Arkansas, Sebastian County Births and Deaths - FamilySearch Historical Records

Record Description
This Collection will include records from 1877 to 1963.

This collection consists of birth and death records from the Sebastian county clerk’s office in Fort Smith, Arkansas and the Fort Smith city clerk’s office. The records are generally handwritten on preprinted pages.

County and city officials began keeping records from the time the county was formed and the city was incorporated. Birth and death records were created to keep track of the vital events happening in the lives of the citizens, to safeguard their legal interests, and for public health reasons.

The birth and marriage records are usually reliable depending upon the reliability of the informant.

Record Content
Birth records usually include the following information:


 * Child’s name
 * Birth date
 * Birth place
 * Sex
 * Race
 * Parents' names
 * Parents' ages
 * Birth place of parents
 * Occupations of parents
 * Number of other children in the family

Death records usually include the following information:


 * Name of deceased
 * Age
 * Sex
 * Race
 * Social Status (Married, divorced, single, widowed)
 * Occupation
 * Birth Place
 * Last Residence
 * How long in this state
 * Death place
 * Death date
 * Father’s name
 * Mother’s name
 * Cause of Death
 * Duration of illness
 * Burial place

How to Use the Record
To begin your search it is helpful to know the following:
 * The name of the individual or individuals such as the names of the the infant, or the deceased
 * The place where the birth or death occurred
 * The approximate date the event occurred

Search the Collection
To search the collection fill in the requested information in the boxes on the initial search page. This search will return a list of possible matches. Compare the information about the individuals in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to look at the information on several individuals comparing the information about them 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.
 * If your ancestor used an alias or a nickname, be sure to check for those alternate names.
 * Even though these indexes are very accurate they may still contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings, misinterpretations, and optical character recognition errors if the information was scanned.

For tips about searching on-line collections see the on-line article [FamilySearch Tips and Tricks].

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.

For example:


 * Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth to find the family in census records.
 * Use the residence and names of the parents to locate church and land records.
 * Use the parents' birth places to find former residences and to establish a migration pattern for the family.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * Compile the entries for every person who has the same surname as the bride or groom; this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual.
 * Continue to search the records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives who may have been born, married, or died in the same county or nearby. This can help you identify other generations of your family or even the second marriage of a parent. Repeat this process for each new generation you identify.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.
 * The information in the records is usually reliable, but depends upon the reliability of the informant.
 * Earlier records may not contain as much information as the records created after the late 1900.
 * There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another record.

Unable to Find Your Ancestor?

 * Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for alias names, nicknames and abbreviated names.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby localities.
 * Try alternative search methods such as only filling in the surname search box (or the given name search box) on the landing page leaving the other box empty and then click on search. This should return a list of everyone with that particular name. You could then browse the list for individuals that may be your ancestor.

For a summary of this information see the wiki article: United States, How to Use the Records Summary (FamilySearch Historical Records).

Related Websites

 * Arkansas Obituaries - County and City Index
 * Online Arkansas Death Records &amp; Indexes

Related Wiki Articles

 * Arkansas
 * Arkansas Vital Records Online
 * Sebastian County, Arkansas

Citation for This Collection
The following citation refers to the original source of the information published in FamilySearch.org Historical Records collections. Sources include the author, custodian, publisher, and archive for the original records.