Hall County, Nebraska Genealogy

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

Description
Hall County is located in the sixth tier of counties west of the Missouri River.. The county was named after Augustus Hall, an early judge of this territory.

County Courthouse
Hall County Courthouse 111 W. 1st Street Grand Island, NE 68801 Phone: 308.385.5080 Hall County Website County Clerk has marriage records from 1869. County Judge has probate records. Clerk District Court has divorce and court records. Register 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

 * Biographical and Historical memoirs of Adams, Clay, Hall and Hamilton Counties, Nebraska. Comprising a Condensed History of the State, a number of Biographies of Distinguished Citizens of the same, a Brief Descriptive History of each of the Counties mentioned, and numerous Biographical Sketches of the Citizens of such Counties
 * History of Hall County, Nebraska: A Narrative of the Past with Special Emphasis Upon the Pioneer Period of the County's History, and Chronological Presentation of its Social, Commercial, Educational, Religious, and Civic Development from the Early Days to the Present Time, and Special Analysis of its Military and Civil Participation in the Late World War - The book includes several biographical sketches of Hall's citizens.

Census Records
Federal Censuses were taken for Nebraska starting in 1860. For links to Federal census indexes, see Nebraska Census.

State Census Records


 * 1854 - 1870 Nebraska, Compiled Census Index, 1854-1870 at Ancestry.com - index ($)
 * 1860 - 1885 Nebraska State Census Collection 1860-1885 at Ancestry.com - index & images, ($)
 * 1885 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1885 Nebraska State Census 1885 at Ancestry.com - index & images, ($)

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Online Church Records


 * 1875-1899 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; index

Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
 * 1929-1941 - Record of Members 1929-1941 at FamilySearch Library

Funeral Homes

 * All Faiths Funeral Home in Grand Island
 * Apfel Funeral Home and Cremation Services in Cairo, Grand Island, and Wood River
 * Curran Funeral Chapel in Grand Island
 * Livingston-Sondermann Funeral Home and Cremation Services in Grand Island

Land and Property Records

 * Hall County Register of Deeds - By using the MapSifter or Instrument Search you may search for property ownership information.
 * Land Patent Search - index to federal patents and homesteads on the Bureau of Land Management website, some images available
 * 1796 - 1907 U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907 at Ancestry - index, info taken from Bureau of Land Management website
 * 1863 - 1908 U.S. Homestead Records 1863-1908 at Ancestry.com - ($), index and images

For more information see Nebraska Land and Property

Local Histories

 * Biographical and historical memoirs of Adams, Clay, Hall and Hamilton counties, Nebraska. 1890. Chicago, Illinois: Goodspeed Pub. Co. Available online at:
 * FamilySearch Digital Library
 * Internet Archive
 * My Heritage
 * History of Hall County, Nebraska. Buechler, August F., Barr, R J (Robert J.), Stough, Dale P. 1920. Lincoln, Neb.: Western Publishing and Engraving Co. Available online at:
 * FamilySearch Digital Library
 * Internet Archive
 * Google Books
 * History of the State of Nebraska. Cutler, William. 1882. Chicago, IL.: The Western Historical Company, A. T. Andreas, Proprietor. Available online at:
 * Kansas Collection Books

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Hall County Historical Maps and Atlases - Contains historical maps of Hall County and its cities from 1885, 1890, and 1904 as well as early maps of Grand Island and Nebraska. The historical maps include the many of the land owner's names.
 * Hall County GIS Interactive Map
 * Nebraska Gazetteer - database for all known places found in 1890 and 1911 Nebraska gazetteers
 * Interactive Formation Boundary Map of Nebraska - shows boundary changes for Nebraska Counties
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Migration
Early migration routes to and from Hall County for European and African American settlers included:
 * Platte River
 * Oregon Trail 1830s to 1890s from western Missouri to Oregon City, Oregon
 * California Trail 1846 to 1869 from western Missouri to northern California
 * Mormon Trail 1846 to 1869 from Nauvoo, Illinois to Salt Lake City, Utah

Railroads

Grand Island railroad history. The first Transcontinental Railroad reached the present site of Grand Island, Nebraska in July of 1866. Railroads are still important to the town.

Military Records

 * : Hall County, Nebraska : Civil War, Indian wars, Spanish American War, World War I. [n.d.: n.p] 1925. this is p. 228-241 of an unknown larger work. It lists names, addresses, units, and staates. It is divided by war. (FS Library book 978.241 M2r).

Revolutionary War

 * 1775 - 1783 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; images only


 * For more nationwide Revolutionary War databases, see US Military Online Genealogy Records.

Civil War

 * 1861 - 1865 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1861 - 1948 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1891 Nebraska Resident Military Roster on June 1, 1891 at Ancestry.com - ($), Roster of Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines of the War of 1812, the Mexico War, and the War of the Rebellion, residing in Nebraska June 1, 1891
 * 1893 Roster of Nebraska Veterans - list of veterans in 1893
 * For more nationwide Civil War databases, see US Military Online Genealogy Records.

World War I

 * 1917 - 1918 Nebraska World War I Draft Registration Cards World War I Drafts 1917-1918 - index only
 * For more nationwide World War I databases, see US Military Online Genealogy Records.

World War II

 * 1940 - 1945 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1855-1989 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Newspapers
 Nebraska Newspapers Online Nebraska Newspaper Catalogs
 * Nebraska Newspapers - contains images of newspapers throughout Nebraska
 * GenealogyBank - ($), contains images of Nebraska newspapers
 * Newspaper Archive - ($), contains images of Nebraska newspapers
 * Chronicling America - contains images of some Nebraska newspapers; searching tips
 * Elephind - Free; search engine that retrieves newspaper images from other free newspaper websites
 * Hall County Nebraska Digital Community Archives - contains images of newspapers and newsletters from Hall County and a few beyond
 * Nebraska State Historical Society - catalog of known Nebraska newspapers; lists repositories that have the newspapers
 * U.S. Newspaper Directory, 1690-Present on Chronicling America - contains a list of all known newspapers and the dates they cover; once you locate a newspaper name, contact the local library to see if they have copies of the newspaper

Other Records

 * 1870 - 1990 — Nebraska Prisoner Records 1870-1990 — index only

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1806-1989 Nebraska Wills and Probate Records 1806-1989 at Ancestry.com — index & images, ($)
 * 1858-1935 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1892-1961 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — 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.

Marriage

 * 1855 - 1995 — at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; index only
 * 1856 - 1898 — Nebraska Marriages 1856-1898 at Ancestry.com ($), index only
 * Hall County, Nebraska Marriage Indexes

Death

 * 1861 - 1948 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1904-1955 Reclaim the Records: Nebraska Death Index at Archive.org - images of index
 * 1904-1968 Nebraska, U.S., Index to Deaths, 1904-1968 at Ancestry — index, ($)

Family History Centers

 * Grand Island Nebraska Family History Center

Libraries

 * Grand Island Public Library Edith Abbott Memorial Library Lue R. Spencer (DAR) and Ella Sprague Genealogical Collections 211 North Washington Grand Island, NE 68801-5855 Phone: 308-385-5333 Fax: 308-385-5339 Email: [mailto:LibrarySupervisors@gilibrary.org LibrarySupervisors@gilibrary.org]

Museums

 * Reynolds Center Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer 3133 W US Hwy 34 P.O. Box 1505 Grand Island, NE 68802-1505 Phone: 308-385-5316 Fax: 308-385-5028 Email: [mailto:info@stuhrmuseum.org info@stuhrmuseum.org]

Societies

 * Hall County Historical Society 603 N Plum St. Grand Island, NE 68801 308-385-1545 Email: [mailto:hchsfred@gmail.com hchsfred@gmail.com] Website Facebook


 * Prairie Pioneer Genealogical Society P.O. Box 1122 Grand Island, NE 68802 Email: [mailto:ppgsgi@yahoo.com ppgsgi@yahoo.com] Website Facebook

Websites

 * NEGenWeb
 * USGenNet
 * USGenWeb
 * - 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