Seneca County, Ohio Genealogy

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

Description
The county was named after the Seneca Indian Tribe. It is located in the Northcentral area of the state.

County Courthouse
Seneca County Courthouse 103 S Washington St Tiffin, OH 44883 Phone: 419-447-0671 Seneca County Website

Probate Judge has birth, marriage, and probate, County Health Department has death records; Clerk Court has divorce and court records from 1826; County Recorder has land 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 county:

Biographies

 * A Centennial Biographical History of Seneca County, Ohio, (Chicago, Illinois: Lewis Publishing Co., 1902). Online at FamilySearch Digital Library; Google Books; Internet Archive.
 * Seneca County Chapter, Ancestral Pioneer Men and Women of Seneca County, Ohio: Including Proven First Families, (Tiffin, Ohio: Ohio Genealogical Society. Seneca County Chapter, 1987)..

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Catholic
 * 1796-2004 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images.

Directories

 * 1916-1921 Tiffin, Seneca County, Ohio Directory, 1916-1921 at Ancestry.com - index

Local Histories

 * Lang, William, History of Seneca County, From the Close of the Revolutionary War to July 1880, (Springfield, Ohio: Transcript Printing, 1880). Online at FamilySearch Digital Library, Google Books, Internet Archive, Ancestry ($)(Indexed).
 * Leeson, Michael A., History of Seneca County, Ohio: Containing a History of the County, Its Townships, Towns, Villages, etc., (Chicago, Illinois: Warner, Beers, 1886). Online at FamilySearch Digital Library, Google Books, Internet Archive.
 * Butterfield, Consul Wilshire, History of Seneca County: Containing a Detailed Narrative of the Principal Events that Have Occurred Since Its First Settlement to Present Time, (Sandusky, Ohio: D. Campbell, 1848). Online at Google Books Internet Archive, FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * Baughman, Abraham J., History of Seneca County, Ohio: A Narrative Account of Its Historical Progress, Its People, and Its Principal Interests,(Seneca, Ohio: Lewis Publishing Company, 1911). Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library; Google Books; Internet Archive.
 * Seneca County Chapter, Seneca County, Ohio: History and Families, (Paducah, Kentucky: Turner Pub. Co., 1998)..
 * Ohio Indexes at EveryNameIndex.com — Select the county.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Maps of Ohio (1788-1940) at MapofUS.org
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * 1888-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.

Civil War Servicemen from Seneca County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in Seneca County.


 * – 8th Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Company A
 * – 123rd Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Companies D, I, and K

World War I
 * 1914-1918 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1914-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1916-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1800-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.

Newspapers

 * 1793-late 1900s at History Connection —  Select county.
 * 1793-2009 Ohio Newspapers, 1793-2009 at MyHeritage — index & images, ($)
 * Early-late 1900s Newspapers at Ohio Memory — sort by County, City, Time Period, and more.

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1786-1998 Ohio, Wills and Probate Records 1786-1998 at Ancestry ($) — index and images.
 * 1789-1996 at FamilySearch.org — How to Use this Collection; index and images.

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 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records
Online Tax Indexes and Records
 * 1800-1850 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1800-1850 Ohio Tax Records, 1800-1850 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Birth

 * 1800-1962 Ohio, Births and Christenings Index, 1800-1962 at Ancestry ($) — Index
 * 1841-2003 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1908-1998 Ohio, Birth Index, 1908-1998 at Ancestry ($) — Index

Marriage

 * 1789-2013 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1800-1942 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index.
 * 1800-1958 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index.
 * 1803-1860 Scioto County, Ohio, Marriage Records, 1803-1860 at Ancesry ($)
 * 1970-2003 Ohio, Marriages, 1970 - 2003 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Death

 * 1833-1967 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1840-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images.
 * 1908-1932, 1938–1944, and 1958–2007 at FamilySearch – How to Use this Collection; Index.
 * 1908-1932, 1938-2018 Ohio, Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2018 at Ancestry ($) — index and images
 * 1913-1944, 1954-1963 Ohio Death Index, 1913-1944, 1954-1963 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Divorce

 * 1962-2007 Ohio, Divorce Abstracts, 1962-1963, 1967-1971, 1973-2007 at Ancestry ($)

Family History Centers

 * Findlay Ohio Family History Center
 * Findlay-Hancock County Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries
Bettsville Public Library 233 State St PO Box 385 Bettsville, OH 44815-9999 419-986-5198 Website Bliss Memorial Public Library 20 S Marion St PO Box 39 Bloomville, OH 44818-0039 419-983-4675 Website Kaubisch Memorial Public Library 205 Perry St Fostoria, OH 44830-2265 419-435-2813 Website Seneca East Public Library 14 N Main St PO Box 572 Attica, OH 44807 419-426-3825 Website Tiffin-Seneca Public Library 77 Jefferson St Tiffin, OH 44883 419-447-3751 Website

Museums
Seneca Historical Society and Museum 28 Clay St Tiffin, OH 44883-0433 419-447-2521 Facebook American Civil War Museum of Ohio 217 S Washington Tiffin, OH 44883 419-455-9551 E-mail:[mailto:info@acwmo.org info@acwmo.org] Website Fostoria Area Museum PO Box 142 Fostoria, OH 44830 419-435-3588 Webpage

Societies
Seneca County Chapter Ohio Genealogical Society PO Box 157 Tiffin, OH 44883-0841 Website ​

Websites

 * Local Gov't Records by County at Ohio History Connection — Browse their list; records are not online.
 * Custom Browse of Historical Collections at Ohio Memory — Use map or alpha bar to select county or place, then browse search options in left sidebar.
 * Ohio Genealogical Society ($) — online databases
 * Seneca County OH Genealogy at LDS Genealogy
 * Seneca County USGenWeb Archives
 * OHGenWeb project at USGenWeb project.
 * – 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.