Crawford County, Pennsylvania Genealogy
Guide to Crawford County, Pennsylvania ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
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County Information[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
The county was named for Colonel William Crawford. The county is located in the northwest area of the state.[2]
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
Crawford County Courthouse
Judicial Center, 2nd Floor
359 E. Center St.
Meadville, PA 16335
Phone:814-333-7442
Fax: 814-333-7349
Prothonotary Phone: 814–333-7324 Email: earnett@co.crawford.pa.us
Orphans' Court Phone: 814-333-7442 Fax: 814-333-7349
Register of Wills and Recorder of Deeds
903 Diamond Park Square # 104, Meadville, PA 16335
Phone: 814-333-7324
Crawford County Website
County Clerk has birth, death, and burial records 1893-1905, marriage records from 1885, divorce records, probate, court, and land records from 1800[3]Register of Wills and Recorder of Deeds has land records, wills, and estate adminstration records from 1800. Office of the Prothonotary has divorce records form 1811 and litigation records from 1800.
Crawford County, Pennsylvania Record Dates[edit | edit source]
Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1893 | 1885 | 1893 | 1800 | 1800 | 1800 | 1790 |
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
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There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county. |
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
For animated maps illustrating Pennsylvania county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Pennsylvania County Boundary Maps" (1673-1878) may be viewed at the MapofUS.org website. |
Populated Places[edit | edit source]
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:[7]
| Cities | ||
| Boroughs | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Census-designated places | ||
| Townships | ||
History Timeline[edit | edit source]
Resources[edit | edit source]
Bible Records[edit | edit source]
Biographies[edit | edit source]
- Columbia County Biographies at Columbia County, Pennsylvania USGenWeb Archives
Business, Commerce, and Occupations[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
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Additional Cemetery Resources
- ca.1700-ca.1950 Pennsylvania Cemetery Records, ca. 1700-ca. 1950 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- Cemetery Abstracts at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images (incomplete)
- Crawford County, Pennsylvania Cemeteries - partial index
- LDS Genealogy
Census Records[edit | edit source]
Federal Census
- 1850-1880 Pennsylvania Mortality Schedules, 1850-1880 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1800 | 2,346 | — |
| 1810 | 6,178 | 163.3% |
| 1820 | 9,397 | 52.1% |
| 1830 | 16,030 | 70.6% |
| 1840 | 31,724 | 97.9% |
| 1850 | 37,849 | 19.3% |
| 1860 | 48,755 | 28.8% |
| 1870 | 63,832 | 30.9% |
| 1880 | 68,607 | 7.5% |
| 1890 | 65,324 | −4.8% |
| 1900 | 63,643 | −2.6% |
| 1910 | 61,565 | −3.3% |
| 1920 | 60,667 | −1.5% |
| 1930 | 62,980 | 3.8% |
| 1940 | 71,644 | 13.8% |
| 1950 | 78,948 | 10.2% |
| 1960 | 77,956 | −1.3% |
| 1970 | 81,342 | 4.3% |
| 1980 | 88,869 | 9.3% |
| 1990 | 86,169 | −3.0% |
| 2000 | 90,367 | 4.9% |
| 2010 | 88,765 | −1.8% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
Church Records[edit | edit source]
Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. For members, they may contain: age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage date and maiden name; death/burial date. For general information about Pennsylvania denominations, see Pennsylvania Church Records.
- 1620-1991 Pennsylvania, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Congregational Records, 1620-1991(*) at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
County-wide Database - Multi-denominational
- 1708-1985 Pennsylvania, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 at Historical Society of Pennsylvania – $, to members of the society; Also available at Ancestry $
Catholic
- "100 years of the Pittsburgh Catholic Diocese 1843 -1943". Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society Quarterly, 17:1. FamilySearch Library book 974.8 B2wg. Contains chronolgy, map, county-by-county information.
List of Churches and Church Parishes
Court Records[edit | edit source]
For information about records kept in the Orphan's court, Prothonotary Court, Court of Common Pleas, and other courts in counties of Pennsylvania, visit the Pennsylvania Court Records Wiki page.
Directories[edit | edit source]
Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]
For online resources, passenger lists, and specific groups coming to Pennsylvania, see Pennsylvania Emigration and Immigration.
- 1798-1828 Pennsylvania Landing Reports of Aliens, 1798-1828 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Alphabet index then by numbered entry
- 1900-1923 Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Case Files of Chinese Immigrants, 1900-1923 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; images only (by county)
- 1952-1957 Pennsylvania, Crew Lists arriving at Erie, 1952-1957 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups[edit | edit source]
For groups that came, see People section of the Pennsylvania Emigration page.
Funeral Homes[edit | edit source]
Genealogies[edit | edit source]
Guardianship[edit | edit source]
The Orphan's Court ensures the best interests of those not capable of handling their own affairs: minors, incapacitated persons, decedents' estates, and more.[8]
- 1814-1869 Orphans' Court dockets FHL Films 955824-27. Indexes are found at the beginning of each volume.
Land and Property Records[edit | edit source]
Land and property records can place an ancestor in a specific location and reveal family relationships. Records include: deeds, abstracts, indexes, mortgages, leases, grants, sheriff sales, land patents, maps and more. For more information, see Pennsylvania Land and Property.
Land records in Crawford County began in 1800. These records are filed with the Register and Recorder office in Meadville, Pennsylvania.
Online Land Records
- 1800 -1925 Deeds, 1800-1825; Index, 1800-1925. FHL film 857355 (first of 75 films) - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
- 1800 -1925 Mortgages, 1800-1828; Indexes, 1800-1925. FHL films 864206–864215 - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
- History of Crawford County, Pennsylvania. 1885. By Samuel P. Bates and Robert C. Brown. Chicago, Illinois : Warner, Beers. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive, Ancestry ($); At various libraries (WorldCat).
- Crawford County, Pennsylvania Publications
Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]
for more resources
Maps
- Maps of Crawford County, Pennsylvania - Includes maps of Pennsylvania, maps of Crawford County, and Sanborn Maps of Crawford County.
- Maps of Pennsylvania (1673-1878)
- Ancestor Tracks has posted downloadable images from the 1876 Historical Atlas of Crawford County, Pennsylvania published by J.C. McDowell. This atlas located in the files of the Pennsylvania State Archives in Harrisburg, PA, shows major landowners and geographic sites at the date of publishing. While the physical documents are in the public domain, the images we have taken of the maps belong to us and are not to be used commercially. We hereby give permission to use them strictly for personal use; please attribute to Ancestor Tracks.
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
Migration[edit | edit source]
Military Records[edit | edit source]
Civil War
- 1861-1865 Pennsylvania, Register of Military Volunteers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
- 1865-1936 Pennsylvania, Grand Army of the Republic Membership Records, 1865-1936 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
World War II
- 1933-1947 Pennsylvania, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, World War II Casualty Cards, 1933-1947 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
Miscellaneous[edit | edit source]
- Indexes to Miscellaneous Crawford County Record Collections at A Genealogical Tour of Crawford County, Pennsylvania
Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]
Naturalization records can contain information about immigration and nativity. Prior to 1906, it is rare to find the town of origin in naturalization records. For more information, see Pennsylvania Naturalization
- 1795-1931 Pennsylvania, Eastern District Petitions for Naturalization, 1795-1931 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1795-1952 Pennsylvania, Eastern District Naturalization Indexes, 1795-1952 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
- 1802-1906 Naturalization Dockets, v. 1-3 FHL film 1317176 items 2-4 - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
- 1820-1906 Index to Declarations and Petitions in the Western District of Pennsylvania, US Circuit and District Courts located in US Naturalization Records Indexes, 1794-1995 database on Ancestry $
- 1820-1930 Naturalization Petitions of the U.S. District Court, 1820-1930, and Circuit Court, 1820-1911, for the Western District of Pennsylvania on Fold3.com - ($), indexed, National Archives publication M1537, incomplete for all counties
- 1820-1930 Naturalization Petitions of the U.S. District Court, 1820-1930, and Circuit Court, 1820-1911, for the Western District of Pennsylvania located in Selected US Naturalization Records - Original Documents, 1790-1974 database on Ancestry $
- Naturalization Index FHL film 1317176 item 1 - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
Newspapers may contain obituaries, births, marriages, deaths, anniversaries, family gatherings, family travel, achievements, business notices, engagement information, and probate court proceedings. Newspapers are often found in local or university libraries, historical or genealogical societies, or state archives in the area where the newspaper was published. See Pennsylvania Newspapers for more information.
Newspapers of Crawford County
Online Newspapers
- Chronicling America, US Newspaper Directory
- Meadville Tribute
- Pennsylvania Newspaper Archive
- Pennsylvania Newspapers
Online Newspaper Abstracts
- PA-Roots Newspaper Articles for Crawford County.
Obituaries[edit | edit source]
Obituaries are generally found in local newspapers where the person died or where family members lived. Local libraries or societies may have indexes or other sources.
- 1947-2010 Pennsylvania Obituary and Marriage Collection, 1947-2010 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1977-2010 Pennsylvania Obituaries, 1977-2010 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
Online Obituary Abstracts
- PA-Roots Obituaries for Crawford County.
- USGenWeb Obituaries for Crawford County, Pennsylvania.
- Crawford County Obituaries at Crawford County, Pennsylvania USGenWeb Archives.
Other Records[edit | edit source]
Periodicals[edit | edit source]
Probate Records[edit | edit source]
Probate matters in Crawford County are handled by the Orphans' Court and start when the county was created.
In addition to wills and administrations, the Orphans' Court also handles: audits of accounts of executors, administrators, trustees, and guardians; distribution of estates; appointments of guardians; adoptions; appeals from the Register of Wills; inheritance tax appeals, and various petitions and motions.
- 1683-1994 Pennsylvania, Probate Records, 1683-1994 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; images only (by county)
Online Probate Index and Records
- 1683-1993 Pennsylvania Wills and Probate Records 1683-1993 at Ancestry $
- 1800-1970 Crawford County Probate Records at FamilySearch
- 1800-1889 Register's Dockets FHL film 864216 (first of 5 films) - Index included: 1800-1970; images only; click on the camera icon to view images
- 1813-1906 Will Books FHL film 864218 (first of 12 films) - images only; click on the camera icon to view images
School Records[edit | edit source]
Social Security Records[edit | edit source]
- 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index 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[edit | edit source]
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
Vital records are handled by the County Orphans' Court. Between the years 1852-1855 Pennsylvania made a failed attempt to record birth, marriage and death events at the county level. County marriage records were kept in earnest in 1885. Births and deaths, at the county level, were begun in 1893 and kept through 1905. For the most complete set of records, contact the County Orphans' Court.
Birth[edit | edit source]
Early births 1893–1905 are located at the County Orphans' Court. For more information, see Pennsylvania Vital Records.
- 1520-1999 Pennsylvania, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Births and Baptisms, 1520-1999 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1709-1950 Pennsylvania, Births and Christenings, 1709-1950 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
- 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Births Ancestry $
- 1941-1976 Pennsylvania Delayed Birth Records, 1941-1976 at FamilySerch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
Marriage[edit | edit source]
Pennsylvania marriages were created by county officials. Contact Crawford County Courthouse
- 1512-1989 Pennsylvania, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Marriage Records, 1512-1989 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1626-2016 Pennsylvania, United States Marriages at Findmypast$
- 1677-1950 Pennsylvania Civil Marriages, 1677-1950 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1682-1976 Pennsylvania, Church Marriages, 1682-1976 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1700-1821 Pennsylvania Marriage Records Ancestry $
- 1709-1940 Pennsylvania Marriages, 1709-1940 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
- Pre-1810 Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry $
- 1825-1865 Methodist circuit rider marriages including Crawford County in USGenWeb.
- 1852-1854 Crawford County Marriage Index 1852-1854 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch[9]
- 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Marriages Ancestry $
- 1885-1950 Pennsylvania County Marriage, 1885-1950 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1947-2010 Pennsylvania Obituary and Marriage Collection, 1947-2010 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
Death[edit | edit source]
Early deaths 1893–1905 are located at the County Orphans' Court. For indexes and records, 1906 and later, see Pennsylvania Vital Records.
- 1720-1999 Pennsylvania Deaths and Burials, 1720-1999 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index, some images
- 1852-1854 Pennsylvania Deaths Ancestry $
- 1856-1971 Pennsylvania, Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Deaths and Burials, 1856-1971 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1893-1905 Meadville, Crawford County, Death Index 1893-1905 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch
Divorce[edit | edit source]
Divorce records are available through the office of the Prothonotary.
Research Facilities[edit | edit source]
Archives[edit | edit source]
Listed below are archives in Crawford County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Pennsylvania Archives and Libraries.
National Archives at Philadelphia
14700 Townsend Road
Philadelphia, PA 19154-1096
Phone: 215-305-2044
Fax: 215-305-2052
Website
Family History Centers[edit | edit source]
Family History Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local Family History Centers or Affiliate Libraries
- Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
- FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a family history center.
Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries
- Franklin Pennsylvania Family History Center
- Meadville Pennsylvania Family History Center
- Monongahela Area Library - an affiliate library.
- New Castle Public Library - an affiliate library.
Libraries[edit | edit source]
Listed below are libraries in Crawford County. For state-wide library facilities, see Pennsylvania Archives and Libraries.
Museums[edit | edit source]
Cambridge Springs Historical Museum
26 Federal Street
Cambridge Springs, PA 16403
Phone: 814-398-1827
Facebook
Societies[edit | edit source]
Listed below are societies in Crawford County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Pennsylvania Societies.
Crawford County Historical Society
P.O. Box 411
Meadville, PA 16335
Phone: 814-724-6080
Website
Crawford County Genealogical Society
P.O. Box 514
Meadville, PA 16335-0514
Conneaut Valley Area Historical Society
1625 Main St.
P.O. Box 266
Conneautville, PA 16406
Phone: 814-587-3782
Website
Linesville Historical Society
120 Erie St
Linesville, PA 16424
Phone: 814-683-4299
Websites[edit | edit source]
- Crawford County PAGenWeb
- Crawford County PA Genealogy
- A Genealogical Tour of Crawford County, Pennsylvania
- FamilySearch Catalog – 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.
Research Guides[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Pennsylvania.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crawford_County,_Pennsylvania accessed 2/2/2017
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists : United States of America, 10th ed., (Draper, UT: Everton Publishers, 2002) Crawford County, Pennsylvania, p.589
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Pennsylvania.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Pennsylvania.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Pennsylvania.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Crawford County, Pennsylvania," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crawford_County,_Pennsylvania, accessed 17 January 2020.
- ↑ The Philadelphia Courts at Common Pleas accessed 10 July 2012
- ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/img_auth.php/2/23/Igipennsylvaniac.pdf.
