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Greater New York City Research

United States New York  Greater New York City Research

Research in New York City is quite different from the rest of New York State. New York State laws apply to many of the records of value to genealogists, but the keeping of those records differ. It is essential to be familiar with the jurisdictional history of New York City in order to find the records of interest.

JURISDICTIONS

New York City today consists of five boroughs, which were all created in 1898:

• Manhattan • Brooklyn • Bronx • Queens • Staten Island

Each of these boroughs corresponds to an existing “county” as follows:

• Manhattan = New York County • Brooklyn = Kings County • Bronx = Bronx County • Queens = Queens County • Staten Island = Richmond County

The best guide to the development of modern New York City is Harry Macy, Jr., F.A.S.G., F.G.B.S, “Before the Five-Borough City: The Old Cities, Towns and Villages That Came Together to Form ‘Greater New York,’" The NYG&amp;B Newsletter 9(1998): 3-6. This article includes maps that explain the complex origins of modern New York City.

[Select “Research Aid Articles” from The NYGB Newsletter and The New York Researcher are available to members of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society on the Society’s Website http://www.nygbs.org/public-researchtool. Many of these articles have been updated since their original publication in the paper newsletter.]

An updated version of Harry Macy’s article on New York City Vital Records available at the NYGBS library, originally published in The NYGB Newsletter, 9(1998): 31-33, is also available to members of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society on the Society’s Website http://www.nygbs.org/public-researchtool. While it deals with records at the NYGBS, it gives useful background information on the location of pre-1898 vital records for each of the Boroughs.

The counties and boroughs that make up Greater New York City are responsible for different sorts of records. The counties of Greater New York City are responsible for the same sorts of records as counties in the rest of the state – land, probate, and court records.

The following table gives a brief overview of which jurisdiction maintained which records:

An updated version of Harry Macy’s article on New York City Vital Records available at the NYGBS library, originally published in The NYGB Newsletter, 9(1998): 31-33, is also available to members of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society on the Society’s Website http://www.nygbs.org/public-researchtool. While it deals with records at the NYGBS, it gives useful background information on the location of pre-1898 vital records for each of the Boroughs.

COUNTIES

The counties of New York City are responsible for the same sorts of records as counties in the rest of the state – land, probate, and court records. Except for a brief period (1908-1935 for marriages only) counties have not been responsible for the recording of vital records.

BOROUGHS

The boroughs of New York City are responsible for the keeping of vital records. An updated version of Harry Macy’s article on New York City Vital Records available at the NYGBS library, originally published in The NYGB Newsletter, 9(1998): 31-33, is also available to members of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society on the Society’s Website http://www.nygbs.org/public-researchtool. While it deals with records at the NYGBS, it gives useful background information on the location of pre-1898 vital records for each of the Boroughs.

Probate Chart and links
The post-1830 probate petitions are most often found in "Probate Packets" at the surrogate's court in each county, filed with other loose estate papers, such as inventories, accounts, etc. Because such "loose papers" were filed with estates prior to 1830, some packets include records from the beginning of the Surrogate Court system in 1787 or even earlier.

The Family History Library in Salt Lake City has probate petitions and /or probate packets from 29 of New York's 62 counties. The following table show the years covered and how these records are referenced in the Family History Library Catalog. (FHLC):