Gallatin County, Montana Genealogy

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

Description
Gallatin was named after the Gallatin River. It is located in the southwest area of the state.

County Courthouse
Gallatin County Courthouse 311 W Main Street Bozeman, MT 59715-4576 Phone: 406.582.3050 Gallatin County Website County Clerk Recorder has birth and death records from 1890, land records from 1865 and military discharge records from 1900 Clerk District Court has marriage, divorce, probate and court records from 1865

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

Federal Census Records
Federal Censuses were taken for the state of Montana starting in 1890, although no records survived. The 1900 Census is the next Federal Census available. For links to Federal Census indexes, see Montana Census.

Church Records
Online Church Records Lutheran Church Dutch Reformed Church Presbyterian Church
 * 1875-1940 - U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Records, 1875-1940 at Ancestry — ($); Index and images; Dates vary for each county
 * 1918 - U.S., Dutch Christian Reformed Church Membership Records, 1856-1970 at Ancestry — ($); Index and images; First Christian Reformed Church of Manhattan, 1918; Some information may be in Dutch
 * 1901-1914 - U.S., Presbyterian Records, 1701-1970 at Ancestry — ($); Index and images; Presbyterian Church of Central Park, Baptisms, Births, Deaths, Marriages, 1901-1914

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

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Bozeman
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1870-1872 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images of all book pages
 * 1915-1920 (*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images of all book pages

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

Local Histories

 * Early History of Gallatin County. c1933. By E. Lina Houston. Bozeman, Montana : E.L. Houston..

Online County Histories
 * Bozeman and the Bozeman Trail. c1964. By Burton S.Hill. [Wyoming] : Wyoming State Historical Society. Online at FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive;.
 * Gallatin County's Heritage : A Report of Progress, 1805-1976. c2009. By Gallatin County Bicentennial Committee and Merrill G.Burlingame. Salt Lake City, Utah : Digitized by the Genealogical Society of Utah. Online at FamilySearch Digital Library.
 * Photo History of Livingston-Bozeman Coal Country : Cokedale, Timberline, Chestnut, Storrs, Hoffman, Maxey Lived on Coal. c1976[?]. By Bill and Doris Whithorn. Pray, Mont : Wan-I-Gan. Online at FamilySearch Digital Library;.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places
 * See an interactive map of Gallatin 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.
 * 1917-1918 Military Enlistments Montana World War I at Montana Memory Project
 * 1917-1918 World War I veterans of Gallatin County. 3 vols.
 * 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($), index only
 * 1868-1999 - at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection;  index and images
 * 1870-1999 - Montana, Federal Naturalization Records, 1870-1999 at Ancestry($), 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 including Butte and Helena newspapers that may include residents of Gallatin County. This database is sometimes free at libraries.

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
 * 1906 - 1944 Belgrade Journal - full-text of more than 400 issues spanning 1906-1944 freely available online at Google Newspaper Archive.

Obituaries

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

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

Probate Records
''Online 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

Marriage

 * 1800 - 1994 - Montana, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
 * 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
 * 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 ($) — index
 * 1860 - 2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1868 - 2011 Montana, Death Index, 1868 - 2011 at Ancestry ($) — 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

Family History Centers

 * Bozeman Montana Family History Center
 * Dillon Montana Family History Center
 * Livingston Montana Family History Center
 * Sheridan Montana Family History Center
 * Three Forks Montana Family History Center
 * West Yellowstone Montana Family History Center

Libraries
Bozeman Public Library 626 E Main Street Bozeman, Montana 59715 406-582-2400 Website Facebook

Museums
Gallatin History Museum 317 W Main St Bozeman, MT 59715 406-522-8122 Email: [mailto:media@gallatinhistorymuseum.org media@gallatinhistorymuseum.org] Website Facebook

Societies
Gallatin County Genealogical Society PO Box 1783 Bozeman 59771-1783 Email: [mailto:montanagcgs@gmail.com montanagcgs@gmail.com] Website Facebook

Gallatin County Historical Society and Gallatin History Museum 317 West Main Bozeman, MT 59715 406-522-8122 Email: [mailto:media@gallatinhistorymuseum.org media@gallatinhistorymuseum.org] Website Facebook

Websites

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