San Diego County, California Genealogy

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

San Diego County, California
Map
Map of California highlighting San Diego County
Location in the state of California, United States Genealogy
Map of the U.S. highlighting California
Location of California in the U.S.
Facts
Founded February 18, 1850
County Seat San Diego
Courthouse
CaliforniaSanDiegoCourthouse.jpg
Address San Diego County Administation Building
1600 Pacific Hwy
San Diego, CA 92101
Phone: 619.238.8158

San Diego County Website

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County Information[edit | edit source]

San Diego County, California Record Dates[edit | edit source]

Known Beginning Dates for Major Records[1]
Birth* Marriage Death* Court Land Probate Census
1857 1856 1873 1855 1850s 1848 1850
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1905. General compliance by 1920.

County Courthouse[edit | edit source]

Superior Court records from 1850. Superior Court has probate, civil and divorce records. 

Main County Courthouse

220 W. Broadway

San Diego, CA 92101

Courthouse location


County Administration Building[edit | edit source]


County Clerk Recorder has birth records from 1857
marriage records from 1856 death records from 1873
and land records from 1850’s.[2]

www.co.san-diego.ca.us/

Historical Facts[edit | edit source]

Wikipedia
 Wikipedia has more about this subject: San Diego County, California

Parent County[edit | edit source]

18 February 1850: San Diego County was created as an original county. County seat: San Diego [3]

Description[edit | edit source]

The county seat San Diego and the county was created February 18, 1850. The County is located in the southwest area of the state.[4]

Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]

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[edit | edit source]

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

Places/Localities[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:[5]

Cities
Unincorporated communities
Native American communities
Census-designated places


Neighboring Counties[edit | edit source]

Resources[edit | edit source]

Bible Records[edit | edit source]

Biography[edit | edit source]

Cemeteries[edit | edit source]

Cemeteries of San Diego, California online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)
List of Cemeteries in the County
See California Cemeteries for more information

Census[edit | edit source]

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1850 798 —
1860 4,324 441.9%
1870 4,951 14.5%
1880 8,018 61.9%
1890 34,987 336.4%
1900 35,090 0.3%
1910 61,665 75.7%
1920 112,248 82.0%
1930 209,659 86.8%
1940 289,348 38.0%
1950 556,808 92.4%
1960 1,033,011 85.5%
1970 1,357,854 31.4%
1980 1,861,846 37.1%
1990 2,498,016 34.2%
2000 2,813,833 12.6%
2010 3,095,313 10.0%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

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

Church History and 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 California denominations, view the California Church Records wiki page.


List of Churches and Church Parishes

Court Records[edit | edit source]

San Diego Superior Court records are maintained at several courthouse locations and at a records warehouse.

Crime and Criminals[edit | edit source]

Directories[edit | edit source]

Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]

|How to Use this Collection]]; index

Ethnic, Political, or Religious Groups[edit | edit source]

Germans[edit | edit source]

Gazetteers[edit | edit source]

Genealogy[edit | edit source]

History[edit | edit source]

Local histories are available for San Diego 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.

Land and Property[edit | edit source]

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.

See California Land and Property for additional information about early California land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and where records are currently housed.

Maps[edit | edit source]

Orange CountyRiverside CountyImperial CountyBaja CaliforniaCA SAN DIEGO.PNG
Click a neighboring county
for more resources


Migration[edit | edit source]

Military History and Records[edit | edit source]

Civil War[edit | edit source]
World War I[edit | edit source]
World War II[edit | edit source]

Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]

A wiki article describing an online collection is found at:

California, San Diego Naturalization Index (FaamilySearch Historical Records)

Newspapers[edit | edit source]

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

Obituaries[edit | edit source]

Periodicals[edit | edit source]

Probate Records[edit | edit source]

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 Diego - Probate records.

Online Probate Indexes and Records

Repositories[edit | edit source]

Archives, Libraries and Museums[edit | edit source]

Carlsbad City Library - click on "Genealogy" on right side for details.

County Courthouse[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

Societies[edit | edit source]

Alpine Historical Society
Website

Carlsbad Historical Society
Website

Chula Vista Genealogical Society
Website

El Cajon Historical Society
Website

Encinitas Historical Society
Website

Lakeside Historical Society
Website

Lemon Grove Historical Society
Website

Oceanside Historical Society
Website

Poway Historical and Memorial Society
Website

Rancho Santa Fe Historical Society
Website

San Diego Genealogical Society
Website

San Marcos Historical Society
Website

Santee Historical Society
Website

Solana Beach Civil and Historical Society
Website

Spring Valley Historical Society
Website

Temecula Valley Historical Society
Website

Valley Center Historical Society
Website

Taxation[edit | edit source]

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[edit | edit source]

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[edit | edit source]
Marriage[edit | edit source]
Divorce[edit | edit source]
Death[edit | edit source]

Voting Registers[edit | edit source]

California county clerks were to keep voting registers every other year from 1866 and well into the 20th century. These large books, called Great Registers, listed the men who registered to vote in that county. Besides name and age, the record may show place of birth, address, occupation, naturalization date and sometimes even a physical description.

These records are at the California State Library (1866-1944), and microfilmed copies are available through Family History Centers (1866-1910). Ancestry ($) has a searchable database of San Diego Great Registers from 1867-1898.

The San Diego records indexes for 1866-1879 are available on the RootsWeb site, by clicking here.

Genealogy Societies, Archives and Libraries[edit | edit source]

British Isles Genealogical Research Association
PO Box 19775
San Deigo, CA 92159-0775

Chula Vista Genealogical Society
P. O. Box 3024
Chula Vista, CA 91909
Website

El Cajon Historical Society
PO Box 1973
El Cajon, CA 9220

Escondido Genealogical Society, Inc.
Escondido, CA 92033-2190

San Diego Genealogical Society
2925 Kalmia Street
San Diego 92104
Website

San Diego Historical Society
P.O. Box 81825
San Diego 92138

San Diego African-American Genealogy Research Group (SDAAGRG)
P.O. Box 741956
San Diego, CA 92174-1956

San Diego Genealogical Society
7343 Ronson Road Suite O
San Diego, CA 92111-1430
Phone: (858) 279-7347

San Diego County Genealogical Society
P.O. Box 422
Ramona, CA 92065

Fallbrook Historical Society
PO Box 1375
Fallbrook CA 92088

Gaslamp Black Hist Society
PO Box 1122469
San Diego, CA 92112-2469

Julian Historical Society
PO Box 513
Julian, CA 92036

La Jolla Historical Society
PO Box 2085
La Jolla CA 92038

La Mesa Historical Society
PO Box 882
La Mesa CA 92044

North San Diego County Genealogical Society
PO Box 581
Carlsbad CA 92008PO
Website

Ramona Pioneer Historical Society
PO Box 625
Ramona, CA 92065
San Diego African American Genealogy Research Group
PO Box 740240
San Diego, CA 92174-0240

San Diego History Center
PO Box 81825
San Diego, CA 92138

San Diego Jewish Genealogical Society
PO Box 927089
San Diego, CA 92192-7089

Shrine Foundation Historical Society
2482 San Diego Avenue
San Diego, CA 92110

Vista Historical Society
2317 Old Foothill Drive
Vista, CA 92084

Websites[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), San Diego County, California. Page 84-88 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), 81-83.
  2. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), San Diego County, California. Page 85 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
  3. ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
  4. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "San Diego County," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego_County,_California 05/08/2017.
  5. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "San Diego County, California," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego_County%2C_California#Communities, accessed 22 September 2019.
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