Baltimore County, Maryland Genealogy

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

Courthouse
Clerk Circuit Court has marriage, divorce, court, and land records from 1851. Register of Wills has probate records.

History

 * Named for the barony of Lord Baltimore family in County Longford, Ireland. Specifically for Cecilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore (1605-1675), the 1st Proprietor Governor of Maryland.

Parent County

 * 1659--Baltimore County was created 30 June 1659 from Anne Arundel County.
 * County seat: Towson.
 * 12 January 1659, earliest known record of political action, when a writ was issued to its sheriff.

Boundary Changes

 * 6 June 1674, a portion was set off to create Cecil County.
 * 10 June 1748, a portion combined with portion from Prince George's county set off to create Frederick County.
 * 17 December 1773, east part was split off to form Harford County.
 * 1851, Baltimore City became independent of the county.
 * 13 May 1851, southwest portion combined with a portion from Anne Arundel County was set off to form Howard County.

For animated maps illustrating Maryland county boundary changes, *"Rotating Formation Maryland County Boundary Maps" (1637-1997) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Variant Spellings

 * Baltemore

Record Loss
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Town

 * Hampstead
 * Towson (County Seat)

Neighboring Counties
Maryland counties:


 * Anne Arundel
 * Carroll
 * Harford
 * Howard
 * Kent

Pennsylvania county:


 * York

Bible Records
Baltimore County, Anne Arundel County, and Howard County Bible Records

Cemeteries

 * Baltimore National Cemetery
 * Beth Tfiloh Cemetery, Woodlawn (see also Shaarei Tfilah Cemetery)
 * Eucharist Sulpician Cemetery (in the Charlestown complex)
 * Evangelimas Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Cemetery, Catonsville, Woodlawn
 * The Govanstown Cemetery (Baltimore County) is now online as part of the Govans Presbyterian Church web site. To go directly to the PDF Listings click on: Govanstown Cemetery Listings (If that does not work go to Govans Presbyterian Church and click on "cemetery listings")
 * Hebrew Young Men's Cemetery, Catonsville, Woodlawn
 * Historic Old Salem Cemetery, Catonsville (see Salem Cemetery, Catonsville)
 * Lorraine Park Cemetery and Mausoleum, Woodlawn
 * Melville Family Cemetery, Oella
 * Merryman Family Cemetery, Oella
 * New Cathedral Cemetery-near Catonsville          4300 Old Frederick Road,Baltimore,MD 21229
 * Oella Cemetery, Rest Ave., near Catonsville (AKA Union Manufacturing Works Cemetery)
 * Ogle-Hoffman Family Cemetery, Catonsville
 * Moreland Memorial Park, Parkville
 * Shaarie Tfilah Cemetery, Woodlawn (See also Beth Tfiloh Cemetery)
 * Thistle Cemetery, Oella
 * Trinity United Methodist Cemetery, Oella
 * Union Manufacturing Works Cemetery, Oella
 * United Methodist Church Cemetery, Glen Arm
 * Westview Park Memorial Cemetery, Catonsville
 * Woodlawn Cemetery & Chapel, Woodlawn, Baltimore County, Maryland Genealogy|Woodlawn Cemetery &amp; Chapel, Woodlawn]]

Census
Federal Census reports available 1790-1930 including slave and veterans schedules.


 * 1785-1795 - Cox, Richard J. "Some Early Residents of Baltimore, Maryland, 1785-1795," National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 67, No. 3 (Sep. 1979):202-209; Vol. 67, No. 4 (Dec. 1979):283-286. Digital version at National Genealogical Society website ($);.

Church
Maryland State Archives' Guide to Maryland Religious Institutions is not intended to be a complete listing of all Religious institutions in Maryland. It was originally based upon the churches recorded by the Federal Works Progress Administration during a records survey conducted from 1935 to 1941. It has been expanded by later acquisitions from religious organizations to the Maryland State Archives.
 * 1668-1995 at FamilySearch — index
 * Lutheran, Salem Lutheran Church, Various Church Records, 1848-1969 (in German and English)
 * Protestant Episcopal, St. Thomas Church, Homestead, Register 1858-1895; Marriage Register 1956-1974(includes history, families, baptisms, confirmations, marriages, communicants, burials, offerings, sundry contributions, reports, and vestry minutes)
 * Protestant Episcopal, St. Thomas Church, Homestead, Register 1893-1962 (includes baptisms, confirmations, communicants, marriages, and burials)

Baptist
Early Baptist churches:


 * Edwards, Morgan, Materials Towards a History of the Baptists in the Provinces of Maryland Virginia North Carolina South Carolina Georgia Internet Archive

Church of England
See also St. James's Parish See also St. John's Parish  See also St. Paul's Parish

Court

 * 1682-1721 - Barnes, Robert W. "Children in Baltimore County, Maryland, Court Records, 1682-1721," National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 69 (1981):269-276. Digital version at National Genealogical Society website ($);.

Directories
Fold3.com ($) has Baltimore City Directories 1863-1923 (5 yrs. missing) available online. Fold3 is free at some libraries and at National Archives research rooms.

Family Histories
It is anticipated that this bibliography will eventually identify all known family histories published about residents of this county. Use this list to:


 * Locate publications about direct ancestors
 * Find the most updated accounts of an ancestor's family
 * Identify publications, to quote Elizabeth Shown Mills, about an ancestor's "FAN Club" [Friends, Associates, and Neighbors]

Immigration
Online Records


 * 1820 - 1948 at FamilySearch— index and images

Baltimore has been a port since colonial times. Unfortunately, no official passenger lists survive for the seventeenth or eighteenth centuries.

The New Early Settlers of Maryland database is a great place to start searching for immigrants who had arrived in the colony by the 1680s. The database "comprises 34,326 entries from Gust Skordas' Early Settlers of Maryland and Carson Gibb's Supplement to the Early Settlers of Maryland." Available online, courtesy: Maryland State Archives.

Other Baltimore County immigration resources include:


 * Coldham, Peter Wilson. "Intercepted Letters Relating to America 1777-1811," The Genealogist, Vol. 14, No. 2 (Fall 2000):184-200; Vol. 15, No. 1 (Spring 2001):53-74. [Discusses overseas contacts of individuals with the following Baltimore County surnames: Albers, Anspach, Barry, Barton, Beatty, Beays, Belt, Bolte, Brothers, Brown, Browne, Brune, Buchanan, Burke, Campbell, Caton, Clarke, Courteney, Dickey, Dicky, Donnell, Dormy, Dorsly, Duncan, Gernon, Gillmer, Gilmore, Gittings [Gettings], Goverts, Graf, Grant, Grundy, Gwin, Haslett, Hoffman, Hollins, Holmes, Hudson, Kalkman, Konig, Lone, McCreery, McFadon, Maris, Merryman, Moncrieff, Olliver, Patterson, Pringle, Salmon, Sears, Sherlock, Smith, Somervell, Spears, Sterrett, Stewart, Stiles, Taylor, Thompson, Thorowgood, Valck, Von Kapffe, Von Stapff, Walsh, Williams, Williamson, Wilson, Yellot, Young, Zwisler.]
 * [http://www.pricegen.com/immigrantservants/search/advancedResults.php?surname=&givenName=&varientSurnameSpellings=&gender=&dateOfBirthDay=&dateOfBirthMonth=&dateOfBirthQuantifier=&dateOfBirthYear=&placeOfBirthParish=&placeOfBirthTown=&placeOfBirthCity=&placeOfBirthCounty=&placeOfBirthColony=&placeOfBirthNation=&occupations=&religions=&orphan=&familyPosition=&immigrationYearQualifier=&immigrationYear=&portOfDepartureTown=&portOfDepartureCity=&portOfDepartureCounty=&portOfDepartureNation=&placeOfArrivalTown=&placeOfArrivalCounty=&placeOfArrivalColony=&shipName=&convict=&yearOfIndentureQualifier=&yearOfIndenture=&lengthOfIndentureYears=&lengthOfIndentureMonths=&yearOfFreedomQualifier=&yearOfFreedom=&placeOfIndentureTown=&placeOfIndentureCity=&placeOfIndentureCounty=Baltimore&placeOfIndentureColony=Maryland&agentSurname=&agentGivenName=&agentTitle=&masterSurname=&masterGivenName=&masterTitle=&residenceParish=&residenceTown=&residenceCity=&residenceCounty=&residenceColony=&residenceNation=&landowner=&literate=&spouseSurname=&spouseGivenName=&spouseMarriageDateDay=&spouseMarriageDateMonth=&spouseMarriageDateQualifier=&spouseMarriageDateYear=&spouseMarriageLocationParish=&spouseMarriageLocationCounty=&spouseMarriageLocationColony=&spouseMarriageLocationNation=&deathDateDay=&deathDateMonth=&deathDateQualifier=&deathDateYear=&deathLocality=&deathCounty=&deathColony=&deathState=&testate=&proofServantStatus=&proofConvictStatus=&headright=&preServitudeSources=&postServitudeSources=&comments=&family=&sourceCitations=&interestedResearchers= List of imported servants and transported convicts from Europe] who served labor terms in Colonial Baltimore City and County, Maryland (work in progress), courtesy: Immigrant Servants Database. [Includes Richard J. Cox's abstracts of Maryland Gazette runaways.]

Land
Through a Joint eGovernment Service of the Maryland Judiciary and the Maryland State Archives, free images and indexes of the complete series of Baltimore County Deed Books (1653-present) have been uploaded to their website: A Digital Image Retrieval System for Land Records in Maryland. (Requires free registration.)

Revolutionary War
Baltimore County men served in the 4th Maryland Regiment and the 7th Maryland Regiment.


 * A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census]. 1841. Digital version at Google Books. 1967 reprint: 973 X2pc 1840. [See Maryland, Baltimore County on page 127.]

War of 1812

 * List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883; Giving the Name of Each Pensioner, the Cause for Why Pensioned, the Post-Office Address, the Rate of Pension Per Month, and the Date of Original Allowance... Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1883. 973 M2Lp v. 5; digital versions at Google Books and Internet Archive. [See Vol. 5, Maryland, Baltimore County, pp. 111-139. Identifies hundreds of War of 1812 veterans living in this county in 1883.]

Civil War

 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index


 * - 1st Regiment, Maryland Eastern Shore Infantry, Company I.
 * - 1st Regiment, Maryland Cavalry (Union)
 * - 1st Regiment, Maryland Cavalry, Potomac Home Brigade, Companies E, F, G, H, I, K, L, and M.
 * - 1st Regiment, Maryland Infantry, Potomac Home Brigade, Companies C, G, and K.
 * - 2nd Regiment, Maryland Cavalry (6 months, 1863-1864), Companies A, B, C and E.
 * - 2nd Regiment, Maryland Eastern Shore Infantry, Company F.
 * - 3rd Regiment, Maryland Infantry, Potomac Home Brigade, Companies B and F.
 * - 3rd Regiment, Maryland Cavalry, Companies A, B, C, H, I, and K.
 * - 4th Regiment, Maryland Infantry, Potomac Home Brigade, Company B.
 * - 5th Regiment, Maryland Infantry, Companies B, C, D, E, F, G, H and K.
 * - 6th Regiment, Maryland Infantry, Companies C, F and I.
 * - 7th Regiment, Maryland Infantry, Companies D and K.
 * - 8th Regiment, Maryland Infantry- Companies B, C, D, F and G.
 * - 9th Regiment, Maryland Infantry (6 months, 1863-1864), Companies A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, and K.
 * - Purnell Legion, Maryland Cavalry, Companies A, B, and C.
 * - Purnell Legion, Maryland Infantry, Companies A, B, C, F, H and K.

Naturalization
Though it does not appear on the FamilySearch Catalog under the naturalization section of the City of Baltimore or Baltimore County, the Family History Library has acquired published abstracts of Baltimore naturalizations from 1784 through 1854:


 * Oszakiewski, Robert Andrew. Maryland Naturalization Abstracts. Baltimore County and Baltimore City [1784-1854]. Westminster, Maryland: Family Line Publications, 1995. Available at.

Newspapers

 * Baltimore County newspapers are identified in "Guide to Maryland Newspapers," available online, courtesy: Special Collections, Maryland State Archives.

Probate

 * Probate Records, Colonial Index, 1634-1777 online at Maryland State Archives website - free

Baltimore And Anne Arundel County Last Will and Testaments and Other Probate/Estate Related Documents

Orphans Court Notices (Probate, Administration of Estates, and Some Equity Suits)

Online Probate Records


 * 1604 – 1878 Maryland Wills and Probate Records 1604-1878 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1635 – 1743 Maryland Calendar of Wills 1635-1743 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1629 - 1999 at FamilySearch index and images.  Note: this collection is being updated as images become available; online availability of records for Baltimore County may not yet be complete.
 * 1796 – 1940 at FamilySearch images

Research Guides

 * Barnes, Robert. Guide to Research in Baltimore City and County. 2nd Edition. Westminster, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1993.

Taxation

 * 1678, 1681 - 1678 and 1681 Baltemore County tax lists, available online, courtesy: MDGenWeb.
 * 1783 -Baltimore County Tax List of 1783: This is an alphabetical index to names to all property owners assessed. The index cards at the Maryland State Archives include county, hundred, names of tracts of land and whether individuals were paupers or single males as provided in the law.
 * 1797 - Cox, Richard J. "Baltimore City 1797 Special Tax List," National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 66 (1978):188-191..
 * 1798 - Horvath, George J. The Particular Assessment Lists for Baltimore and Carroll Counties - 1798. Westminster, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1991.
 * 1869 - Baltimore County, Maryland 5th District Collection Book, 1869

Marriage

 * 1658 - 1940 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1666 - 1970 at FamilySearch — index
 * Maryland Marriage References by Robert Barnes - free.
 * Marriage Records - Maryland State Archives
 * 1777 -  Marriages in Baltimore County, beginning in 1777.
 * 19th, 20th Century Baltimore Marriage Announcements from 19th and 20th Century Newspapers--Sorted by Groom's surname
 * 1800 - 1816 Transcripts of Marriage Licenses from January 1800 through December 1816
 * 1897 - 1915 Transcript of a few Baltimore County Marriage Licenses between 1897 and 1915 Sorted by Groom
 * 1897 - 1915 Transcript of a few Baltimore County Marriage Licenses between 1897 and 1915 Sorted by Bride
 * Divorce Notices and Other Marital Problems from Baltimore Newspapers

Death


 * 1898 - 1944 Maryland Death Index 1898-1944

Other Baltimore County death record resources include: Extracts and Copies of Death Notices and Obituaries from Baltimore Area Newspapers

Societies and Libraries
Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society Baltimore Chapter P. O. Box 9366 Baltimore, MD 21229-3125

Baltimore County Genealogical Society P.O. Box 10085 Towson, MD 21285-0085 E-Mail: [mailto:info@baltimoregenealogysociety.org :info@baltimoregenealogysociety.org] Website

Baltimore County Genealogical Society Library Parkville Senior Center 3rd Floor, room 308 (Elevator Available) 8601 Harford Road Parkville, Maryland 21234 E-Mail: [mailto:info@baltimoregenealogysociety.org info@baltimoregenealogysociety.org] Website

The Historical Society of Baltimore County Library Historic Almshouse 9811 Van Buren Lane Cockeysville, MD 21030 410 666-1878 E-mail: [mailto:info@hsobc.org info@hsobc.org] Website Facebook

Enoch Pratt Free Library Central Library 400 Cathedral Street Baltimore, MD 21201 410-396-5430 E-Mail: [mailto:SLRC@prattlibrary.org :SLRC@prattlibrary.org] Website

The Jewish Museum of Maryland at the Herbert Bearman Campus 15 Lloyd Street Baltimore, MD 21202 410-732-6400 Fax 410-732-6451 Website

The Goodwin Library and Robert L. Weinberg Family History Center at the Jewish Museum 15 Lloyd Street Baltimore, MD 21202 410 732-6400 x213 E-Mail: [mailto:research@jewishmuseummd.org research@jewishmuseummd.org] 410 732-6400 x224 E-Mail: [mailto:familyhistory@jewishmuseummd.org familyhistory@jewishmuseummd.org] Website

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers
 * Baltimore Maryland Family History Center
 * Hampstead Maryland Family History Center

Websites

 * Baltimore County, Maryland Genealogy, History and Facts (Genealogy Inc)
 * The Baltimore County MDGenWeb Project, a member of The MDGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * "Baltimore Co.," in Genealogical Sources in Periodicals at The Maryland State Archives.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Baltimore County.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project for Baltimore County. (backup site)
 * , Baltimore County