Cowlitz County, Washington Genealogy

United States Washington  Cowlitz County, Washington   Guide to  genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records, since 1861, when the county was formed.

Parent County(s)
Parent County: created 21 April 1854 from Lewis

County Seat: Kelso. For Courthouse, see Archives, libraries, etc.

Boundary Changes

 * Historical County Boundaries from Newberry Library

Neighboring Counties
is surrounded by: Clark | Lewis | Skamania | Wahkiakum | Columbia County, Oregon

Topics
Below are resources used for family history and genealogy, with dates, value of records, and how to access them for. Internet links may contain names, images, or more information for the county.

Cemeteries

 * Alpha list of cemeteries in the county with links to online transcripts.


 * Whittle and Hubbard Cemetery, Castle Rock BillionGraves

Census

 * See Washington Census for online indexes and images of US federal censuses. of: 1856, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, and 1940.
 * See statewide printed indexes, including 1856.
 * Check county indexes when online indexes fail. Created by people who knew the families of the area, they are often more accurate and they may have added insights. See periodicals and local libraries or other record holders.


 * 1890 Veterans
 * 1900
 * 1910
 * 1920
 * 1930
 * 1940

Church Records

 * Church records (microfilmed originals or published transcripts) for are listed in the . (Press space bar to select town.)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
LDS Ward and Branch Records


 * Kelso

Lutheran

 * Records of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Castle Rock, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

Court Records

 * 1876-1951 Part of: County Records, 1876-1951 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

Many of your ancestors may be found in court records as defendants, plaintiffs, witnesses, or jurors. Court records can establish family relationships and places of residence, occupations, and other family history information. See Washington Court Records for the various courts through the years.

For specialized court records, see Divorce · Guardianship · Land · Naturalization · Probate


 * Inventory of the county archives of Washington, no. 8. Cowlitz County (Kelso) (If the link does not work, go to ancestry.com ($), click Search, select Card Catalog, paste Title into search box, click Search)

Japanese

 * World War II Files, 1942-1946. Public Welfare/Social Security Department, (Japanese Internment) Assistance Cases, Evacuee Referrals for Resettlement and Assistance, 1945-1946 from the Washington State Archives – Digital Archives.

Guardianship
Guardianship of orphans or adults unable to manage their own affairs were handled by the probate and the Federal District courts. See Washington Court Records.

History Timeline
Historical County Boundaries from Newberry Library Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were gleaned from Wilma, David. Cowlitz County -- Thumbnail History, History Link.org Essay 7482.


 * The original inhabitants of the lands drained by the Cowlitz River were variously called The, Cow-a-lidsk, Cowalitsk, Cow-e-lis-kee, Cowelits, Cowlitch, Co-litsick, Kawelitsk, Cowalitsk, Kowlitz, Kowlitz.
 * The first Europeans to visit the county were British seafarers.
 * 1825 - Permanent settlers arrived from the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) at Fort Vancouver.
 * 1828 - The first white man credited with ascending the Cowlitz River was HBC Factor George Simpson.
 * The Cowlitz became an important artery for trappers and for communication with Fort Vancouver subposts at Cowlitz Farms and Nisqually Farms.
 * 1847 - December - 25 - The first American to settle in the future Cowlitz County was Scotsman Peter W. Crawford (1822-1889), who took a on the left bank of the Cowlitz near the mouth of the Coweeman.
 * 1854 - April - 21 - The Washington Territorial Legislature formed Cowlitz County.

Land and Property

 * County Recorder's Office: check deeds, file mining claims, get assistance in finding ownership of a particular property, and obtain copies of county plat maps. This office has county plat records dating back to 1878, prior records having been destroyed in a fire.
 * Recorded Land Records 1986-2012 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)
 * Recorded Agreements and Contracts 1986 - 2012 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)

Military

 * World War II (1941–1945) army enlistments at the county GenWeb site has about 400 entries, mostly from Cowlitz and other counties. Key (at end of the list) explains codes and columns. Gives year and state of birth. Free.
 * Recorded Military Records at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)

Naturalization and Citizenship

 * 1850-1979 Part of:"County Naturalization Records, 1850-1982" FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)
 * Naturalization Records, 1856-1980 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)

Declarations of Intent before 1906 often include the nation of origin, his* foreign and "Americanized" names, residence, and date of arrival. See Washington Naturalization and Citizenship for more information. (*Women were not naturalized until 1922 in the United States.)


 * Washington State Digital Archives has digitized various types of naturalization-related records, including declarations of intentions, delayed birth files, naturalization affidavits, notifications of application for admission to US citizenship, orders fixing naturalization terms, petitions and records, petitions, receipts for certificates of citizenship, record of final decrees of citizenship and record of petitions dockets. Depending on the county, records range from 1854-1988.

Newspapers

 * Newspapers (Sortable by towns, years, and titles)

Obituaries
Also check:


 * Newspapers of
 * Local Funeral Homes, Libraries, or family records.
 * Obituaries of neighboring counties

Postmaster Indexes

 * Prior to 1965 Part of: County Records, Prior to 1965 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

Probate Records

 * County Probate Case Files, 1832-1950 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

Birth

 * Birth Register, 1891-1907 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection.(Free)

Marriage

 * Marriages from 9 Nov 1854 to 18 Sep 1887 are available on the Western States Marriage Index website
 * Marriage Records, 1986-2012 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection (Free)

Divorce
Divorce records give the names of the parties and may give the date and place of their marriage. See Washington Vital Records for excellent information.


 * 1872 Part of County Divorce Records, 1852-1950 FamilySearch Historical Collections (free)

Death

 * Washington Death Certificates 1907-1960 A free internet index to the 1907-1960 death certificates can be found at FamilySearch Record Search, no images are available. A transcribed death certificate may contain such information as name of the deceased, date and place of death, age, gender, birth date and birth place, mother’s maiden name and name of spouse, place of residence, occupation and certificate numbers.
 * Death Returns 1898-1907 at Washington State Digital Archives Collection. (Free)

Websites
Sites with online indexes or images of records:


 * Cowlitz WAGenWeb Project
 * USGenWeb Project for Cowlitz
 * Current Collections at Washington State Digital Archives (Free) Type county name, click Search, then select a collection. Collections were posted to the appropriate headings for this Wiki page in November, 2013.
 * Historical Collections at FamilySearch.org. (Free) Click "Last Updated." Collections through October 2013 have been posted to the appropriate headings for this Wiki page.

Sites that search the Internet for records online:


 * Web Sites at RootsWeb - Cowlitz WA (Free)
 * Linkpendium (free)
 * CyndisList (free)

Major catalogs to offline genealogical records: Catalogs refer to books, microfilm, manuscripts, and/or Internet images and indexes for various topics.


 * for (Select topics. Add comma to select towns.)
 * WorldCat To find libraries near you that have items of interest, see WorldCat Online Catalog.
 * Allen County Public Library (Indiana)
 * See also local libraries and Washington Archives and Libraries

Archives, Libraries, etc.
Resources for are available in libraries, archives, and other repositories at all levels: the town, the county, the state (including universities), and the nation.


 * Check websites and catalogs, such as items in (Utah) or Allen County Public Library (Indiana) for.

Courthouse
Cowlitz County Courthouse 207 4th Ave North Kelso, WA 98626-1798 Phone 360.577.3016 County Auditor has marriage record from 1867, death record 1891-1907 and land records. County Clerk has divorce, probate and court records from 1874, naturalization and adoption records from 1869.


 * Inventory of the county archives of Washington, no. 8. Cowlitz County (Kelso) (If the link does not work, go to ancestry.com  ($), click Search, select Card Catalog, paste Title into search box, click Search)

Family History Centers

 * Longview Washington Family History Center

Libraries

 * Castle Rock Public Library, 137 Cowlitz St W., Castle Rock 98611 Phone: (360) 274-6961


 * Online Resources: (None found Oct. 2013)


 * Unique Collections:


 * Kalama Public Library, 312 N 1st, Kalama 98625 Phone: (360) 673-4568


 * Online Resources: American Ancestry Records, Family History Records and Vital Records


 * Unique Collections:


 * Kelso Public Library, 314 Academy St., Kelso 98626 Phone: (360) 423-8110


 * Online Resources: (None found October 2013)


 * Unique Collections:


 * Longview Public Library, 1600 Louisiana Street, Longview 98632 Phone: (360) 442-5300


 * Online Resources: Lower Columbia Genealogical Society


 * Unique Collections:


 * Woodland Community Library, 770 Park Street, Woodland 98674 Phone: (360) 225-2115


 * Online Resources: Ancestry Library, Heritage Quest and others.


 * Unique Collections:

Towns and Communities
See a list of towns and communities in Cowlitz County per Wikipedia.