San Benito County, California Genealogy

United States

California

San Benito County

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

California Online Genealogy Records

San Benito County, California
Map
Location in the state of California, United States Genealogy
Location of California in the U.S.
Facts
Founded	February 12, 1874
County Seat	Hollister
Courthouse
Address	San Benito County Court House 440 5 th St 2nd Floor Hollister, CA 95023 Phone: 831.636.4029  San Benito County Website

County Information

San Benito County, California Record Dates

Known Beginning Dates for Major Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1894	1894	1894	1874	1894	1874	1850
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1905. General compliance by 1920.

County Courthouse

County Clerk has birth marriage, death, burial,
land and naturalization records from 1894
Superior Court has divorce, probate and court records

Historical Records

Parent County

12 February 1874: San Benito County was created from parts of Monterey County. County seat: Holllister

Description

The county was named after the San Benito Valley. Father Juan Crespi, in his expedition in 1772, named a small river in honor of San Benedicto (Saint Benedict), the patron saint of the married, and it is from the contraction of this name that the county took its name. The county seat Hollister and the county was created 1874. The County is located in the west central 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
Hollister	San Juan Bautista
Unincorporated communities
Bitterwater Dunneville Hudner	Llanada Paicines Panoche	River Oaks San Benito
Census-designated places
Aromas	Ridgemark	Tres Pinos
Ghost towns
New Idria

Neighboring Counties

• Fresno
• Merced
• Monterey
• Santa Clara
• Santa Cruz

Resources

Biography

• Indexed San Benito County Biographies (USGenWeb Archives)
• San Benito County Biographies (Genealogy Trails)
• Index to Published Histories and Biographical Works of San Benito County (CAGenWeb Project)

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of San Benito, 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)	FamilySearch Catalog WorldCat.org
List of Cemeteries in the County	Find A Grave BillionGraves FamilySearch Places
See California Cemeteries for more information

• 1911-1948 California, San Benito County Registrar, Burial Permits 1911-1948 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Census

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1880	5,584	—
1890	6,412	14.8%
1900	6,633	3.4%
1910	8,041	21.2%
1920	8,995	11.9%
1930	11,311	25.7%
1940	11,392	0.7%
1950	14,370	26.1%
1960	15,396	7.1%
1970	18,226	18.4%
1980	25,005	37.2%
1990	36,697	46.8%
2000	53,234	45.1%
2010	55,269	3.8%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

For tips on accessing San Benito County, California Genealogy census records online, see: California Census.

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
  

Gazetteers

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

History

Local histories are available for San Benito County, California Genealogy. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the Wiki page section California Local Histories.

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

Civil War

• 1883 - San Benito County – List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883 (Genealogy Trails)
• 1886 - San Benito County Civil War Veterans, Jesse L. Reno Post No. 58, G. A. R. 1886 (USGenWeb Archives)

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 San Benito County, World War II Army Enlistees (USGenWeb Archives)
• San Benito County World War II Honor List of Dead and Missing Army and Army Air Forces Personnel (Genealogy Trails)

Naturalization and Citizenship

• 1831-1985 California County Naturalizations, 1831-1985 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
• 1852-1989 California, Northern U.S. District Court Naturalization Index, 1852-1989 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

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

Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as San Benito County, California Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Do a San Benito County, California Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog. Do NOT use the word County. (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Places Search).

Obituaries

• San Benito County Transcribed Obituaries (Genealogy Trails)
• Index to San Benito County Obituaries (USGenWeb Archives)

Probate Records

The county clerk is usually the custodian of probate records. The records include wills, fee books, claim registers, legacy records, inheritance records, probate ticklers, and dockets.

Content: Probate Records may give the decedent's date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their place of residence.

You can obtain copies of the original probate records (such as wills and estate files) by writing to the county clerk at the county courthouse.

The FamilySearch Catalog lists films of probate records. To find the records for this county, use the Place Search for California - San Benito - 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 — How to Use this Collection; 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

• Coalinga California Family History Center
• Fresno California East Family History Center
• Fresno California Family History Center
• Fresno California West Family History Center
• Hollister California Family History Center
• Los Banos California Family History Center
• Madera California Family History Center

• Fresno County Public Library - an affiliate library
• Madera County Library - an affiliate library

Societies

San Benito County Historical Society
Website

Taxation

California tax records complement land records and can supplement the years between censuses. There may be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information, see the wiki page California Taxation.

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

• 1800 - 1994 California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
• 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($)

• San Benito 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($)
• 1854 - 1885 Western States Marriage Index.
• 1960 - 1985 California Marriage Index, 1960-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images. Also at: MyHeritage($)
• San Benito 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
• 1800 - 1994 California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
• 1866-1898 California, U.S., Voter Registers, 1866-1898 at Ancestry.com - index ($)
• 1905 - 1939 California Death Index, 1905-1939 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1940 - 1997 California Death Index, 1940-1997 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at: MyHeritage($)

Voting Registers

• 1866-1910 California, Great Registers, 1866-1910 at MyHeritage - index, ($)

Genealogy Societies, Archives and Libraries

San Benito County Historical Society
P.O. Box 357
Hollister 95023
Phone: 831-637-9709

San Benito County Historical Society
498 Fifth Street
Hollister, California 95023
Phone: 831-635-0335
Website

San Juan Bautista Historical Society
PO Box 1
San Juan Bautista, CA 95045

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

Websites

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

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.