Step-by-Step North Dakota Research, 1893-Present

North Dakota Step-by-step research 1893--present
 * A suggested approach to genealogy research in North Dakota family history records.

Step 1. Find out everything possible from living relatives and their family records.
Every good genealogy project starts with finding all the clues that can be gathered from living relatives — both from their memories and from documents or memorabilia in their homes.

What are the best questions to ask?
In order to extend research, ask for names, dates, and places. Everything about who a relative was and when and where they lived is a clue to a new record search. For ideas, see :
 * 50 Questions to Ask Relatives About Family History


 * Creating Oral Histories

What documents should be collected or copied?
Because these records cover names, dates, places, and relationships, they are a valuable source of clues. Look for them in your home, your parents' home, and ask living grandparents to check for them.

Step 2. Find your ancestors in every possible census record, 1900-1940, online.
A census is a count and description of the population of a country, state, county, or city for a given date. A census took a "snapshot" of a family on a certain day. For each person living in a household (depending on the year), their name, age, birthplace, relationship to head of household, place of birth for father and mother, citizenship status, year of immigration, mother of how many children and number of children living, native language, and whether they were a veteran of the military can be listed.

Using the census clues to lead to a death certificate.
Example of a death certificate.

U.S. Social Security Death Index and Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
The U.S. Social Security program began in 1935 but most deaths recorded in the index happened after 1962. The Social Security Death index includes those who had a Social Security number and/or applied for benefits. The index entries give the person's full birth date, last known residence, and residence at the time they first enrolled. Women are listed under their married name at the time of their death. You can search these records online at. Also at Ancestry.com, ($), index.

The Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 picks up where the Social Security Death Index (SSDI) leaves off, by providing information filed in the application or claims process, including valuable details such as birth date, birth place, and parents’ names. Unless the deceased would be at least 75 years old today, the parents' names are not published. You will not find everybody who is listed in the SSDI, as criteria for inclusion differs.

Obituaries

 * Try these North Dakota links:
 * Fargo Forum Obituary Index
 * Online North Dakota Death Records &amp; Indexes
 * ObitsArchive North Dakota

Cemeteries

 * 1877-1999 North Dakota, U.S., Cemetery Records, 1877-1999 at Ancestry - index and images ($)
 * Online North Dakota Death Records &amp; Indexes
 * North Dakota Cemetery Records at Interment.net
 * Findagrave.com Cemetery Records
 * BillionGraves.com North Dakota Cemetery Records
 * USGenWeb North Dakota Tombstone Transcription Project
 * Odessa Library -- North Dakota Cemeteries
 * I Dream of Genealogy

Step 5: Search military records: World War I draft cards.

 * There are many different types of military records, some covered in online collections, some microfilmed, and some requiring you to order them from government repositories with a fee. For more information, read the U.S. Military Records Class Handout. Information in military records can vary from a simple lists of name, age, and residence, to more detailed records including name, residence, age, occupation, marital status, birthplace, physical description, number of dependents, pensions received, disabled veterans, needy veterans, widows or orphans of veterans, and other information.

World War I Draft Registration



 * One of the most helpful military records is the draft registration of 1917-1918. During three separate registrations, men born between 1873-1897 were required to register in the draft for World War I. Cards may give birth date, birth place, residence, occupation, employer, physical description, next of kin (usually the wife or mother), and number of dependents. Search for your male relatives born in this time period at.



World War II Draft Registration
Likewise, the World War II draft in 1942 may give birth date, birth place, residence, occupation, employer, and other family members as contacts. Search for your male relatives born in this time period at
 * , index and images.

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Step 6: If any ancestor was an immigrant, search immigration and naturalization records online.
The census records may show that your ancestor was born in another country. It will be necessary to try to find the town or city they were born in to continue research in the country of origin. Searches of immigration records (usually passenger lists) and naturalization (citizenship) records are the next goal. Immigration refers to people coming into a country, such as the United States, and emigration refers to people leaving a country to go to another. Usually these records are passenger lists of the ships they sailed on. A typical record will show name, age, and country of origin, but in ship lists after 1906 you can find the actual town of birth, the next of kin still living in the old country and their residence, and the names of relatives in the place they are traveling to.

Immigration records
Passenger lists and border crossing lists are the most common immigration records. There are many immigration records available. Click here to see a complete list of available immigration records online. Notice that they are listed by state, but under the letter "U" there is a long list of records that cover all of the United States. Unless family information tells you the port where family arrived, you will need to search all of the United States Immigration Online Genealogy Records for the time period when your ancestors arrived.

There are also immigration records unique to North Dakota:


 * North Dakota, U.S., Naturalizations, 1873-1952 at Ancestry - index and images ($)
 * North Dakota and Washington, Chinese Passenger Arrivals, 1903-1944, ($), index
 * , images
 * North Dakota Manifests of Immigrant Arrivals, 1910-1952 ($)

in this example of one of these manifests, notice that it is possible to learn birth place, age, language spoken, citiizenship, last residence before North Dakota, destination, name and address of closest relative back in the country they came from, port of arrival, name of relative in this country, and many personal details.



Naturalization (Citizenship) Records
Naturalization is the process of becoming a citizen. Records can include the immigrant's declaration of intent to become a citizen, petitions for citizenship, and final certificate of naturalization. Naturalization records after 1906 can show birth date and place, spouse's name, marriage date and place, and lists of children with their birth dates.

North Dakota Naturalization and Citizenship Online Records
NDSU Archives: North Dakota Naturalization Records Index.

The state of North Dakota has an online index to naturalization records at NDSU Archives: North Dakota Naturalization Records Index. Here is an example of data provided in the online index:



Instructions for ordering full copies of the record can then be found at Order Copies of N.D. Naturalization Records.

Step 8: If your ancestors were German, search Germans from Russia collections online.
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, there was a mass migration from German colonies in Russia to North and South Dakota. You can find many records pertaining to them in the Germans from Russia Heritage Collection at North Dakota State University.

Local Histories

 * Published histories of towns, counties, and states sometimes contain biographies and accounts of early or prominent families.
 * Here are several websites that feature online copies of printed county histories: North Dakota; that will bring up too many hits. Just use the name of the county and "county": for example, "Hyde County"
 * Google Books. Use keywords "North Dakota" and the county name. Hits will list online readable books, lists of libraries that carry the book, and purchasing opportunities.
 * Family History Books
 * Internet Archive.Use keywords "North Dakota" and the county name.
 * Ancestry.com, ($). In the Card Catalog search box, use North Dakota and the name of the county.

FamilySearch Collected Local Histories

 * Local histories are extensively collected by the FamilySearch Library, public and university libraries, and state and local historical societies.
 * If you have access to the FamilySearch Library or a FamilySearch center, you can find local histories by:
 * Go to the FamilySearch Catalog.
 * In the "Place" field, type the name of your county and click "Search".
 * A list of subheadings for the county will appear. Local histories containing genealogies and biographies will be found under Biography, Genealogy, History, or History - Indexes.

Biography Collections

 * NDSU Archives - North Dakota Biography Index.
 * Compendium of history and biography of North Dakota : containing a history of North Dakota...also a compendium of biography of North Dakota. 1900, e-book
 * History of North Dakota...including the biographies of the builders of the commonwealth, part 1, part 2, e-book
 * Illustrated album of biography of the famous valley of the Red River of the North and the park regions ... of Minnesota and North Dakota. Containing biographical sketches of ... settlers and representative citizens..., e-book
 * North Dakota County and Town Histories, Digital Horizons digital library database
 * North Dakota, Biography Records at MyHeritage — index ($)

For more information, see North Dakota Biography.

Step 10: Contact a local historical or genealogical society.

 * County historical societies have collections that are frequently little known and often overlooked.
 * Many have a surname file, where they have collected genealogies, newspaper clippings, old photographs, etc.
 * Many have a sort of "pioneer ancestor" program, where people can submit pedigrees to prove they are the descendants of an early resident of the county.
 * Most keep track of queries about families that once lived in the area from other distant relatives who may actually have more family memorabilia than you.


 * If you can find the society on the internet, they may list their holdings. Or call them on the phone, find out what they have, and find out what arrangements can be made to search their collection. Frequently, you can hire one of their members to search the collection for you.
 * For more information, see North Dakota Societies.

The online directory by GenealogyInc. lists historical and genealogical societies by county: Click on the list to select a county, then scroll down to the historical or genealogical society listings.

Historical Images
Records collected and digitized by FamilySearch can all be found through their Historical Images feature.
 * North Dakota, United States Historical Images, New Version
 * North Dakota, United States Historical Images, Old Version

North Dakota Online Genealogy Records
Search any other online records listed in North Dakota Online Genealogy Records. The steps given here are intended to list record sources which can most efficiently identify descendants. Many other online records which might or might not mention descendants are listed in the North Dakota Online Genealogy Records page, including immigration records, land records, military records, newspapers, and probate records, and others. These can be records that cover a smaller group within the population, such as men who served in the military, etc.
 * North Dakota Online Genealogy Records

Step 12: Study the Research Wiki pages for any county in North Dakota.
This article focused more on North Dakota state or state-wide records. There is a separate Wiki article for each county in North Dakota. These articles give information, office addresses, and links to county records.