Beaverhead County, Montana Genealogy

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

Description
Beaverhead County, in the southwestern corner of the state. It was named for the rock which Sacajawea pointed out to Lewis and Clark.

County Courthouse
Beaverhead County Courthouse S Pacific Cluster 3 Dillon, MT 59725 Phone: 406.683.2642 Beaverhead County Website County Clerk has birth records from 1902, death records from 1901 and land records from 1864. Clerk District Court has divorce, probate and court records.

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

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:

Territory and State Censuses

 * 1860 - at FamilySearch Historical Records - How to Use this Collection;  index and images; Montana was included in the 1860 Washington and Nebraska Territory Censuses
 * 1870 - at FamilySearch Historical Records - How to Use this Collection; index and images; Montana Territory Census
 * 1880 - at FamilySearch Historical Records  - How to Use this Collection;  index and images; Montana Territory Census

Church Records
Online Church Records Lutheran Church
 * 1875-1940 - U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Records, 1875-1940 at Ancestry — ($); Index and images; Dates vary for each county

Other Church Records The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Ward and Branch Records List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Dillon
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1870-1957 (*); County Recorder at FamilySearch Catalog — index and images

Directories

 * 1909-1910 (*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images

Land and Property Records
Online Land Records
 * Land Patent Search - index to federal patents and homesteads on the Bureau of Land Management website, some images available
 * 1796 - 1907 - U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907 at Ancestry - ($), index, info taken from Bureau of Land Management website
 * 1863 - 1908 - U.S. Homestead Records 1863-1908 at Ancestry.com - ($), index and images
 * 1863 - 1982 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Index and images; various land and property records from 1863-1982

Local Histories
Online County Histories
 * More History of Beaverhead County, Montana : volume 2, 1800-1997. c1997. By Beaverhead County Museum Association. Dillon, Montana: Beaverhead County Museum Association. Online at:  Montana Memory Project;.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places
 * interactive map of Beaverhead County cemeteries and modern-day townships. (Histopolis)
 * Interactive Formation Boundary Map of Montana - shows boundary changes for Montana Counties
 * Historical Maps and Atlases of Montana - maps and atlases of Montana

Online Collections
These collections are unique to Montana. You will find nationwide databases for military records on U.S. Military Online Genealogy Records and Montana Military Records. Civil War World War I World War II For further information see Montana Military Records.
 * 1890 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection;index
 * 1890 - 1918 Montana Military Enlistments at Montana Memory Project
 * 1904 - 1918 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1917 - 1918 at FamilySearch  - How to Use this Collection; Index and images
 * Soldiers of the Great War from the State of Montana at USGenWeb.
 * Military Enlistments Montana World War I at Montana Memory Project
 * WWII Army and Army Air Force Casualties for Montana - Index only

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1791-1992 - U.S. Naturalization Record Indexes, 1791-1992 at Ancestry($), index only
 * 1856-1944 - Montana Naturalization Records, 1856-1979 – Browseable images only; County records for Beaverhead County have various naturalization records from 1856-1944.
 * 1868-1999 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection;  index and images
 * 1870-1999 - Montana, Federal Naturalization Records, 1870-1999 at Ancestry($), index only

Newspapers
 Montana Newspapers Online
 * Chronicling America - contains images of some Montana newspapers; searching tips
 * Elephind - Free; search engine that retrieves newspaper images from other free newspaper websites
 * GenealogyBank - ($), contains images of Montana newspapers
 * Montana Newspapers by the Montana Historical Society
 * Newspaper Archive - ($), contains images of Montana newspapers

Montana Newspaper Catalogs
 * U.S. Newspaper Directory, 1690-Present on Chronicling America - contains a list of all known newspapers and the dates they cover; once you locate a newspaper name, contact the local library to see if they have copies of the newspaper

Obituaries

 * Obituary Daily Times -(Ancestry) large obituary index from newspapers across the United States.

See also United States Obituaries for more about finding United States obituaries.

Voter Records

 * 1911 - 1944 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection;  Index and images; various voter records from 1911-1944

Probate Records

 * 1831 – 1952 Montana Wills and Probate Records 1831-1952 at Ancestry.com — index and 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.

Birth

 * 1840 - 2004 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1840 - 2004 Montana, County Births and Deaths, 1840 - 2004 at Ancestry ($) — index
 * 1862 - 2009 Beaverhead County, Montana, U.S., County Records, 1862-2009 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
 * 1897 - 1919 Montana, U.S., Birth Records, 1897-1988 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
 * 1901 - 1930 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection;  Index and images; various birth records from 1901-1930

Marriage

 * 1800-1994 - Montana, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 1862 - 2009 Beaverhead County, Montana, U.S., County Records, 1862-2009 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
 * 1865 - 1950 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection;  index and images
 * 1865 - 1950 Montana, County Marriages, 1865 - 1950 at Ancestry ($) — index
 * 1889 - 1947 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1889 - 1947 Montana Select Marriages 1889 - 1947 at Ancestry ($) — index
 * 1943 - 1988 Montana, U.S., Marriage Records, 1943-1988 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
 * Western States Marriage Index - Index, incomplete, list of counties included

Death

 * 1840 - 2004 at  FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection;  index and images
 * 1840 - 2004 Montana, County Births and Deaths, 1840 - 2004 at Ancestry ($) index
 * 1860 - 2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1862 - 2009 Beaverhead County, Montana, U.S., County Records, 1862-2009 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
 * 1868 - 2011 Montana, Death Index, 1868 - 2011 at Ancestry ($) — index
 * pre 1954 - 2002 Montana State Death Registry Index Pre 1954 & 1954 - 2002 at Montana State Genealogical Society — index
 * 1954 - 2011 Montana Death Records at findmypast ($) — index
 * 1901 - 2009 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection;  Index and images; various death records from 1901-2009
 * 1907-2016 Montana, State Deaths, 1907-2016 at Ancestry.com ($) — index and images

Divorce

 * 1943-1988 Montana, U.S., Divorce Records, 1943-1988 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)

Family History Centers

 * Dillon Montana Family History Center
 * Lima Montana Family History Center

Museums
Beaverhead County Museum 15 S. Montana St. Dillon, MT 59725 406-683-5027 Email: [mailto:askarchives@autaugahistory.org bvhdmuseum@hotmail.com] Website

Societies
Beaver Head Hunters Genealogical Society P.O. Box 8 Melrose, MT 59743 Website

History of Glendale, Montana Glendale, MT 59743 Facebook

Websites

 * Beaverhead County Archives at Montana USGenWeb Archives - free online data for genealogical research
 * Beaverhead County at Cyndi's List — a comprehensive, categorized & cross-referenced list of links that point you to genealogical research sites online
 * Beaverhead County at Genealogy Trails — volunteer transcriptions of genealogical and historical data
 * Beaverhead County at Montana USGenWeb - free online resources for genealogical research
 * Beaverhead County, Montana at Linkpendium - genealogy and family history
 * Beaverhead County, Montana Genealogy at LDSGenealogy.com - collection of links by state, county, city, and record type
 * 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.