Crawford County, Arkansas Genealogy

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

Description
The county was named for William H. Crawford, United States Secretary of War in 1815. It is located in the northeast of the state.

County Courthouse
Crawford County Courthouse 300 Main Street Van Buren, AR 72956 Phone: 501.474.1312 Crawford County Website County Clerk has marriage and probate records from 1877; Clerk Circuit Court has court and land records from 1877 and divorce records.

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:

History Timeline
Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were taken from the Crawford County page on the website, The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture.


 * 1818-1828 - Much of the future county was within a Cherokee reservation and therefore unavailable to American settlers..
 * 1820 October 18 - When originally created, Crawford County encompassed a large part of Indian Territory and all or part of five present-day counties—Scott, Sebastian, Franklin, Washington, and Pope.
 * 1840 - Approximately 4,000 people had arrived, and settlements sprang up all over the mountains, valleys, and the river valley.
 * 1850 - Iimmigrants and freight could enter the county by traveling the State Road (Wire Road) from the north, paralleling the western boundary, from Springfield, Missouri, to the Arkansas River.
 * 1862 - The Civil War came early to Crawford County, as did great devastation, deprivation, pain, and suffering.
 * 1874 - As the freed slaves migrated westward, a large population of African Americans settled in the Riverside community near Van Buren.
 * 1870-1880 - Crawford County never experienced phenomenal growth at any one time, but with the advent of the railroads, there came a significant population increase.

Population Timeline Data extracted from: Encyclopedia of Arkansas
 * 1850      7,960
 * 1860      7,850
 * 1870      8,957
 * 1880      14,740
 * 1890      21,714
 * 1900      21,270
 * 1910      23,942
 * 1920      24,739
 * 1930      22,549
 * 1940      23,920
 * 1950      22,727
 * 1960      21,318
 * 1970      25,677
 * 1980      36,892
 * 1990      42,493
 * 2000      53,247

Additional Information
 * History of Crawford County at Ancestry.com ($)

Biographies

 * All of the family biographies from the 1889 History of Crawford County, Arkansas by Goodspeed are available free online on My Genealogy Hound

Census Records

 * 1830 Census -  USGenWeb Archives
 * US Federal Census Records - Crawford County ARGenWeb
 * Census and Slave Schedules -  Crawford County ARGenWeb
 * Newton County 1900 Census at Ancestry.com ($)

Church Records

 * 1875-1899 - at FamilySearch — index- How to Use this Collection

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Crawford County Church Index - Crawford County ARGenWeb
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1877-1880, 1877-1905 (*); Arkansas. Circuit Court (Crawford County) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1877-1952, 1878-1965 (*); Arkansas. Chancery Court (Crawford County) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1881-1888 (*); Arkansas. County Court (Crawford County) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * Dodd diggings, Vol. 3. By Conley, Avlyn Dodd. Family History Library : FamilySearch International. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * Wills and Probate Index -  Crawford County ARGenWeb

Funeral Homes

 * Edwards Van-Alma Funeral Home in Van Buren
 * Ocker-Putman Funeral Home in Alma and Van Buren

Guardianship
Arkansas Probate Records - FamilySearch Historical Records|How to Use this Collection]]
 * Probate Records 1874-1929 Crawford County portion of the collection: : Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979 FamilySearch Historical Collections (Free, browse images)- [[
 * Includes Administration bonds 1877-1909; Administration bonds 1877-1908; Minute index 1877-1929; Minutes 1877-1895; Wills 1874-1929.

Land and Property Records
The state of Arkansas began giving out land grants in Crawford County as early as 1840's, but land transactions as the county level are only microlfilmed and available after 1877.

Local Histories

 * History of Benton, Washington, Carroll, Madison, Crawford, Franklin, and Sebastian Counties, Arkansas. 1889. Chicago, IL, USA: Goodspeed Publishing. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Google Books, Ancestry ($);.
 * History of Crawford County, Arkansas. [1951]. By Clara B. Eno. Van Buren, Arkansas : Press-Argus. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Ancestry ($);.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Maps of Arkansas (1813-1925)
 * Crawford County Map Index  -  Crawford Coiunty ARGenWeb
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
 * Arkansas State Archives State Maps Collection at Arkansas Digital Archives

Military Records
As a wildly rural western territory until the middle of the 19th century, Arkansas and her counties were not embroiled in military happenings until the Civil War. Military records for Crawford County are at state and federal levels.

Revolutionary War

 * 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 Arkansas, Crawford County on page 191.]
 * Rejected or Suspended Applications for Revolutionary War Pensions. Washington, D.C., 1852. Reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1969, and 1991. Reprints include "an Added Index to States." 973 M24ur; digital version at Ancestry ($). [Includes veterans from this county; Arkansas section begins on page 439.]
 * Pension Rolls -  Crawford County ARGenWeb

Civil War
Arkansas seceded from the Union on 6 May 1861. The Civil War brought destruction to Crawford County, as two early battles in 1862 ravaged the region. Though technically a Confederate state, many of the small farmer residents in Arkansas (especially in the north) were Union sympathizers. While there were 48 infantry regiments for the Confederate Army (plus considerable numbers of cavalry and artillery battery units), there were 11 Union infantry regiments, four cavalry regiments, and two artillery batteries.

'''Online Records


 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index- How to Use this Collection
 * 1890-1963 - at FamilySearch — index and images- How to Use this Collection
 * Civil War Records for Arkansas are available on Fold3 ($).
 * 1891-1939 - at FamilySearch — index and images- How to Use this Collection
 * 1901-1929 - at FamilySearch — index and images- How to Use this Collection
 * United States Colored Troopsof Crawford County, Arkansas this site gives history and information on burial and a Headstone Project.


 * - 19th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Dawson's) (Confederate)
 * - 34th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate), Company E
 * - 35th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate), Company G
 * - Witherspoon's Battalion, Arkansas Cavalry (Confederate)


 * Men from Crawford County served in the 1st Regiment Arkansas Infantry (Union)
 * Men from Crawford County served in the 5th Regiment, Arkansas Militia (Confederate)undefined
 * Men from this county served in the 3rd Regiment, Arkansas Cavalry (Union), Company E

Newspapers
Submitted Crawford County Obituaries -  USGenWeb Archives Project Newspaper Article Index -  Crawford County ARGenWeb
 * 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1783–1998 Arkansas Wills and Probate Records 1783-1998 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
 * 1817-1979 (*) at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images
 * 1874-1929 (*); Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1877-1929 (*); Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 at FamilySearch - How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
 * 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records
Tax Lists - Crawford County ARGenWeb

Marriage

 * 1779-1966 - Arkansas, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 1860 - 1976 - at FamilySearch — index and images- How to Use this Collection
 * 1877 - 1951 - Crawford County Marriage Books A-Z, 1-7 Index 1877-1951 in at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1877 - 1921 - Crawford County Marriage Books A-I Index 1877-1921 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1917-1969 Arkansas, Marriage Certificates, 1917-1969 at Ancestry.com - index and images ($)

Death

 * 1914-1969 Arkansas, Death Certificates, 1914-1969 at Ancestry.com - index and images ($)
 * 1935-1961 Arkansas, Death Index, 1935-1961 at MyHeritage - index and images ($)

Divorce

 * 1923-1969 Arkansas, Divorces, 1923-1969 at Ancestry.com - index ($)

Voter Records

 * 1868-1910 - at FamilySearch — index and images- How to Use this Collection

Family History Centers

 * Clarksville Arkansas Family History Center
 * Fort Smith Arkansas Family History Center


 * Honey Grove Library and Learning Center - an affiliate library

Societies
Crawford County Genealogical Society P.O. Box 276 Alma, AR 72921 Open on Tuesday and Thursday, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Facebook

Crawford County Historical Society 929 East Main Street Van Buren, AR 72956-4317 Website

Northwest Arkansas Genealogical Society P.O. Box 796 Rogers, AR 72757-0796 Serving the Arkansas Counties of Benton, Carroll, Madison and Washington Phone:: (501) 273-3890 Website

Websites

 * ARGenWeb. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or complete transcriptions
 * USGenWeb Archives. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or may be complete transcriptions
 * RootsWeb. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or may be complete transcriptions
 * Linkpendium. Free. Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)
 * CyndisList. Free. Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)
 * - The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records