the Ulster and Delaware Turnpike  to the Great Valley Road.
 * Delaware River.

Naturalization and Citizenship
Naturalization records available for Wayne County, Pennsylvania include the following:

Online Naturalization Indexes and Records


 * 1820-1906 Index to Declarations and Petitions in the Western District of Pennsylvania, US Circuit and District Courts located in US Naturalization Records Indexes, 1794-1995 database on Ancestry.com - ($), National Archives publication M1208


 * 1820-1930 Naturalization Petitions of the U.S. District Court, 1820-1930, and Circuit Court, 1820-1911, for the Western District of Pennsylvania on Fold3.com - ($), indexed, National Archives publication M1537, incomplete for all counties


 * 1820-1930 Naturalization Petitions of the U.S. District Court, 1820-1930, and Circuit Court, 1820-1911, for the Western District of Pennsylvania located in Selected US Naturalization Records - Original Documents, 1790-1974 database on Ancestry.com - ($), indexed, National Archives publication M1537

Original Naturalization Records on Microfilm


 * 1799-1906 Naturalizations, 1799-1906,

Newspapers
Newspapers of Wayne County


 * Pennsylvania Newspapers
 * Chronicling America US Newspaper Directory

Online Newspapers

To learn if there are newspapers online for a specific town or city in Pennsylvania, see news.google.com/newspapers and search for the town or the name of a newspaper.


 * The Honesdale Citizen (Honesdale, PA) 1873-1908 at Chronicling America
 * The Citizen (Honesdale, PA) 1908-1914 at Chronicling America

Online Newspaper Abstracts


 * PA-Roots Newspaper Articles for Wayne County, Pennsylvania.
 * Wayne County, PA Historical Newspapers including The Forest City News and The Honesdale Citizen 1873-1908

Obituaries
Obituaries are generally found in local newspapers where the person died. However, sometimes an obituary is found in the location from which he or she originated. To find an obituary, see the information under the Newspaper heading

Online Obituary Abstracts


 * PA-Roots Obituaries for Wayne County, Pennsylvania.
 * Wayne County Obits part of a USGenWeb Project.

Probate Records
Online Probate Records Original probate records for some Pennsylvania counties are available free online as digital images at FamilySearch.org. The dates vary significantly for each county and not all counties are listed. Some counties may only have probate indexes. This Pennsylvania collection of images may be browsed through the links listed below:

Complete Collection:


 * 1683-1993 Pennsylvania Wills and Probate Records 1683-1993 at Ancestry.com — index and images $


 * 1683-1994  at FamilySearch.org

Wayne County Only:


 * 1798-1906 Wayne County Probate Records

Original Probate Records on Microfilm


 * 1798-1906 Will Books, includes Index 1801–1915.

Repositories

 * List of Pennsylvania Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical &amp; Genealogical Societies

Archives

 * National Archives at Philadelphia 14700 Townsend Road Philadelphia, PA 19154-1096 Phone: (215) 305-2044 Fax (215) 305-2052
 * National Archives at Philadelphia 14700 Townsend Road Philadelphia, PA 19154-1096 Phone: (215) 305-2044 Fax (215) 305-2052

Courthouse

 * Wayne County Courthouse 925 Court Street Honesdale, PA 18431 Phone: 570-253-5970
 * Visit website for hours


 * Prothonotary Office: Second Floor Annex Phone: 570-523-5970 ext. 4030
 * The Prothonotary is also the Clerk of the Orphans' Court. The office maintains the following records for genealogical research, most of which are available to the public.
 * 1893-1906 Birth and Death records
 * 1885-Present Marriage records
 * 1880 County Tax Assessment Census
 * 1912-1971 School records
 * Some Naturalization records


 * Recorder of Deeds Wayne County Courthouse Annex Phone: 570-253-5970 Ext. 4040


 * Register of Wills Wayne County Courthouse Annex Phone: 570-253-5970 Ext. 4040

Libraries

 * Wayne County Library Alliance operates 7 public libraries in Wayne County.
 * Visit website for individual library locations and contact information, hours and services


 * Wayne Public Library 1406 Main Street, Honesdale, PA Phone: 570-253-1220 FAX: 570-253-1240 Facebook


 * Bethany Public Library and Historical Society RR3 Box 650 Bethany Honesdale, PA 18431

Museums

 * Wayne County Historical Society 810 Main St. Honesdale, PA 18431 Phone: 570-253-3240 Fax: 570-253-5204
 * There are four museums available for touring and gatherings. The main museum is the society's headquarter.
 * Visit Museums for museum locations and hours.
 * Website also maintains a list of historical sites and information about their research library.


 * Equinunk Historical Society Museums 1972 Pine Mill Road P.O. Box 41 Equinunk, PA 18417-0041 Phone: 570-224-6722 Email: [mailto:ehs22@verizon.net ehs22@verizon.net]

Societies

 * Wayne County Historical Society (WCHS) 810 Main Street P.O. Box 446 Honesdale, PA 18431-1847 570-253-3240 Email: [mailto:wchspa@ptd.net wchspa@ptd.net]
 * Visit website for hours and services


 * Genealogical Research Society of Northeastern Pennsylvania, Inc. (GRSNP) 1100 Main Street Peckville, PA 18452 Phone: 570-383-7661 FAX: 570-383-7466 Email: [mailto:info@grsnp.org info@grsnp.org]
 * The GRSNP serves northeastern counties:
 * Lackawanna
 * Luzerne
 * Monroe
 * Pike
 * Susquehanna
 * Wayne
 * Wyoming

Taxation

 * 1798 Pennsylvania, U.S. Direct Tax Lists, 1798 at Ancestry ($).

Vital Records
See also How to order Pennsylvania Vital Records

In Wayne county, the Prothonotary's office has vital records for genealogical researchers. Visit the webpage for further information: Prothonotary Wayne County Court House Second Floor Annex 925 Court Street Honesdale, PA 18431 Phone: 570-253-5970 Ext. 4030 Hours: 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM

Birth

 * 1824-1930  – free index. Not complete for all years.In Wayne county, the Prothonotary's office has: *1893–1906 Birth records (see above for address)

Marriage

 * 1677-1950  at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1700-1821 Pennsylvania Marriage Records Ancestry.com – ($) This database is incomplete for all counties.
 * 1725-1976  - free index. Not complete for all years. This index is not necessarily intended to index any specific set of records. This index is not complete for any particular place or region. This collection may include information previously published in the International Genealogical Index or Vital Records Index collections. In Wayne county, the Prothonotary's office has: *1885–present - Marriage records (see above for address)
 * Pre-1810 Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry.com – ($) This database is incomplete for all counties. Includes 35,000 marriage records from vol. VIII of of the second series of the Pennsylvania Archives.
 * 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry.com – ($) Index with images.
 * 1885-1950  Extracted marriage records – free. Most of the records consist of marriage licenses, certificates, applications, docket books, and affidavits. This database is incomplete for all counties. May also contain marriage records earlier than 1885.

Divorce
Divorce records are available through the office of the Prothonotary. The office of the Prothonotary is located in the courthouse building.

Death

 * 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Deaths Ancestry.com – $ Index with images.

Wayne County Pennsylvania Genealogy Websites

 * Wayne County, PA History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * PAGenWeb
 * USGenWeb archives
 * Wayne County PA Genealogy