Washington, Voter Registration Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
The collection consists of digital images of voter registration records from the collections at the Washington State Archives for the years 1891 to 1920.

Record Content
The information in the registers generally includes:


 * Name of voter
 * Current address
 * Birthplace
 * Gender, age, and race of voter
 * Length of residence in state, in county, in precinct
 * Name of voting precinct
 * Is voter a naturalized citizen
 * Date of Registration
 * Signature of voter

How to Use the Record
To begin your search you will need to know the following:


 * Name of the ancestor
 * Residence

Search the Collection
To search the collection: ⇒ Select Browse through images on the initial collection page ⇒ Select the City/Township ⇒ Select the Precinct Number/Date Range which takes you to the images.

Look at each image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine if the image relates to them. You may need to look at several images and compare the information about the individuals listed in those images to your ancestors to make this determination. Keep in mind:


 * There may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * You may not be sure of your own ancestor’s name.
 * Your ancestor may have used different names or variations of their name throughout their life.

Using the Information
When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. Add this new information to your records of each family. You should also look for leads to other records about your ancestors. For example:


 * Use the name, residence and are or birth date to locate your ancestor in church, land, and census records.
 * Use ages to determine approximate birth dates.
 * Use the naturalization information to find their immigration and naturalization court documents.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * Search for records of people in the county with the same surname. These may have been the couple’s parents, uncles, or other relatives.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * Some counties were subdivided or the boundaries may have changed. Consider searching neighboring counties as well since that courthouse may have been more convenient for the person.
 * The information in voter registrations in usually very brief so it is easy to confuse individuals with similar names.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for alias names, nicknames and abbreviated names.
 * Look for an index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume. Local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby localities.

Related Websites
Legacy Washington

Related Wiki Articles
Washington Voting Registers

Citations for This Collection
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information; that is, cite your sources. This will help people find the record again and evaluate the reliability of the source. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records. Citations are available for the collection as a whole and each record or image individually.

Collection Citation:

Record Citation (or citation for the index entry):

Image Citation: