Clay County, Alabama Genealogy

United States   Alabama    |Clay County

Guide to Clay County Alabama ancestry, family history, and genealogy research page. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

County Courthouse
Probate Court has land records from 1861 Probate records from 1865 marriage records from 1872 County Court has death records 1920-1940 and Voting Register 1903-1936

History


The county is named after U.S. Speaker of the House Henry Clay (1777-1852).

Parent County
1866--Clay County was created 7 December 1866 from Randolph and Talladega Counties. County seat: Ashland

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Alabama county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Alabama County Boundary Maps" (1799-1980) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Record Loss
Clay County had a destructive courthouse fire in 1875.

For a list of record loss in Alabama counties see: Alabama Counties with Burned Courthouses

Neighboring Counties

 * Cleburne
 * Coosa
 * Randolph
 * Talladega
 * Tallapoosa

Biography

 * Clay County Biographies at The USGenWeb Archives Project - free.

Maps

 * Maps of Alabama (1799-1980)

Probate Records

 * 1830-1976 - Probate Records, 1830-1976 at  - free.

Vital Records
See also How to order Alabama Vital Records

Marriage

 * To 1825 Index to Marriages at Ancestry– ($); Index. contains over 12,000 names. Each entry includes groom, bride, marriage date, county, and state. Every name is indexed so you can search for one name, or two names that are linked.


 * 1872-1948 - Clay County Marriage Books A thru I Index 1872-1948 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.


 * 1872–1886, 1888–1892, 1936–1969 Alabama, Marriage Collection, 1800–1969 at Ancestry– ($); Index. This collection is comprised of indexes created by several agencies - the Alabama Center for Health Statistics, Jordan Dodd of Liahona Research, and Hunting For Bears.


 * 1872–1891 "Alabama Marriages, 1809–1920"at Ancestry– ($); Index. This database is a collection of marriage records from the state. Researchers will find the names of both bride and groom along with the marriage date. The county where the ceremony was performed is also provided. Containing about 150,000 records and the names of nearly 300,000 men and women.


 * Clay County Marriages at ALGenWeb - free

Death

 * 1881–1974 Index to Deaths and Burials at Ancestry– ($); Index. Volunteers extracted the details in this index from microfilmed copies of church, civil, family, and other records of Alabama deaths and burials. details vary depending on the original record. Note that the number of available records can vary widely by county, and this database does not necessarily represent a comprehensive set of death records for the state during this time.


 * 1908–1959 Index to Deaths recorded by the state of Alabama at Ancestry– ($); Index. The index includes name of the deceased, county of death, date of death, and the state certificate number (volume and page).


 * 1908-1974 - FamilySearch Historical Records Collection - free


 * 1920-1938 - Clay County Death Index 1920-1938. Batch at FamilySearch - free.


 * 1922 - Clay County Death Index 1922. Batch at FamilySearch - free.

Voting Registers
Alabama Voting Registers for 1867 are available online at the Alabama Department of Archives and History. Clay County has one book.

Societies and Libraries

 * List of Alabama Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical & Genealogical Societies

Libraries
Public Library of Anniston - Calhoun County 108 E. 10th St. Anniston, Alabama 36201 Telephone: 256-237-8501


 * Their Alabama Room collections include local history and genealogical records of Clay County.

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers

Web Sites

 * Clay County, AL History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
 * USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * USGenWeb Archives Project ~ contains record transcriptions from Bibles, obituaries, court records and more.
 * Clay County ALGenWeb~ record transcriptions and information pertinent to the county.
 * Clay County, Alabama Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
 * Clay County, Alabama Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)