Sebastian County, Arkansas Genealogy
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Guide to Sebastian County, Arkansas 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 United States Senator and Judge William K. Sebastian. It is located in the west central area of the state.[2]
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
Sebastian County Courthouse
35 S 6th;
Fort Smith, AR 72901
Phone: 501.782.5065
Sebastian County Website
County Clerk has marriage records from 1865 and probate records from 1866;
Clerk Circuit Court has divorce, court and land records.[3]
Sebastian County, Arkansas[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 |
| 1914 | 1865 | 1914 | 1851 | 1861 | 1866 | 1830 |
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
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1881, 1882 A courthouse fire destroyed most records. Some have been reconstructed.
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Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
For animated maps illustrating Arkansas county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Arkansas County Boundary Maps" (1813-1925) may be viewed for free 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:[6]
| Cities | ||
| Towns | ||
| Townships | ||
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History Timeline[edit | edit source]
Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were taken from the Sebastian County page on the website, The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture. [7]
Resources[edit | edit source]
Bible Records[edit | edit source]
- Old Bible Records at ArGenWeb.net
Biographies[edit | edit source]
- Biographies from The History of Sebastian County, Arkansas (1889) published by Goodspeed Publishing Company are available free on the My Genealogy Hound website.
Business, Commerce, and Occupations[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
Census Records[edit | edit source]
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1860 | 9,238 | — |
| 1870 | 12,940 | 40.1% |
| 1880 | 19,560 | 51.2% |
| 1890 | 33,200 | 69.7% |
| 1900 | 36,935 | 11.3% |
| 1910 | 52,278 | 41.5% |
| 1920 | 56,739 | 8.5% |
| 1930 | 54,426 | −4.1% |
| 1940 | 62,809 | 15.4% |
| 1950 | 64,202 | 2.2% |
| 1960 | 66,685 | 3.9% |
| 1970 | 79,237 | 18.8% |
| 1980 | 95,172 | 20.1% |
| 1990 | 99,590 | 4.6% |
| 2000 | 115,071 | 15.5% |
| 2010 | 125,744 | 9.3% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
Church Records[edit | edit source]
- 1875-1899 - Nebraska, Church Records, 1875-1899 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
Episcopal
St. John's Episcopal Church, Fort Smith
- 1860-1886 - St. John's Episcopal Church, Fort Smith Baptism Index 1860-1886. Batch C586781 at FamilySearch - free.
- 1860-1895 - St. John's Episcopal Church, Fort Smith Marriage Index 1860-1895. Batch M586781 at FamilySearch - free.
Lutheran
First Lutheran Church, Fort Smith
- 1868-1885 - First Lutheran Church, Fort Smith Baptism Index 1868-1885. Batch C586721 at FamilySearch - free.
- 1868-1895 - First Lutheran Church, Fort Smith Marriage Index 1868-1895. Batch M586721 at FamilySearch - free.
List of Churches and Church Parishes
Court Records[edit | edit source]
- 1851-1884 County Court Records (Sebastian County, Arkansas), 1851-1884(*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
- 1851-1938 Sebastian County, Arkansas Index to Circuit Court Papers, vol. A, ca. 1851-1938(*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1866-1950 Fort Smith District, Sebastian County, Arkansas Chancery Court Records, 1866-1950(*); Chancery Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1869-1922 Record of Wills and Testaments, 1869-1922(*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1882-1957 Greenwood District, Sebastian County, Arkansas Chancery Court Records, 1882-1957(*); Chancery Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- Criminal Case Files, 1866-1900 at Ancestry.com ($)
- Criminal Case Files Index, 1866-1900 at Ancestry.com ($)
Directories[edit | edit source]
Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]
Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups[edit | edit source]
African Americans[edit | edit source]
- 1865-1868 — Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records, Fort Smith at FamilySearch.org — browsable images only; register of marriages, labor contracts, letters
Funeral Homes[edit | edit source]
- 1882-1904 Blaine Brothers Funeral Home Records (Fort Smith, Arkansas), 1882-1904(*); at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- Brotherton Brothers Funeral Home in Fort Smith
- Lewis Funeral Chapel in Greenwood, Fort Smith, and Lavaca
- Martin Funeral Homes in Mansfield
- Ocker-Putman Funeral Home in Fort Smith
Genealogies[edit | edit source]
Guardianship[edit | edit source]
- Probate Records 1851-1922 County portion of the collection: Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979: Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979 FamilySearch Historical Collections (Free, browse images) - How to Use this Collection
- Includes Administration accounts 1870-1892; Administration and guardian bonds 1891-1904; Administration and guardian dockets 1865-1885; Administration bonds 1861-1868; Bonds and letters 1872-1883; Dockets 1861-1864 and 1875-1886; Executors bonds and letters 1883-1910; Probate records 1851-1888; Wills 1902-1922.
Land and Property Records[edit | edit source]
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
Local histories are available for Sebastian County. They may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more about local histories, see Arkansas Local Histories.
- History of Benton, Washington, Carroll, Madison, Crawford, Franklin, and Sebastian Counties, Arkansas. 1889. Chicago, IL, USA: Goodspeed Publishing. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Google Books, Ancestry ($); At various libraries (WorldCat).
Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]
Click a neighboring county
for more resources
for more resources
- Maps of Arkansas (1813-1925)
- Family Maps of Sebastian County, Arkansas Genealogy (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
- Arkansas State Archives State Maps Collection at Arkansas Digital Archives
Migration[edit | edit source]
Military Records[edit | edit source]
Civil War[edit | edit source]
Regiments. Men in Sebastian County served in various regiments and companies. Those listed below were specifically formed in this county:
- - 11th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate)
- - 17th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Griffith's) (Confederate), Companies A, B, C and F
- - 19th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Dawson's) (Confederate)
- - 34th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate), Companies D and G
- - 35th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate), Companies A, B, C and D
- - 51st Regiment, Arkansas Militia (Confederate)
- - Witherspoon's Battalion, Arkansas Cavalry (Confederate)
- - 4th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Union)
Online Records
- 1861-1865 - Arkansas Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
- 1890-1963 - Arkansas Confederate Soldier Home,1890-1963 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
- 1891-1939 - Arkansas Ex-Confederate Pension Records, 1891-1939 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
- 1901-1929 - Arkansas Confederate Pensions, 1901-1929 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
Civil War Battle
The following Civil War battle was fought in Sebastian County.
- September 1, 1863 = Devil's Backbone, also known as Backbone Mountain[8]
- Map showing Civil War battles in Arkansas.
World War II[edit | edit source]
Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
Finding More Arkansas Newspapers Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Sebastian newspapers in online catalogs like:
- WorldCat
- FamilySearch. Do a Sebastian County, Arkansas Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see, FamilySearch Catalog Places Search).
- Fayetteville Democrat at Ancestry.com ($)
- Fayetteville Daily Democrat at Ancestry.com ($)
- Daily Fayetteville Democrat at Ancestry.com ($)
- Northwest Arkansas Times at Ancestry.com ($)
- Courier Times at Ancestry.com ($)
- 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
Obituaries[edit | edit source]
Other Records[edit | edit source]
Periodicals[edit | edit source]
Probate Records[edit | edit source]
Online Probate Indexes and Records
- 1783-1998 Arkansas Wills and Probate Records 1783-1998 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
- 1817-1979 Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979(*) at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images
- 1851-1910 Probate Records (Sebastian County, Arkansas), 1851-1910(*); Probate Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1852-1880 Abstracts of Will Records, Greenwood District, Sebastian County, Arkansas, 1852-1880(*); at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1869-1922 Record of Wills and Testaments, 1869-1922(*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
School Records[edit | edit source]
Social Security Records[edit | edit source]
- 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index at FamilySearch - How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
- 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.
Tax Records[edit | edit source]
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
See also How to order Arkansas Vital Records
Birth[edit | edit source]
| Y | M | |
| Name of Child | 
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| Birth Date and Place |
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| Parent's Names |
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| Mother's Maiden Name |
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| Parent's Ages |
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| Father's Occupation |
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| Current Residence |
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| Name of Doctor or Midwife |
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In 1877, a few county and city clerks[9] started keeping birth and death records.
In 1914, the state law required all county clerks to record births and forward them to the state.
- Arkansas Births and Christenings, 1812-1965 at FamilySearch. (Free, index only)
- Small file, but worth searching. Most entries were user-submitted.
See also: • Arkansas Online Genealogy Records, • How to Find Arkansas Birth Records and • Arkansas Vital Records—Birth.
- 1877 - 1963 - Sebastian County Births and Deaths at FamilySearch. Index only (Free) - [to Use this Collection]
- 1877 - 1913 - Sebastian County Birth Index 1877-1913. Batch C750707 at FamilySearch - free.
Marriage[edit | edit source]
- 1779-1966 - Arkansas, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index $
- 1860 - 1976 - Arkansas Church Marriages, 1860-1976 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
- 1865 - 1922, 1952 - Sebastian County Marriage Books B-Q Index 1865-1922, 1952 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.[10]
- 1884 - 1947 - Sebastian County Marriage Index, Greenwood District Books B-M Index (1882-1949), Fort Smith District Books C-Q, S-Z, 2-52 Index (1889-1951) in Arkansas, County Marriages, 1837-1957 at FamilySearch - free.[11] - How to Use this Collection
- 1917-1969 Arkansas, Marriage Certificates, 1917-1969 at Ancestry.com - index and images ($)
Death[edit | edit source]
- 1877 - 1963 - Sebastian County Births and Deaths at FamilySearch. Index only (Free) - [to Use this Collection]
- 1881 - 1919 - Sebastian County Death Index 1881-1919. Batch B750709 at FamilySearch - free.
- 1919 - 1929 - Sebastian County Death Index 1919-1929. Batch B750794 at FamilySearch - free.
- 1914-1969 Arkansas, Death Certificates, 1914-1969 at Ancestry.com - index and images ($)
- 1935-1961 Arkansas, Death Index, 1935-1961 at MyHeritage - index and images ($)
Divorce[edit | edit source]
- 1923-1969 Arkansas, Divorces, 1923-1969 at Ancestry.com - index ($)
Voter Records[edit | edit source]
- 1868-1910 - Arkansas, County Voter Registration Records, 1868-1910 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
Research Facilities[edit | edit source]
Archives[edit | edit source]
Listed below are archives in Sebastian County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Arkansas Archives and Libraries.
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
Libraries[edit | edit source]
Listed below are libraries in Sebastian County. For state-wide library facilities, see Arkansas Archives and Libraries.
Museums[edit | edit source]
Societies[edit | edit source]
Listed below are societies in Sebastian County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Arkansas Societies.
Fort Smith Historical Society
PO Box 3676
Fort Smith, AR 72913
Email: info@FortSmithHistory.org
Facebook: Fort Smith Historical Society
Fort Smith Public Library - Genealogy
Website
South Sebastian County Historical Society
Website
PO Box 523
Greenwood, AR 72936
479-414-5324
Email: SSCHSInfo@gmail.com
Faceboook: South Sebastian County Historical Society
Websites[edit | edit source]
- ARGenWeb for Sebastian County]. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or complete transcriptions
- USGenWeb. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or may be complete transcriptions
- RootsWeb - Sebastian Co, Arkansas. Free. Data may be submitted by individuals or may be complete transcriptions
- Sebastian County Births and Deaths, 1877-1963. Free. Search indexed information; images are not available.
- Linkpendium. Free. Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)
- CyndisList. Free. Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)
- 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]
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT: Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ Genealogy Trails History Group, “Sebastian County, Arkansas Genealogy and History”, http://genealogytrails.com/ark/sebas/
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT: Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Sebastian County, Arkansas. Page 70 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), 67.
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT: Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Sebastian County, Arkansas," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sebastian_County,_Arkansas, accessed 30 September 2018.
- ↑ Guy Lancaster, The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture, (http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=807&type=Category&item=Counties&parent=Counties%2c+Cities%2c+and+Towns&grandparent=+%3a+accessed+January+6%2c+2016)%2c : accessed January 15, 2016), “Sebastian County.”
- ↑ Heritage Preservation Services, CivilWar Battle Summaries by State, (accessed 2 August 2012).
- ↑ such as Sebastian County (Fort Smith) and Pulaski County (Little Rock) (No entry in FamilySearch Catalog found for Pulaski County nor for Little Rock, Aug 2014)
- ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/images/d/d7/Arkansasnz.pdf.
- ↑ FamilySearch Wiki contributors, "Arkansas County Marriages - FamilySearch Historical Records," in FamilySearch Wiki.
