Montana, Cascade County Records - FamilySearch Historical Records

Collection Time Period
This collection covers the years 1888 to 1945.

Record Description
The records include the following:


 * Birth index (1893-1933)
 * Death index (1895-1907)
 * Marriage records (1950-1958)
 * Military rolls (1896-1911)
 * Probate Case Files, # 535-3165 (1903-1926)
 * Court Orders for Dependent Children (1903-1937)
 * Old Age Applications
 * Naturalization Records (1888-1945)

The records are located at the Great Falls Genealogy Society in Great Falls, Montana.

Record Content


The key genealogical facts in the birth index include the following:


 * Parents' names
 * Parents' birth place
 * Parents' residence
 * Child's date of birth
 * Date of filing
 * Child's sex
 * Child's race



The key genealogical facts in the death index usually include the following:


 * Name of deceased
 * Date of filing
 * Date of death
 * Age of deceased
 * Book and page number where recorded



The key genealogical facts in marriage records usually include the following:


 * Groom's age
 * Groom's date of birth
 * Groom's place of Birth
 * Name of father and mother of groom
 * Bride's age
 * Bride's date of birth
 * Bride's place of birth
 * Name of father and mother of bride
 * Date of Marriage
 * Race of Bride and groom



The key genealogical facts in declarations of intent to naturalize usually include the following:


 * Name
 * Age
 * Occupation
 * Physical description
 * Birth date
 * Birth place
 * Current residence
 * Last residence before immigration
 * Marital status
 * Name of spouse
 * Spouse's birth date
 * Spouse's last residence
 * Date and place of arrival in the U.S.
 * Court where filed
 * Date of filing



The key genealogical facts in naturalization certificates usually include the following:


 * Name
 * Age
 * Court where declaration of intent was filed
 * Date declaration of intent was filed
 * Spouse's name and residence
 * Names of dependent children
 * Volume and page number where certificate is filed



The key genealogical facts in wills usually include the following:


 * Groom's age
 * Groom's date of birth
 * Groom's place of Birth
 * Name of father and mother of groom
 * Bride's age
 * Bride's date of birth
 * Bride's place of birth
 * Name of father and mother of bride
 * Date of Marriage
 * Race of Bride and groom



The key genealogical facts in court orders usually include the following:


 * Court where will is filed
 * Date of filing
 * Name of deceased
 * Name of executor
 * Conditions of the will

Court orders may also list the following:


 * Name of spouse
 * Names of dependents or minor children
 * Name of other relatives
 * Names of neighbors and witnesses
 * Land descriptions
 * Inventory of property or estate



The key genealogical facts in military rolls usually include the following:


 * Names of citizens subject to military duty
 * If citizen is able-bodied
 * If citizen is between the ages of 18 and 45
 * If citizen is a civil military officer
 * If citizen is a civil officer of the state
 * If citizen is subject to military duty

How to Use the Record
When searching the records it is helpful to do the following:


 * Name of the ancestor
 * Type of event such as marriage or naturalization
 * Approximate date of event

Identify the record to be searched
From the Record Description list, identify the kind of record you would like to search (naturalization, probate, marriages, etc.) and click on the title link to select it.

Find the image
Start searching individual images or pages that you have listed. Compare the information in the records to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct person. You may need to compare the information of more than one person to make this determination.

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. Add this new information to your records of each family. The information may also lead you to other records about your ancestors. The following examples show ways you can use the information:


 * Use the residence and names of the parents to locate church, land, and census records.
 * Use ages to determine approximate birth dates.
 * Use will filing or probating dates as approximate death dates.
 * Search for records of people in the county who shared a surname. These may have been the couple’s parents, uncles, or other relatives. Your ancestor may have been an heir who sold inherited land that had belonged to parents or grandparents.
 * To find later generations, search the land records a few years before and after a person’s death. Your ancestor may have sold or given land to his or her heirs before death, or the heirs may have sold the land after the individual died. For daughters, the names of their husbands are often provided. For sons, the given names of their wives may be included. Heirs may have sold their interest in the land to another heir, although the record may not indicate this. Continue this process for identifying each succeeding generation.
 * When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * 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.
 * Witnesses and neighbors, even those with a different surname, may have been relatives, in-laws, or even a widowed mother who has remarried. You may want to check the records of these witnesses and neighbors, especially if they are frequently found in your ancestor’s land records.
 * 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.

If you are unable to find the ancestors you are looking for, try the following:


 * Check for variant spellings of the surnames.
 * Check for indexes. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume.
 * Search the indexes for the “parent” county to find the original purchase of a parcel of land. You may also need to search a neighboring county since that courthouse may have been more convenient for the person to record the deed.
 * Make a list of all residences mentioned in the records within a year or two of when your ancestors came to the county — regardless of surname. Then search the records of places that seem likely or that occur frequently.
 * Create a database for other people with the same surname who lived in the county. Doing this may help you identify which individuals were related. If your ancestor’s records do not contain the information you need, a county database might give you a more complete picture.

For a summary of this information see the wiki article: United States, How to Use the Records Summary

Record History
County officials began keeping records from the time the county was formed.

Why the Record Was Created
Each type of record within the county was created for a different purpose, but most were created to keep track of the vital events happening in the lives of the citizens and to safeguard their legal interests.

Record Reliability
The records are generally reliable.

Related Websites

 * Great Falls/Cascade County Genealogy Society
 * Montana Genealogy
 * Montana History and Genealogy
 * Montana Genealogy Societies Directory

Related Wiki Articles

 * Cascade County, Montana
 * Montana Probate Records
 * Montana Naturalization and Citizenship
 * Montana Vital Records

Contributions to This Article
When you copy information from a record, you should also list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. 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.

A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the Wiki Article: Help:How to Create Source Citations For FamilySearch Historical Records Collections.

Examples of Source Citations for a Record in This Collection
"Montana, Cascade County Records, 1888-1945." images, FamilySearch; (https://www.familysearch.org: accessed 29 July 2011). entry for John F. McGregor, age 34 and Theresa Ann Grady age 25; citing County Records, Vital records, Marriage licence record, vol.081, 1950-1951, image 5; Cascade County Records, Great Falls Genealogy Society, Great Falls Montana. United States.

Sources of information for This Collection
Montana. Cascade County Records, Montana, Cascade County Records, 1888-1945. Great Falls Genealogy Society. Great Falls, Montana.