Chowan County, North Carolina Genealogy

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

Description
Chowan County is located in the Eastern portion of North Carolina and was originally called Shaftesbury Precinct of Albemarle County. It was renamed Chowan Precinct around 1681 for the Chowan River, itself named for the Chowanoac Indians who inhabited the region.

Chowan County, North Carolina Record Dates
Chowan County Courthouse 101 S Broad St Edenton, Nc 27932 Phone: 252-482-3062 Register of Deeds has marriage and land records Clerk Superior Court has probate and court records  Register of Deeds PO Box 487 Edenton, NC 27932 Telephone: 252-482-2619 Fax: 252-482-3062 Website  Clerk of Superior Court PO Box 588 Edenton, NC 27932 Telephone: (252) 368-5000

History
Chowan was formed in 1670 as a precinct in Albemarle County. It was named in honor of the Indian tribe Chowan, which lived in the northeastern part of the Colony. It is in the northeastern section of the State and is bounded by Albemarle Sound, Chowan River, and Bertie, Hertford, Gates and Perquimans counties. The present land area is 172.64 square miles and the 2000 population was 14,150. In 1720, Edenton, which was named in honor of Governor Charles Eden, was established. In 1722 it was designated and has continued to be the county seat.

(fromNCpedia)

Parent County
1670--Chowan County was created in 1670 from Shaftesbury Precinct of Albemarle County. County seat: Edenton

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating North Carolina county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation North Carolina County Boundary Maps" (1664-1965) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Record Loss
1848-- Many court records said to have been destroyed by acting clerk of court.

Neighboring Counties

 * Bertie
 * Gates
 * Hertford
 * Perquimans
 * Washington

Bibles

 * Bush Family Bible
 * Noah White Bible

Biographies

 * Chowan Co., NC Index to Biographies
 * Biography of James Iredell, Sr.

Business Directories &amp; Year Books

 * 1872 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * 1903 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * 1904 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * 1905 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * 1910 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * 1911 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * 1912 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * 1913 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * 1914 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * 1915 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * 1916 Chowan Co., NC Business Directory
 * Index to Chowan Co., NC Year Books

Cemeteries

 * Chowan Co., NC Cemetery Survey
 * at FamilySearch — index and images

Census

 * 1787 Census for Chowan Co., NC
 * 1790 Census for Chowan Co., NC
 * Free Men Heads of Household for 1790, 1800, &amp; 1820

Baptist

 * Ballard's Bridge. Established 1781.
 * Yoppim River. Established by 1775.

Church of England

 * Chowan Parish, aka St. Paul's Church, Edenton, N.C. Established 1701. Current church built 1737-1774. Hathaway's history (1900) is online.
 * East Parish.
 * Northeast Parish.
 * South Parish. Established 1722.
 * Southwest Parish. Established by 1721.

Online records:


 * St. Paul's Episcopal Church
 * St Paul's Episcopal Church Minutes - 1756

Vestry minutes have been published twice:


 * Cain, Robert J., ed. The Church of England in North Carolina: Documents, 1699-1741. Raleigh, N.C.: Division of Archives and History, North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, 1999. . See Appendix.
 * Fouts, Raymond Parker. The Vestry Minutes of St. Paul's Parish, Chowan County, North Carolina, 1701-1776. Second Edition. Cocoa, Fla., 1998. 1983 edition:.

County Records

 * 1833-1970 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Court

 * Status of Courthouses in North Carolina

Ethnic

 * Harriett Jacobs, fugitive slave
 * North Carolina Indian Tribes
 * The Carolina Algonkians

Genealogy

 * de Clugny Coddington, John Insley. "The Marquis de Clugny at Edenton, North Carolina, 1795-1798," The American Genealogist, Vol. 42, No. 3 (Jul. 1966):144-148..
 * Jones Jones, L.H. Captain Roger Jones of London and Virginia, Some of His Antecedents and Descendants: With Appreciative Notice of Other Families, viz.: Bathurst, Belford, Browning, Carter, Catesby, Cocke, Graham, Fauntleroy, Hickman, Hoskins, Latanes, Lewis, Meriwether, Skelton, Walker, Waring, Woodford, and Others: Notes. Albany, N.Y.: J. Munsell's Sons, 1891. ; digital version at ; Google Books; Internet Archive.
 * Mansfield - Dail, Louise Jordan and Doris Jordan McGue. Mansfields of Chowan and Perquimans Counties, North Carolina: and Allied Lines of Caruthers, Floyd and Williams. 2004..

History

 * Early Names, Boundaries &amp; Religion
 * The Signers of the Resolution of the Edenton Tea Party
 * History of North Carolina's Parishes

Maps

 * NC State Map with clickable counties
 * Chowan Co., NC Township Map
 * Formation of NC in Maps
 * 1730 Herman Moll Map
 * Edward Mosley Map
 * 1744 Map of Lord Carteret's Land Grant
 * 1775 Henry Mouzon, Jr. Map
 * 1808 Price-Strothers Map
 * Civil War Maps
 * 1895 NC State Map
 * 1936 Chowan Co., NC Map
 * Animated Atlas

Revolutionary War

 * 1779 - 1782 - at FamilySearch — index and images

War of 1812

 * 1812 NC Muster Rolls

Civil War
Online Records
 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch.org — index and images
 * 1861 - 1865 - at FamilySearch.org — index and images
 * 1861 - 1865 - U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1861 - 1865 - U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
 * 1885 - 1953 - at FamilySearch — index and images


 * -1st Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, usually known as the Bethel Regiment.
 * -1st Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
 * -11th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
 * - 11th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, Company F
 * - 1st Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, Company A
 * - 3rd Battalion, North Carolina Light Artillery, Company B
 * - Third Battalion NC Light Artillery; Company B from Chowan Co., NC

Civil War Battle
The following Civil War battle was fought in Chowan County:


 * May 5, 1864 = Albemarle Sound


 * Map showing Civil War battles in North Carolina.

World War I

 * 1907 - 1933 - Veterans Administration Pension Payment Cards 1907-1933
 * 1917 - 1919 - at FamilySearch — index and images

World War II

 * WWII Honor List of Dead or Missing from Chowan Co., NC
 * 1940 - 1948 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers

 * Chronicling America (Chowan Co., NC)
 * North Carolina Newspaper Digitization Project, North Carolina State Archives. Search full text historical newspapers published in Edenton.
 * UNC Southern Historical Collection

Organizations

 * Chowan Co., NC Official Government Website
 * Edenton Tea Party Chapter of the DAR

Probate Records
Online Probate Records


 * 1660 - 1790 - North Carolina Will Abstracts 1660-1790 at Ancestry.com — index and images $]
 * 1663 - 1979 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1665 - 1998 - North Carolina Wills and Probate Records 1665-1998 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1735 - 1970 - at FamilySearch.org — images
 * 1760 - 1800 - North Carolina Will Abstracts 1760-1800 at Ancestry.com — index and images
 * Pre - 1790 - Pre-1790 Wills stored at the North Carolina State Archives are online - free. Website tips.


 * 1694 - 1928 - have been digitized by FamilySearch - free.

Taxation

 * 1717-1770 - Barrett, David and Janet Searles Barrett. Chowan County North Carolina Tythables and Taxables 1717-1770: A Compilation of 121 Tax Lists and Records (Elizabeth City, North Carolina: Family Research Society of Northeastern North Carolina, 2010); FHL Book 975.6147 R4b 1717-1770.
 * 1717 - Chowan County, North Carolina 1717 Tax List (transcript) online at Singleton Descendants of Colonial North Carolina
 * 1717 - Tax Lists, Chowan County, 1717 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2, online at Ancestry ($)
 * 1721 - Tax Lists, Chowan County, 1721 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2, online at Ancestry ($)
 * 1753 - Tax Lists, Chowan County, 1753 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2, online at Ancestry ($)
 * 1772-1779 - Barrett, David and Janet Searles Barrett. Chowan County North Carolina Tythables and Taxables 1772-1779 (Elizabeth City, North Carolina: Family Research Society of Northeastern North Carolina, 2010); FHL Book 975.6147 R4b 1772-1779.
 * 1782-1826 - Barrett, David and Janet Searles Barrett. Chowan County North Carolina Tythables and Taxables 1782-1826 (Elizabeth City, North Carolina: Family Research Society of Northeastern North Carolina, 2010); FHL Book 975.6147 R4b 1772-1779.
 * 1785 - Tax Lists, Chowan County, 1785 (index) in NC Taxpayers vol. 2, online at Ancestry ($)
 * 1785 - Tax Lists, Chowan County, 1785 (images) online at North Carolina Digital Collections
 * 1788 - Chowan County Taxables 1788 (transcript) online at FamilySearch
 * 1800 - Chowan County Taxables 1800 (transcript) online at FamilySearch
 * 1815 - Tax Lists, Chowan County, 1815 (images) online at North Carolina Digital Collections

Birth

 * 1800 - 2000 - at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1866 - 1964 - at FamilySearch.org — index

Death

 * 1898 - 1994 - at FamilySearch.org — index and images
 * 1906 - 1930 - at FamilySearch.org — index and images
 * 1908 - 2004 - North Carolina Death Indexes 1908-2004 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1909 - 1975 - North Carolina Death Certificates 1909-1975 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1931 - 1994 - at FamilySearch.org — index

Divorce

 * 1926 - 1975 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1958 - 2004 - North Carolina Divorce Index 1958-2004 at Ancestry.com — index $

Marriage

 * 1741 - 2004 - North Carolina, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 1741 - 1800 - "Marriage Bonds," The North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register, Vol. 1, No. 2 (Apr. 1900):235-255. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.
 * 1801 - 1825 - "Abstract of Marriage Bonds of Chowan County," The North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register, Vol. 1, No. 3 (Jul. 1900):392-414. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.
 * 1826 - 1838 - "Abstract of Marriage Bonds of Chowan County," The North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register, Vol. 1, No. 4 (Oct. 1900):558-567. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.
 * 1851 - 1958 - Chowan County Marriage Index 1851-1958 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1742 - 1868 - Chowan County Marriage Bonds 1742-1868, available to members North Carolina Pioneers $
 * Pre - 1799 - North Carolina Marriages to 1799, a database, available to members. North Carolina Pioneers $
 * 1741 - 2004 - North Carolina Marriage Index 1741-2004 at Ancestry.com — index $
 * 1759 - 1979 - at FamilySearch.org — index
 * 1762 - 1979 - at FamilySearch — index and images
 * 1763 - 1868 - at FamilySearch — index and images

Wills &amp; Estates

 * Chowan Co., NC Wills &amp; Estates

Societies and Libraries
Family Research Society of Northeastern NC P.O. Box 1425 Elizabeth City, NC 27906-1425 website


 * Family Research Society of Eastern North Carolina
 * Eastern NC Digital Library for Chowan Co., NC

Family history Centers

 * Edenton North Carolina Family History Center

Websites

 * Chowan County, NC History, Records, Facts and Genealogy (Genealogy Inc)
 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * Treasures of North Carolina at the NC Archives
 * North Carolina Pioneers North Carolina Pioneers$
 * North Carolina Pioneers North Carolina Pioneers$