Washington County, North Carolina Genealogy

Guide to Washington County, North Carolina ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.

Description
The county was named for George Washington. Washington County was formed in 1799 from the western third of Tyrrell County. It is located in the Northeast corner of the state.

County Courthouse
Washington County Courthouse 120 Adams Street Plymouth, NC 27962 Phone: 252-793-2325 Washington County Website Register of Deeds has birth and death records from 1913, marriage records from 1851 and land records from 1799. Clerk of Superior Court has divorce records from 1871, probate and court records from 1873.

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:

Bible Records

 * Bible Records at North Carolina Digital Archives - index and image
 * (*); at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * Washington County, NC Bibles at USGenWeb Archives
 * Washington County NCGenWeb, Family Bible Records at NCGenWeb

Cemeteries

 * at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images Also at: Ancestry ($)

Church Records

 * 1700-1970 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Baptist
 * Morattuck. Established by 1785. Minutes (1798-1956) are available on microfilm at the University of NC Davis Library, see online finding aid

Church of England List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * Skinners Chapel aka Rehoboth Church. Established about 1735. Now a United Methodist Church.
 * FamilySearch Places

Court Records

 * 1815-1932 (*); Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1822-1883 (*); Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1870-1941 (*); Clerk of the Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1873-1921 (*); Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1873-1964 (*); Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1885-1921 (*); Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

 * 1862-1870   at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1863-1872   at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; images only

Funeral Homes

 * Bryan Funeral Service in Plymouth.
 * Maitland Funeral Homes in Creswell and Plymouth.
 * Paradise House of Funerals, Inc. in Plymouth.
 * Toodle's Funeral Home in Plymouth.

Land and Property Records
Online Land Indexes and Records
 * North Carolina Land Grants at NC Historical Records Online - index, requires free account to view images

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records
Revolutionary War 
 * 1778-1833 Delamar Transcripts of Revolutionary War Petitions at North Carolina Genealogical Society - index ($)
 * 1779-1782  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Civil War 
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1861-1865  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry
 * 1861-1865 U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry
 * 1885-1953  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1885 and 1901 1885 and 1901 Confederate Pension Applications at North Carolina Digital Collections - index and images


 * - 1st Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
 * - 17th Regiment, North Carolina Infantry (1st Organization), Company H
 * - 1st Regiment, North Carolina Artillery 10th Regiment Volunteers-1st Artillery, Company K
 * - 1st Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, Company G
 * - 41st Regiment Volunteers - 3rd Cavalry, Company K

Civil War Battles  The following Civil War battles were fought in Washington County:
 * April 17-20, 1864 - Plymouth.
 * May 5, 1864 - Albemarle Sound.
 * Battles of the American Civil War maps - filter by state or by battle name.

World War I 
 * 1914-1918 World War I Papers at North Carolina Digital Collections - index and images
 * 1917-1919  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

World War II 
 * 1939-1945 World Ward II Papers at North Carolina Digital Collections - index and images
 * 1940-1948  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Newspapers
The Roanoake Beacon is the primary newspaper for Washington County.


 * Abstracts from Roanoke Beacon Newspaper Plymouth, Washington County, N.C. Located at the Haas/Davenport Homepage. Covers the year 1889.
 * Roanoke Beacon Index. Ongoing project to index back issues of the paper. Covers late 1880s to early 1900s.
 * 1880s Marriages reported in the Roanoke Beacon Newspaper - late 1880s - list of names in news reports of marriages. NCGenWeb
 * Washington County Deaths/Obits. Resources on locating death &amp; obituary records for Washington County residents. There are numerous records available for a wide range of time periods. (NCGenWeb)
 * North Carolina Newspapers at DigitalNC
 * More newspapers (NCGenWeb)

Other Records
Voter Registration
 * 1868-1898 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1660-1790 North Carolina Will Abstracts 1660-1790 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1663-1789 Secretary of State Wills at North Carolina Digital Collections - index and images
 * 1663-1978 (*); Clerk of the Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
 * 1663-1979  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1665-1998 North Carolina Wills and Probate Records 1665-1998 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1720-1960 at FamilySearch.org - How to Use this Collection; images only (by County)
 * 1735-1970  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; images only (by County)
 * 1760-1800 North Carolina Will Abstracts 1760-1800 at Ancestry ($)
 * 1795-1959 (*); Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1872-1967 (*); Clerk of the Superior Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
 * 1872-1967  at FamilySearch.org - How to Use this Collection; images only (by County)
 * 1873-1936 Wills - images at North Carolina Pioneers ($)
 * 1873-1944 (*); Register of Deeds at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images

School Records
Yearbooks 
 * Washington County students at NC colleges. Yearbook Index. (NCGenWeb)

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.

Tax Records

 * 1815 Tax Lists, Washington County, 1815 (images) at North Carolina Digital Collections

Vital Records

 * 1800-2000 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * Uncertified copies of vital records can be ordered from the Washington County Register of Deeds for a low fee.

Birth

 * 1800-2000  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1866-1964  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
 * 1913-1922  at FamilySearch — index and images

Marriage

 * 1741-2004 North Carolina, United States Marriages at Findmypast
 * 1741-2004 North Carolina Marriage Index 1741-2004 at Ancestry $
 * 1759-1979  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Index
 * 1762-1979  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1763-1868  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1851-1920 Marriage Licenses of Washington County, North Carolina 1851-1920. According to the information on the site no marriage licenses exist for Washington County until the year 1880. The source of all marriage records prior to that year is marriage registers. There are two marriage registers, one of several volumes that contains marriages from 1851 to the present. There is also a marriage register that records acknowledgements of Freedmen's marriages from 1866 to 1868 and "a record of colored marriages" from 8 March, 1867 to 6 June 1872. The Freedmen's Register records slave marriages legalized after the Civil War between 1866 and 1868. Some of these marriages occurred 40 years before the Civil War. The record tells how long each couple has cohabited.Can be searched by name of either male or female.
 * 1851-1967 Washington County Marriage Index 1851-1967 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch

Death

 * 1898-1994  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1906-1930  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images  Also at:  MyHeritage ($)
 * 1908-2004 North Carolina Death Indexes 1908-2004 at Ancestry $
 * 1909-1975 North Carolina Death Certificates 1909-1975 at Ancestry $
 * 1931-1994  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Divorce

 * 1926-1975  at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1958-2004 North Carolina Divorce Index 1958-2004 at Ancestry $

FamilySearch Centers

 * Edenton North Carolina FamilySearch Center
 * Greenville North Carolina FamilySearch Center
 * Nags Head North Carolina FamilySearch Center

Libraries
Pettigrew Regional Library System 201 E Third St Plymouth, NC 27962 Phone: 252-793-2113 Email: [mailto:washington@pettigrewlibraries.org washington@pettigrewlibraries.org] Facebook Website
 * Pettigrew Regional Library System handles information and library needs of several counties in the area, including Washington.

Societies
Washington County Historical Society 302 E Water St PO Box 296 Plymouth, NC 27962-0296 Phone: 252-793-1377 Email: [mailto:admin@portoplymouthmuseum.org admin@portoplymouthmuseum.org] Facebook Website Website

Websites

 * NCGenWeb project - variety of information relevant to Washington County.
 * – 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.