Ocean County, New Jersey Genealogy
Guide to Ocean County, New Jersey ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.
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County Information[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
Ocean County is located in the east central region of the state. It was created in 1850. Toms River is the county seat. The county was named for the Atlantic Ocean, which forms the eastern border of New Jersey.[1]
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
Ocean County Courthouse
118 Washington Street
Toms River, NJ 08754
Phone: 732-504-0700
Ocean County Website
County Clerk has probate and court records from 1850. [2]
Ocean County, New Jersey Record Dates[edit | edit source]
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1901 | 1850 | 1901 | 1850 | 1850 | 1850 | 1830 |
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
|
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county. |
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
|
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:[6]
| Boroughs | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Census-designated places | ||
| Townships | ||
| Ghost towns | ||
History Timeline[edit | edit source]
- 1857, boundary with Burlington County clarified.
- 1869, part of Plumsted twp. to Monmouth County.
- 1891, received Little Egg Harbor twp. from Burlington County.
- 1906, coastal boundary defined.
- 1928, part of Howell twp. from Monmouth County.
Resources[edit | edit source]
Bible Records[edit | edit source]
Biographies[edit | edit source]
Business, Commerce, and Occupations[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
Census Records[edit | edit source]
For tips on accessing census records online, see: New Jersey Census.
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1850 | 10,032 | — |
| 1860 | 11,176 | 11.4% |
| 1870 | 13,628 | 21.9% |
| 1880 | 14,455 | 6.1% |
| 1890 | 15,974 | 10.5% |
| 1900 | 19,747 | 23.6% |
| 1910 | 21,318 | 8.0% |
| 1920 | 22,155 | 3.9% |
| 1930 | 33,069 | 49.3% |
| 1940 | 37,706 | 14.0% |
| 1950 | 56,622 | 50.2% |
| 1960 | 108,241 | 91.2% |
| 1970 | 208,470 | 92.6% |
| 1980 | 346,038 | 66.0% |
| 1990 | 433,203 | 25.2% |
| 2000 | 510,916 | 17.9% |
| 2010 | 576,567 | 12.8% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
- 1855 New Jersey State Census, 1855 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1865 New Jersey State Census, 1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1895 New Jersey State Census, 1895 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1915 New Jersey State Census, 1915 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
Church Records[edit | edit source]
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 denominations, view the New Jersey Church Records wiki page.
- 1675-1970 New Jersey, Church Records, 1675-1970 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1708-1985 Pennsylvania, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 at Historical Society of Pennsylvania – ($), free to members of the society; Also available at Ancestry.com – $; 7,542,774 entries. This database is incomplete for all counties.
- Contains the church records of:
- Barnegat City: St. Peter's Chapel
- Beach Haven: Holy Innocents Church
- Beachwood: St. Paul Lutheran Church
- Tuckerton: First Presbyterian Church
- Contains the church records of:
List of Churches and Church Parishes
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
Court Records[edit | edit source]
Directories[edit | edit source]
Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]
Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups[edit | edit source]
Funeral Homes[edit | edit source]
Genealogies[edit | edit source]
Guardianship[edit | edit source]
Land and Property Records[edit | edit source]
Land and property records can place an ancestor in a specific location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.
See New Jersey Land and Property for information about New Jersey Proprietary land records. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse.
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
Your relatives may be included in biographies, in church, school and government history, or in military events and lists. For more information, see New Jersey History and scroll to Local Histories.
- New Jersey Indexes at EveryNameIndex.com — Select the county.
Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]
for more resources
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
Migration[edit | edit source]
Military Records[edit | edit source]
Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
- 1796-1991 New Jersey Naturalization Records, 1796-1991 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Ocean County, New Jersey Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:
- WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
- Do a Ocean County, New Jersey Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Places Search).
Obituaries[edit | edit source]
Other Records[edit | edit source]
Periodicals[edit | edit source]
Probate Records[edit | edit source]
From 1797 or the creation of the county, probate records were held by the Court of Common Pleas and may have earlier records. In 1852, most of those records were transferred to the Ocean County Probate Court. For more complete information and for online and other resources, see New Jersey Probate Records.
Online Probate Indexes and Records
- 1582-1932 Island, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1582-1932 at Ancestry ($)
- 1656-1999 New Jersey Wills and Probate Records 1656-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
- 1670-1760 Calendar of New Jersey Wills 1670-1760 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
- 1670-1817 New Jersey Abstract of Wills 1670-1817 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
- 1678-1980 New Jersey Probate Records, 1678-1980 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images only; Use the Surrogate's Docket Index 1700-1972 to obtain the Docket Number for the name. Then, use the Docket Number to locate the correct Estate file.
School Records[edit | edit source]
Social Security Records[edit | edit source]
- 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index at FamilySearch — How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
- 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
Tax Records[edit | edit source]
New Jersey tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses before 1820 or to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned taxable property were listed, many residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information see the wiki page New Jersey Taxation.
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. United States Vital Records has additional research guidance on researching and using vital records. A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the New Jersey Vital Records State Department of Health or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred. Original marriage records are usually held at the county Bureau of Vital Statistics.
Birth[edit | edit source]
- 1600-1990 New Jersey Vital Records, Historical Society of Pennsylvania at Findmypast — index & images, ($)
- 1660-1980 New Jersey Births and Christenings, 1660-1980 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; Also at: Ancestry Index ($)
- 1746-1795 New Jersey Baptisms 1746-1795 at Findmypast — index, ($)
- 1901-1903 New Jersey, Reclaim the Records, New Jersey Birth Index, 1901-1903 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
Marriage[edit | edit source]
- 1600s-1900s US Marriages, New Jersey at Findmypast — index, ($)
- 1670-1965 New Jersey Marriage Records, 1670-1965 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
- 1670-1980 New Jersey Marriages, 1670-1980 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1678-1985 New Jersey Marriages, 1678-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1683-1802 New Jersey Marriage Records, 1683-1802 at Ancestry — index & images, ($)
- 1684-1895 New Jersey Compiled Marriage Records, 1684-1895 at Ancestry — index, ($)
- 1901-1914 New Jersey Marriage License Index, 1901-1914 at MyHeritage — index, ($)
- 1901-2016 New Jersey Marriage Index, 1901-2016 at Ancestry — index, ($);
- 1901-2016 New Jersey Marriage Index, 1901-2016 at Findmypast - Browse index ($)
- 1915-2016 New Jersey Marriage License Index, 1915-2016 at MyHeritage — index, ($)
- For a complete list of all New Jersey Marriage databases
Death[edit | edit source]
- 1600-1990 New Jersey Vital Records, Historical Society of Pennsylvania at Findmypast — index & images, ($)
- 1798-1971 New Jersey Deaths and Burials Index, 1798-1971 at Ancestry — index, ($)
- 1848-1878 Death Records, May 1848 - May 1878 at New Jersey State Archives - index, $ for photocopies
- 1878-1900 Death Records, June 1878 - December 1900 at New Jersey Department of State — index, $ for photocopies
- 1901-1929 New Jersey Death Index, 1901-1903; 1916-1929 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
- 1901-2017 The New Jersey Death Index at New Jersey Death Index — index; Also at: Ancestry index ($)
- 1920-2017 New Jersey Death Index, 1920-1929, 1949-2017 at MyHeritage — index, ($)
- For a complete list of all New Jersey Death databases
Divorce[edit | edit source]
Research Facilities[edit | edit source]
Archives[edit | edit source]
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
- Cherry Hill New Jersey Family History Center
- Eatontown New Jersey Family History Center
- Toms River New Jersey Family History Center
- Vineland New Jersey Family History Center
- Gloucester County Historical Society - an affiliate library
- Haddon Heights Public Library - an affiliate library
- Monmouth County Library - Allentown - an affiliate library
- Monmouth County Library - Howell - an affiliate library
- Monmouth County Library - Oceanport - an affiliate library
- Monmouth County Library - West Long Branch - an affiliate library
Libraries[edit | edit source]
Museums[edit | edit source]
Societies[edit | edit source]
Ocean County Historical Society Museum
26 Hadley Ave
PO Box 2191
Toms River, NJ 08753
Telephone: 732-341-1880
Website
Historical Society Of Ocean Grove
53 Central Avenue
Ocean Grove NJ
Facebook
Websites[edit | edit source]
- The Ocean County NJGenWeb Project, a member of The NJGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
- Ocean County NJ Genealogy
- 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]
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Ocean County, New Jersey" in Wikipedia : the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_County,_New_Jersey accessed 23 September 2018.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Ocean County, New Jersey page 465, At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Ocean County, New Jersey . Page 464-465 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 460.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), 181. [FHL book 973 D27e 2002].
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002).At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Ocean County, New Jersey," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia,https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_County,_New_Jersey#Communities accessed 15 March 2020.