Sussex County, Delaware Genealogy
Guide to Sussex County, Delaware 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]
The County is located in the south area of the state.[1]
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
Sussex County Courthouse
1 The Circle
Georgetown, DE 19947
Phone: 302-855-7055
Sussex County Courthouse
The Recorder of deeds has land records from 1693.
Register of Wills houses the probate records. [2]
Sussex County, Delaware Record Dates[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 |
| 1861 | 1847 | 1861 | 1680 | 1693 | 1683 | 1782 |
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
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There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county. |
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
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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:[4]
| Cities | ||
| Towns | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Census-designated places | ||
History Timeline[edit | edit source]
1683 The border between Sussex and Kent Counties, Delaware was set in 1683 and has not changed since then.
1710 Because of the ongoing boundary disputes between Lord Baltimore of Maryland and William Penn of Pennsylvania, much of Sussex County (excepting a few miles inland from the coast) was also recognized as part of Maryland's Somerset County up through 1760.Both Pennsylvania (and, after 1710, Delaware) and Maryland issued land patents for the area, sometimes in conflict with each other.
1760 The British Crown ordered the dispute to be settled in 1760, and commissioned Charles Mason and Jermiah Dixon to survey the boundary. In 1769, the survey was completed, defining the border between Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvania that exists today.
Resources[edit | edit source]
Bible Records[edit | edit source]
Wiltbank Family Bible, published in Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 29, p.339, available online at Family Search.
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: Delaware Census.
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1790 | 20,488 | — |
| 1800 | 19,358 | −5.5% |
| 1810 | 27,750 | 43.4% |
| 1820 | 24,057 | −13.3% |
| 1830 | 27,115 | 12.7% |
| 1840 | 25,093 | −7.5% |
| 1850 | 25,936 | 3.4% |
| 1860 | 29,615 | 14.2% |
| 1870 | 31,696 | 7.0% |
| 1880 | 36,018 | 13.6% |
| 1890 | 38,647 | 7.3% |
| 1900 | 42,276 | 9.4% |
| 1910 | 46,413 | 9.8% |
| 1920 | 43,741 | −5.8% |
| 1930 | 45,507 | 4.0% |
| 1940 | 52,502 | 15.4% |
| 1950 | 61,336 | 16.8% |
| 1960 | 73,195 | 19.3% |
| 1970 | 80,356 | 9.8% |
| 1980 | 98,004 | 22.0% |
| 1990 | 113,229 | 15.5% |
| 2000 | 156,638 | 38.3% |
| 2010 | 197,145 | 25.9% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
Church Records[edit | edit source]
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]
African American
Delaware: Enslaved and Free Persons, and Slaveholders is a database of enslaved and free African-Americans extracted from Sussex County, Delaware will books from 1836-1851, with ongoing updates. Slaveholders occasionally provided surnames or exact birthdates in their wills.
Funeral Homes[edit | edit source]
Genealogies[edit | edit source]
Guardianship[edit | edit source]
Land and Property Records[edit | edit source]
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
- Some Records of Sussex County, Delaware. By Charles Henry Black Turner. 1909. Philadelphia : Allen, Lane & Scott. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive, Google Books, Ancestry ($); At various libraries (WorldCat).
Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]
for more resources
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
Migration[edit | edit source]
Military Records[edit | edit source]
Civil War
- 1861-1865 Delaware Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index; images available through FamilySearch Catalog
World War I
- 1917-1919 Delaware, World War I Servicemen Records, 1917-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
World War II
- 1940-1945 Delaware, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1940-1945 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection
Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
- 1802-1943 Delaware, Federal Naturalization Records, 1802-1943 at Ancestry - index and images ($)
- 1796-1958 Delaware, County Naturalization Records, 1796-1958 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
- 1800s-1999 Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry ($)
Obituaries[edit | edit source]
Other Records[edit | edit source]
Periodicals[edit | edit source]
Probate Records[edit | edit source]
Online Probate Indexes and Records
- 1680 -1800 Sussex County, Delaware Probate Records, online at Ancestry ($)
- DeValinger, Leon. A Calendar of Sussex County, Delaware Probate Records, 1680-1800 . Dover, Delaware: Public Archives Commission, 1964.
- Moore, Marguerite R. indexes for Sussex 1800-1869, three volumes(Westminster, Md.: Family Line Publications, 1995-97.)
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]
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
Birth[edit | edit source]
- 1650-1974 Delaware Vital Records, 1650-1974 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
Marriage[edit | edit source]
- 1650-1974 Delaware Vital Records, 1650-1974 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
- 1784-2007 Delaware, United States Marriages at at Findmypast — index, ($)
Death[edit | edit source]
- 1650-1974 Delaware Vital Records, 1650-1974 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
Divorce[edit | edit source]
Research Facilities[edit | edit source]
Archives[edit | edit source]
Listed below are archives in Sussex County. For state-wide facilities, see Delaware 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 Sussex County. For state-wide library facilities, see Delaware Archives and Libraries.
Museums[edit | edit source]
Societies[edit | edit source]
Listed below are societies in Sussex County. For state-wide genealogical and historical societies, see Delaware Societies.
- Georgetown Historical Society
510 S. Bedford Street
Georgetown, DE 19947
302 855-9660
Email: marvelmuseum@gmail.com
Facebook - Lewes Historical Society
110 Shipcarpenter St.
Lewes, DE
302-645-7670
Website
- Lower Delmarva Genealogical Society
(Kent and Sussex County)
Box 3602
Salisbury, Maryland 21802-3602
E-Mail: info@ldgs.org
Website
- Sussex County Genealogical Society
c/o Rehoboth Beach Public Library
226 Rehoboth Avenue
Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971
Email: info@scgsdelaware.org
Website
Websites[edit | edit source]
- The Sussex County DEGenWeb Project, an member of The DEGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
- The USGenWeb Archives Project for Sussex County
- Sussex County, Delaware Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
- Sussex County Genealogy (Delaware Genealogy)
- Sussex County Delaware History
- 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, "Sussex County," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sussex_County,_Delaware 04/27/2017.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Sussex, Delaware Page 121 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Sussex County, Delaware. Page 121 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), 118.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Sussex County," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia,https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sussex_County,_Delaware, accessed 25 October 2018.