Lincoln County, Washington Genealogy

Guide to Lincoln County Washington ancestry, family history, and genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records, since 1883, when the county was formed.

Washington Online Genealogy Records

Description
The County was named for Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States. The County is located in the east-central area of the state.

Parent County(s)
Lincoln County, Washington was created 24 November 1883 from Spokane.

County Seat: Davenport. See also Towns and Communities in. For Courthouse, see Archives, libraries, etc.

Boundary Changes

 * Historical County Boundaries from Newberry Library

Courthouse

 * Inventory of the county archives of Washington, no. 22. Lincoln County (Davenport)(If the link does not work, go to ancestry.com ($), click Search, select Card Catalog, paste Title into search box, click Search

Lincoln County Courthouse 450 Logan Street; PO Box 369 Davenport, WA 99122 Ph. 509.725.1401 County Auditor has birth and death records 1891-1907, marriage and land records from 1891. County Clerk has divorce, probate and court records.

See also Archives, libraries, etc. in.

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

Census

 * Census indexes at Washington State Digital Archives: (Free); and Ancestry ($)
 * Federal: 1910
 * Territorial: 1885 • 1887 •  1889
 * These were indexed by local societies and individuals.


 * School census 1900-1930 District Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)


 * Census-special population schedule 1911-1920Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Church records (microfilmed originals or published transcripts) for are listed in the . (Press space bar to select town.)
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * Inventory of the county archives of Washington, no. 22. Lincoln County (Davenport) (If the link does not work, go to ancestry.com ($), click Search, select Card Catalog, paste Title into search box, click Search)


 * Lincoln Frontier Justice. Part of "Frontier Justice’’: Guide to the Court Records of Washington Territory, 1853-1889 at Washington State Digital Archives. (Free Index, no images)
 * The court procedure of Frontier Justice touch nearly all pioneers of Washington Territory. The index has many abstracts that provide names and what is happening in disputes, settlements in civil and criminal cases as well as probate, equity and admiralty cases.

American Indian

 * 1911 - 1919 at FamilySearch — images

Japanese
World War II Files, 1942-1946

Public Welfare/Social Security Department, (Japanese Internment) Assistance Cases, Evacuee Referrals for Resettlement and Assistance, 1945-1946 from the Washington State Archives – Digital Archives

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

History

 * Story of Lincoln County, Washington by Richard F. Steele [(Spokane, Wash..); Lincoln County A.Y.P. Commission, 1909] online at Washington History
 * This book has numerous errors and its facts should viewed with circumspection.


 * Lincoln County, Washington Facts at StateofUS.com (mis-labeled as Lincoln County, Alabama)


 * Illustrated history of the Big Bend country by Western Historical Publishing Company [(Spokane, Wash.) Western Historical Pub. Co., 1904] online at Washington History

History Timeline
Historical County Boundaries from Newberry Library Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were gleaned from Paula Becker. Lincoln County -- Thumbnail History, History Link.org Essay 7859.


 * The land that would become Lincoln County was home to the Spokane tribe.
 * 1810 - after, Fur traders traversed the region en route to Spokane House in present-day Spokane County.
 * 1853 - March 2, U.S. President Millard Fillmore establishes.
 * 1869 - Russell M. Bacon, a Bostonian who came to the Crab Creek area of the future Lincoln County and Patrick Cumasky, were among the region's first permanent settlers.
 * 1880 - The United States government established a military reservation called Camp Spokane at the confluence of the Spokane and Columbia rivers in Lincoln County.
 * 1883 - November 24, Lincoln County was formed.
 * 1880s - Early settlers planted wheat crops.

Military

 * 1921-1925 at FamilySearch — index

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * Naturalization Records, 1877-1971 Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)
 * Includes Declaration of intention 1886-1929; Declarations of intention index 1906-1964; Letters of Administration Letters Testmentary 1884-1930; Naturalization Certificates 1886-1906; Naturalization correspondence 1914-1921; Naturalization petitions 1906-1971; Naturalization records index-miscellaneous depositions 1919-1952.


 * Lincoln County Clerk, Naturalization Records, 1906-1970 at Washington State Digital Archives

Newspapers

 * Lincoln County, Washington Newspapers (Sortable by towns, years, and titles)
 * 1855-2009 Washington Newspapers, 1855-2009 at MyHeritage — index & images, ($)


 * Washington Digital Newspaper at Washington State Library

Obituaries

 * Lincoln County Obituaries at WAGenWeb

Also check:


 * Newspapers of
 * Local Funeral Homes, Libraries, or family records.
 * Obituaries of neighboring counties

Probate Records

 * Probate Records 1884-1982 Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)
 * Includes Probate Journals 1892-1961; Probate Record Index 1885-1982; Will Records 1884-1945.

Public Records

 * Lincoln Prior to 1965 Postmaster Index. Part of Washington, Postmaster Indexes, Prior to 1965, FamilySearch Historical Collections for Washington. (Free, browse images)

School Records

 * School census 1900-1930 District Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)
 * See what genealogical information may be in these records.

Taxation

 * Assessment roll C, 1891-1895 Part of Washington, County Records, 1856-2009 at FamilySearch Historical Collections. (Free, browse images)

Birth

 * — index and images

Marriage

 * 1801-1962 Washington, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index $
 * 1855–2008 at FamilySearch — index and images


 * 1884-1887 - Marriages from 29 Jan 1884 to 30 Jan 1887 are searchable on the Western States Marriage Index website.


 * 1883-2004 Marriage Records, 1883-2004 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)


 * 1969-2014 at FamilySearch — index

Divorce
Online Records
 * 1969 - 2014 at FamilySearch — index

Death

 * 1907-1960 Washington, Death Certificates, 1907-1960 at MyHeritage — index, ($)
 * at FamilySearch - How to use this collection, index

Voting Registers

 * 1876-1940 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index

Archives, Libraries, etc.
Resources for are available in libraries, archives, and other repositories at all levels: the town, the county, the state (including universities), and the nation.


 * Check websites and catalogs, such as items in (Utah) or Allen County Public Library (Indiana) for.

Family History Centers

 * Coulee Dam Washington Family History Center
 * Davenport Washington Family History Center
 * Ephrata Washington Family History Center
 * Riverside Washington Family History Center
 * Spokane Washington East Family History Center
 * Spokane Washington Family History Center
 * Spokane Washington North Family History Center
 * Spokane Washington West Family History Center

Libraries

 * Davenport Public Library, 505 7th St, Davenport 99122 Phone: (509) 725-4355
 * Online Resources: GenealogyBank.com; MyHeritage.com; Archives.com
 * Unique Collections:


 * Harrington Public Library, po box 496, Harrington 99134 Phone: (509) 253-4345


 * Online Resources: MyHeritage.com Obituaries


 * Unique Collections:


 * Odessa Public Library, 21 E. First Street, Odessa 99159 Phone: (509) 982-2654


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Reardan Memorial Library, 120 S Oak, Reardan 99029 Phone: (509) 994-9997


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Sprague Public Library, 119 West Second, Sprague 99032 Phone: (509) 257-2662


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:


 * Wilbur (Hesseltine) Public Library, 14 Nw Division, Wilbur 99185 Phone: (509) 647-5828


 * Online Resources:


 * Unique Collections:

Societies
Lincoln County Historical Society P.O. Box 869 Davenport, WA 99122 (509) 725-6711 Website

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: