Johnston County, North Carolina Genealogy

Guide to Johnston County, North Carolina ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Description
Johnston County is located in the central portion of North Carolina and was named for Royal Governor of North Carolina Gabriel Johnston.

County Courthouse
Johnston County Courthouse 207 East Johnston Street PO Box 118 Smithfield, NC 27577-4515 Phone: 919-989-5160 Johnston County Website Register of Deeds has marriage and land records. Clerk Superior Court has probate and court 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

 * June 28, 1746  Royal Governor Gabriel Johnston signs legislation creating the County of Johnston.
 * Oct. 18, 1775  Independent North Carolina's Provincial Council holds its first meeting at Johnston County Courthouse (Smithfield).
 * May 9, 1777  Town of Smithfield chartered by the N.C. General Assembly.
 * May 3-15, 1779  N.C. General Assembly meets in Smithfield.
 * Feb. 16, 1861  Town of Boon Hill chartered - renamed Princeton in 1873.
 * March 19-21, 1865  Civil War Battle of Bentonville rages as the "bloodiest battle ever fought on North Carolina soil."
 * April 12, 1869  Town of Clayton chartered.
 * Feb. 11, 1873  Town of Selma chartered.
 * Jan. 30, 1874  Town of Pine Level chartered.
 * March 7, 1887  Towns of Benson and Kenly chartered.
 * March 11, 1889  Town of Four Oaks chartered.
 * May 1, 1899  Town of Jerome chartered - renamed Micro in 1905.
 * Aug. 15, 1945  Farmers Day in Smithfield celebrates the end of World War II.
 * Sept. 1, 1965  Johnston County's public schools begin racial desegregation, completed by consolidation of high schools in 1969.
 * Oct. 1, 1991  Land-use zoning instituted throughout Johnston County as suburbanization follows recently completed I-40 from Raleigh.
 * Aug. 2, 1996  Town of Wilson's Mills re-chartered (original charter issued in 1927, revoked in 1971).
 * Nov. 3, 2009  Town of Archer Lodge incorporated by a majority vote of residents within its proposed borders.

Census Records

 * 1790-1940 Johnston County Census Records

Church Records

 * 1700-1970 - at FamilySearch — index

Baptist
 * Mill Creek. Established by 1808.
 * Rocky Spring. Constituted 1793.
 * Three Creeks. Established by 1789.

Church of England List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * St. Patrick's Parish. Established 1756.
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * Johnston County Court Records

Genealogies

 * [Humphries] Holcomb, Brent Howard. Ancestors and Descendants of Charles Humphries (d. 1837) of Union District, South Carolina, 1677-1984. Columbia, S.C., 1985..

Local Histories

 * A Very Short History of the County (Johnston Count)

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

Military Records
Revolutionary War 
 * 1779-1782  at FamilySearch

Civil War 


 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry
 * 1885-1953  at FamilySearch


 * - 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Junior Reserves, Company H
 * - 5th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
 * - 5th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, Company C
 * - 7th Battalion, North Carolina Cavalry, Company F
 * - 7th Battalion, North Carolina Cavalry, Company G
 * - 8th Regiment, North Carolina Senior Reserves, Captain John Daniel's Company

Civil War Battles  The following Civil War battle was fought in Johnston County:


 * March 19-21, 1865 Bentonville, also known as Bentonsville
 * Map showing Civil War battles in North Carolina.

World War I 
 * 1917-1919  at FamilySearch

World War II 
 * 1940-1948  at FamilySearch

Newspapers

 * Johnston County Deaths. List of county area deaths reported in various newspapers; dates range from late 1700s to 1900s.

Obituaries

 * Smithfield Herald Obituaries from Jan 2011 forward (GenealogyBank) $

Probate Records

 * North Carolina Probate Records tips

Online Probate Records


 * 1660-1790 North Carolina Will Abstracts 1660-1790 at Ancestry $
 * 1663-1979  at FamilySearch
 * 1665-1998 North Carolina Wills and Probate Records 1665-1998 at Ancestry $
 * 1735-1970  at FamilySearch
 * 1760-1800 North Carolina Will Abstracts 1760-1800 at Ancestry $
 * 1760-1859 Images of Wills and Estates. North Carolina Pioneers $
 * 1760-1962  at FamilySearch
 * Pre-1790 Pre-1790 Johnston County, North Carolina Genealogy Wills (North Carolina State Archives)

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

 * 1779 Tax Lists, New Bern District, 1779 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2, at Ancestry $
 * 1779 Tax Lists, New Bern District, 1779 (images) at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1784 Tax Lists, Johnston County, 1784 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2, at Ancestry $
 * 1784 Tax Lists, Johnston County, 1784 (images) at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1809-1819, 1863 Tax Lists, 1809-1819, 1863 (images) at FamilySearch
 * 1815 Tax Lists, Johnston County, 1815 (images) at North Carolina Digital Collections

Vital Records

 * 1800-2000 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Birth

 * 1800-2000  at FamilySearch
 * 1850-1895 Johnston County Bastardy Bonds 1850-1895 at USGenWeb
 * 1866-1964  at FamilySearch
 * 1913-1922  at FamilySearch — index and images

Marriage

 * 1741-2004 North Carolina, United States Marriages at FindMyPast
 * 1741-2004 North Carolina Marriage Index 1741-2004 at Ancestry $
 * 1759-1979  at FamilySearch
 * 1762-1979  at FamilySearch
 * 1763-1868  at FamilySearch
 * 1764-1930 Johnston County Marriage Index 1764-1930 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch

Death

 * 1898-1994  at FamilySearch
 * 1906-1930  at FamilySearch
 * 1908-2004 North Carolina Death Indexes 1908-2004 at Ancestry $
 * 1909-1975 North Carolina Death Certificates 1909-1975 at Ancestry $
 * 1931-1994  at FamilySearch
 * Deaths at the Johnston County NCGenWeb site

Divorce

 * 1926-1975  at FamilySearch
 * 1958-2004 North Carolina Divorce Index 1958-2004 at Ancestry $

Archives

 * Johnston County Heritage Center 241 East Market Street Smithfield, NC 27577 919-934-2836 Collections

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to Family History Centers

Libraries

 * Johnston County Heritage Center 241 East Market Street Smithfield, NC 27577 919-934-2836 Website Facebook

Websites

 * NCGenWeb Johnston County
 * Johnston County Heritage Center
 * Johnston County, NCGenWeb Archives
 * – 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.