Imperial County, California Genealogy

United States

California

Imperial County

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

California Online Genealogy Records

Imperial County, California
Map
Location in the state of California, United States Genealogy
Location of California in the U.S.
Facts
Founded	April 17, 1907
County Seat	El Centro
Courthouse
Address	Imperial County Courthouse 940 W Main St; El Centro, CA 92243 Phone 760.482.4220 Imperial County Website

County Information

Imperial County, California Record Dates

Known Beginning Dates for Major Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1907	1907	1907	1907	1851	1907	1850
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1905. General compliance by 1920.

County Courthouse

County Clerk has marriage, divorce, probate and court records from 1907
County Recorder has birth, marriage and death records from 1907

Historical Facts

Parent County

6 August 1907: Imperial County was created from San Diego County. County seat: El Centro

Description

The county was named from Imperial Valley. The Imperial Valley got it's name from the Imperial Land Company, a subsidiary of the California Development Company, which at the turn of the 20th century had reclaimed the southern portion of the Colorado desert for agriculture. The County Seat is El Centro and was founded 1907. It is located in the Southeast area of the state.

Boundary Changes

For animated maps illustrating California county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation California County Boundary Maps" (1850-1925) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Records Loss

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Places/Localities

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:

Cities
Brawley Calexico Calipatria	El Centro Holtville	Imperial Westmorland
Towns
Unincorporated communities
Acolita Alamorio Amos Andrade Araz Junction Bard Bertram Bonds Corner Boulder Park Cactus Citrus View Clyde Coolidge Springs Coyote Wells Curlew Date City Dixieland Dunes Edgar Elmore Desert Ranch	Estelle Felicity Fondo Frink Fuller Glamis Hovley Imperial Gables Iris Kane Spring Meloland Mesquite Moss Mount Signal Mundo Munyon No Mirage Obregon Ogilby Orita	Paymaster Landing Perrys Corner Picacho Plaster City Pope Rico Rockwood Ross Corner Ruthven Sandia Slab City Tortuga Truckhaven Verdant Watermans Corner Wiest Wilsie Wister
Native American communities
Fort Yuma Indian Reservation	Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians
Census-designated places
Bombay Beach Desert Shores Heber Niland	Ocotillo Palo Verde Salton Sea Beach	Salton City Seeley Winterhaven

Neighboring Counties

• La Paz County, Arizona
• Riverside
• San Diego
• Yuma County, Arizona

Resources

Biography

• Imperial County Biographies (Genealogy Trails)
• Index to Biographies (USGenWeb Archives)

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Imperial, California online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find A Grave BillionGraves USGW Tombstone Transcription Project Interment.net
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	WorldCat.org
List of Cemeteries in the County	Find A Grave BillionGraves FamilySearch Places
See California Cemeteries for more information

Census

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1910	12,591	—
1920	43,453	245.1%
1930	60,903	40.2%
1940	55,740	−8.5%
1950	61,175	9.8%
1960	71,105	16.2%
1970	74,492	4.8%
1980	93,110	25.0%
1990	109,303	17.4%
2000	143,361	31.2%
2010	174,528	21.7%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

Church History and Records

Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. For general information about California denominations, view the California Church Records wiki page.

• 1864-1985 California, Church Records, 1864-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index

List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places
  

Emigration and Immigration

• 1907-1956 California, passenger and crew lists at various ports, 1907-1956 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Gazetteers

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

History

• County History (Genealogy Trails)
• Index to Imperial County History Records (USGenWeb Archives)

Land and Property

Online Land Indexes and Records

• 1851-1907 Grantor and grantee indexes to deeds, 1851-1907(*); Imperial County, California Recorder at FamilySearch Library Catalog — images
• Index to Federal Land Patents - Imperial County (USGenWeb Archives)

Maps

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of California (1850-1925)
• FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Migration

• 1906-1935 California, Pioneer Migration Index, Compiled 1906-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index

Military History and Records

World War I

• 1914-1918 California, Geographical and Name Index of Californians who served in WWI, 1914-1918 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

World War II

• Index to World War II Army Enlistees, Imperial County, California (USGenWeb Archives)
• WW II Honor List of Dead and Missing, Imperial County, California (Genealogy Trails)

Korean War

• Korean War Casualties, Imperial County, California (Genealogy Trails)

Vietnam War

• Vietnam War Casualties, Imperial County, California (Genealogy Trails)

Newspapers

• 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
• California Digital Newspaper Collection at UCR Center for Bibliographical Studies and Research

Obituaries

• Index to Imperial County Obituaries (USGenWeb Archives)
• Obituary Index, Imperial County, California (Genealogy Trails)

Probate Records

Online Probate Indexes and Records

• 1782 – 1999 California Wills and Probate Records 1782-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
• 1833 – 1991 California Probate Estate Files 1833-1991 at FamilySearch — images

Family History Centers

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

• El Centro California Family History Center
• Escondido California Stake Family History Center
• Poway California Family History Center
• San Diego California East Stake Family History Center
• Vista California Family History Center
• Yuma Arizona Family History Center

• Escondido Public Library - Pioneer Room - an affiliate library

Vital Records

Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. See the CDC Where to Write website for information on acquiring copies of these records. The State office has records since July 1905. For earlier records, contact the County Recorder. See also How to order California Vital Records

Birth

• 1812 - 1988 California Births and Christenings, 1812-1988 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1905 - 1995 California Birth Index, 1905-1995 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at: MyHeritage($)

• 1905 - 1910 - Imperial County Birth Index (Genealogy Trails)
• Imperial County Birth Notices (Genealogy Trails)

Marriage

• 1800 - 2007 California, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index $
• 1850 - 1945 California Marriages, 1850-1945 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection index
• 1850 - 1952 California, County Marriages, 1850-1952 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images. Also at: MyHeritage($)
• 1854 - 1885 Western States Marriage Index.
• 1960 - 1985 California Marriage Index, 1960-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images. Also at: MyHeritage($)
• Imperial County Marriage Notices (Genealogy Trails)

Divorce

• 1966 - 1984 California Divorce Index, 1966-1984 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index

Death

• 1776 - 2000 California Deaths and Burials, 1776-2000 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index, some images
• 1905 - 1939 California Death Index, 1905-1939 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1940 - 1997 California Death Index, 1940-1997 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at: MyHeritage($)

Voting Registers

• 1866-1898 California, U.S., Voter Registers, 1866-1898 at Ancestry.com - index ($)
• 1866-1910 California, Great Registers, 1866-1910 at MyHeritage - index, ($)

Genealogy Societies, Archives and Libraries

Pioneers Museum and Cultural Center of the Imperial Valley
373 East Aten Road
Imperial, Ca. 92251
website

• List of California Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical & Genealogical Societies

Websites

• Imperial County, CA History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
• California Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
• Imperial County CAGenWeb
• Linkpendium
• USGenWeb Archives
• Imperial County, California Genealogy Trails
• Imperial County CA Genealogy (ldsgenealogy.com)
• FamilySearch Catalog

Due to contractual agreements, some images and/or databases on FamilySearch.org may only be viewed at a Family History Center or FamilySearch Affiliate Library.

This website requires a paid subscription for full access.

FamilySearch affiliate libraries may have access to center-only databases, but do not always have all services normally provided by a family history center.