Franklin County, Missouri Genealogy

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

Description
The County was named for Benjamin Franklin. The County is located in the east central area of the state.

County Courthouse
Franklin County Courthouse Courthouse Square PO Box 311 Union, MO 63084-0311 Phone: 314-583-6355 Franklin County Website County Clerk has birth records 1883-1892 and death records 1883-1887. Recorder of Deeds has marriage and land records. Clerk of the Circuit Court has divorce records. Probate Judge has probate records.

Populated Places
For a complete list of populated places in Franklin County, MO, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTownLocator. The State Historical Society of Missouri has information on historical Missouri place names for all 114 Missouri Counties. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

Biographies

 * Family Biographies from The History of Franklin County, Missouri (1888) published by Goodspeed are available free on the My Genealogy Hound website.

Cemeteries

 * Missouri Cemeteries Missouri Genealogy Cemeteries

Census Records
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 * 1732-1933 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * 1920 Franklin County, Missouri Census, 1920 at Ancestry ($)

Church Records
List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1800-1991 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection

Land and Property Records

 * Franklin County Recorder of Deeds

Local Histories

 * Historical review of Franklin County, Missouri, 1818-1968. 1968. By Melvin B. Roblee. Moore Enterprises Inc. Online at: FamilySearch
 * History of Franklin, Jefferson, Washington, Crawford & Gasconade Counties, Missouri. 1888. Chicago: The Goodspeed Publishing Co. Online at: FamilySearch; and at Missouri Digital History
 * History of Missouri's Counties, County Seats, and Courthouse Squares. 1983. by Marian M. Ohman. Missouri: Missouri State Library. Online at: Missouri Digital History
 * One Hundred Years for God and Country : St. John's, the Church and the Community, 1839-1940. 1940. By George John Hildner. Washington, Mo.: Printed by the Washington Missourian. Online at FamilySearch
 * Sesquicentennial 150 Years Young, 1818-1968. 1968. Pacific, Mo.: Pacific Press. Online at FamilySearch
 * State of Missouri: an autobiography. 1904. By Walter Williams. Columbia, Mo: Press of E. W. Stephens. Online at: Missouri Digital History
 * Two invaluable sources of early Franklin County history are Goodspeed and Kiel histories. "Goodspeed" is an 1888 history published by Goodspeed Publishing Company of Chicago, Illinois, correctly called "History of Missouri, Franklin, Jefferson, Washington, Crawford, &amp; Gasconade Counties. The "Kiel" history, correctly referred to as "The Centennial Biographical Directory of Franklin County, Missouri" compiled and published by Herman Gottlieb Kiel", 1925, is basically a book of lists, but the lists are a great tool for the researcher.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Maps of Missouri (1804-1889)
 * Interactive map of Franklin County townships (Histopolis)
 * Missouri As It Is In 1867. 1867. by Nathan II. Parker. Philadelpia: J. B. Lippincott & Co. Online at: Missouri Digital History
 * The University of Missouri Digital Library has digital copies of Missouri county plat books (ca. 1930) for all Missouri counties including Franklin County. The city of St. Louis is not included in this collection.
 * Map of 1904 Franklin County with numerous small settlements (My Genealogy Hound)
 * Standard Atlas of Franklin County, Missouri at Missouri Digital Heritage
 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * 1900-1941 at FamilySearch — images - How to Use this Collection

Civil War
Online Records
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1911-1938  at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection

Regiments

Service men in Franklin County, Missouri served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in Franklin County, Missouri:

World War II

 * 1940-1945 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * 1941-1946  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1800-1991 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1750-1988 at FamilySearch — images - How to Use this Collection


 * 1766-1988 Missouri Wills and Probate Records 1766-1988 at Ancestry — 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

 * Pre-1910 Missouri Birth and Death Records Database, Pre-1910 at Missouri Digital Heritage - index.
 * 1817-1939 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1827-1935  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1842-1875 Franklin County Birth Index 1842-1875. Batch at FamilySearch.
 * 1848-1863 Franklin County Birth Index 1848-1863. Batch at FamilySearch
 * 1851-1910 Missouri Birth Records, 1851-1910 at Ancestry — index/images ($)
 * 1920-2015 Reclaim the Records: Missouri Birth Index at Archive.org - images of index

Marriage

 * 1750-1920  at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1776-1988 Missouri, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 1800-1991  at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * 1805-2002 Missouri, Marriage Records, 1805-2002 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1819-1875 Franklin County Marriage Index 1819-1875. Batch at FamilySearch
 * 1850 Missouri Marriages to 1850 at Ancestry — index ($)
 * 1864-1881 Franklin County Marriage Books C and D Index 1864-1881. Batch at FamilySearch
 * 1881-1890 Franklin County Marriage Books E and F Index 1881-1890. Batch at FamilySearch
 * Brian Oster Missouri Marriage Records Site Missouri Marriage Records
 * The marriage records of Franklin County, Missouri at Ancestry ($)
 * Franklin County Recorder of Deeds Marriage Search

Death

 * 1834-1910 Missouri, Death Records, 1834-1910 at Ancestry — index/images ($)
 * 1867-1976 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
 * 1883-1930 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
 * 1910-1960 Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969 at Missouri Digital Heritage - index and images.
 * Missouri State Archives provides on-line access to Missouri Death Certificates more than 50 yrs old starting in 1910.
 * 1968-2015 Reclaim the Records: Missouri Death Index at Archive.org - images of index

Family History Centers

 * Washington Missouri Family History Center

Libraries

 * List of Missouri Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical &amp; Genealogical Societies
 * Genealogical Friends Of The Library 507 W. Hickory Neosho, MO 64828 Website (Largely for Newton County, but links to general genealogical websites are also available here)

Societies

 * Four Rivers Genealogical Society P.O. Box 146 Washington, MO 63090
 * Franklin County Historical Society P.O. Box 293 15 North Oak Street Union, MO 63084-0293 Phone: 636-583-3247

Websites

 * Missouri Digital Heritage. Free. digital images of many types of records from institutions across the State
 * MOGenWeb. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or complete transcriptions
 * USGenWeb Archives. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or may be complete transcriptions
 * . Free. - 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
 * RootsWeb resources. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or may be complete transcriptions
 * Linkpendium. Free. Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)
 * CyndisList. Free. Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)
 * StateofUS. Free. family history resources and government records
 * Missouri Genealogy. Free. Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)