Sullivan County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

United States Pennsylvania Sullivan County

Historical Facts

 * Parent Counties: Formed from Lycoming County 15 March 1847.
 * County Seat: Laporte
 * Neighboring Counties: residents may also have records in Bradford (north)  •  Columbia (south)  •  Luzerne (southeast)  • Lycoming (west)  •  Wyoming (east)

Named for Senator Charles Sullivan, leader of the Pennsylvania Senate.

Cemeteries
Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.

Church Records


The Sullivan County Historical Society and Museum has listed in their resources, Compilings, Churches - individually. They may have the church records for your ancestors. You may visit them or use their volunteers for a fee. There email address is museum@scpahistory .com.

Additional church records can be located atLinkpendium and by searching the Family History Library Catalog. The FHLC has a plethora offor Sullivan County, many are limited in the time frame they cover. When searching the FHL catalog, be sure to also search at the town and township level.

Orphan's Court (see Vital Records)
The Orphan's Court is responsible for probates, marriages, adoptions and other legal civil matters. The Prothonotary is the Clerk of Orphan's Court. If you need information, you will need to visit or write their office.

Prothonotary
Prothonotary, Recorder, Register of Wills, Clerk of Courts and Clerk of Orphans Court Sullivan County Courthouse 245 Muncy Street Laporte, PA 18626 Phone: 570-946-7351 Fax: 570-946-7105 In Sullivan County, the Prothonotary office is responsible for all the duties in the court system, including the Orphan's Court.

District Court
District Court Magisterial District Judge 245 Muncy Street, Suite 150 P.O. Box 259 Laporte, PA 18626 Phone: 570-946-4413 Fax: 570-946-4436

The District Court is presided over by a Magisterial District Judge. The judge has responsible for non-jury trials and civil cases involving amounts under $12,000. Also, they perform marriages.

Published Histories
History of Sullivan County, Pennsylvania: compendium of biography. by Thomas J. Ingham. Salem, MS: Higgison, [1998]

Land and Property
Land records in Sullivan County began in 1847. These records are filed with the Register of Deeds office in Laporte, Pennsylvania.

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts, indexes, mortgages, leases, grants, sheriff sales, land patents, and maps. Property records include liens as well as livestock brands and estray records.

The following are examples of available resources:

Online Land Records


 * 1847 - present Images are available on-line from 1847 to the present using the Landex system. There is a fee to view the images.

Land Records on Microfilm


 * 1847-1876 Deeds, 1847-1866; Index, 1847-1876.
 * 1848–1931 Orphans Court Dockets, 1848-1879; Index, 1848-1931.

Additional Resources

Note that the "Maps" section below also includes maps related to land ownership.

See Pennsylvania Land and Property for more information about using land records, especially about original land warrants, surveys, and patents filed at the state land office.

Additional resources can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Sullivan County Pennsylvania Land in online catalogs such as:


 * Historical Society of Pennsylvania
 * WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog.)
 * (For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search.)

Maps
Ancestor Tracks has posted free downloadable images from the Topographical Map of Sullivan Co. Pennsylvania from Recent and Actual Surveys and Records under the Superintendence of F.W. Beers (A. Pomeroy &amp; Co., New York, 1872). This wall map located in the Library of Congress shows major landowners and geographic sites at the date of publishing. While the physical maps are in the public domain, the images we have taken of the maps belong to us and are not be used commercially. We hereby give permission to use them strictly for personal use; please attribute to Ancestor Tracks.

A historical map of displaying township boundaries and names of early settlers is available online in County Historical Maps of Pennsylvania at  - free. Counties arranged alphabetically.

Courthouse
Sullivan County Courthouse 245 Muncy Street PO Box 157 Laporte, PA 18626 Phone: 570-946-7351 Fax: 570-946-7105

Hours: 8:30 a. m. to 4:00 p. m.

In Sullivan County, the prothonotary is responsible for five different offices. They are Prothonotary, Recorder, Register of Wills, Clerk of Courts, and Clerk of Orphan's Court.

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers

Museums
Sullivan County Historical Society and Museum 458 Meylert St&lt;Laporte, PA 18626 Phone: 570-946-5020 museum@scpahistory.com


 * Hours: May 31–September 1 — Thursday–Saturdays 1:00 p.m to 5:00 p.m.
 * Rest of Year: By Appointment (please call)
 * The Museum has an extensive collection of genealogies as well as historical records and documents. There is a large listing of maps online that are available at the museum.
 * The obituary listing is from 1800 to 1999 and online. Then you can order the obituaries for $5.00 each.

Societies
Rich in history, Sullivan County contains a few societies dealing with the history of the area.

Sullivan County Historical Society and Museum 458 Meylert St Laporte, PA 18626 Phone: 570-946-5020 museum@scpahistory.com


 * Hours: May 31–September 1 — Thursday–Saturdays 1:00 p.m to 5:00 p.m.
 * Rest of Year: By Appointment (please call)
 * The Society holdings are housed at the museum.

Birth

 * 1726-1930 - - free index. Not complete for all years.

Marriage
Sullivan County Courthouse 245 Muncy Street LaPorte, PA 18626 Phone: 570-946-7351

Divorce
Divorce records are handled by the office of the Prothonotary. While no on-line indexes or records are available, records may be obtained by visiting or writing to the Prothonotary at:

Sullivan County Prothonotary 245 Muncy Street Laporte, PA 18626 Hours of Operation: 8:30AM-4PM EST Phone: 570-946-7351

Web Sites

 * USGenWeb project. Sullivan County May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.