Tulare County, California Genealogy

United States

California

Tulare County

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

California Online Genealogy Records

Tulare County, California
Map
Location in the state of California, United States Genealogy
Location of California in the U.S.
Facts
Founded	April 20, 1852
County Seat	Visalia
Courthouse
Address	Tulare County Courthouse 221 S Mooney Blvd Visalia, CA 93291 Phone: 559.733.6418 Tulare County Website

County Information

Tulare County, California Record Dates

Known Beginning Dates for Major Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1852	1852	1873	1854	1854	1854	1850
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1905. General compliance by 1920.

County Courthouse

County Recorder has birth and marriage records from 1852
death records from 1873 & mil rec from 1919; Clerk
Superior Court has divorce, probate, court and
naturalization records County Assessor has land records

Historical Facts

Parent County

20 April 1852: Tulare County was created from Mariposa County. County seat: Visalia

Description

The county was named from this lake that the county derives its name. The root of the name Tulare is found in the Mexican word tullin, designating cattail or similar reeds. Tularemia is named after Tulare County. The county seat Visalia and the county was created 1852. The County is located in the 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
Dinuba Exeter Farmersville	Lindsay Porterville Tulare	Visalia Woodlake
Unincorporated communities
Advance Angiola Badger Balance Rock Cairns Corner	Calgro Johnsondale Kaweah Rocky Hill	Ultra White River Yokohl Valley Zante
Native American communities
Tule River Indian Tribe of the Tule River Reservation
Census-designated places
Allensworth Alpaugh California Hot Springs Camp Nelson Cedar Slope Cutler Delft Colony Ducor Earlimart East Orosi East Porterville East Tulare Villa El Rancho Goshen Hartland Idlewild Ivanhoe Kennedy Meadows Lemon Cove Lindcove	Linnell Camp London Matheny McClenney Tract Monson Orosi Panorama Heights Patterson Tract Pierpoint Pine Flat Pixley Plainview Ponderosa Poplar-Cotton Center Posey Poso Park Richgrove Rodriguez Camp Sequoia Crest	Seville Silver City Springville Strathmore Sugar Loaf Mountain Park Sugarloaf Saw Mill Sugarloaf Village Sultana Terra Bella Teviston Three Rivers Tipton Tonyville Tooleville Traver Waukena West Goshen Wilsonia Woodville Yettem

Neighboring Counties

• Fresno
• Inyo
• Kern
• Kings

Resources

Biography

• Tulare County Biographical Index (Genealogy Trails)
• Index to Tulare County Biographies (USGenWeb Archvies)
• Index to Biographical Resources, Tulare County (CAGenWeb Project)

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Tulare, 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

• 1875-1900 California, Tulare County, Visalia Cemetery Records, 1875-1990 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

Census

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1860	4,638	—
1870	4,533	−2.3%
1880	11,281	148.9%
1890	24,574	117.8%
1900	18,375	−25.2%
1910	35,440	92.9%
1920	59,031	66.6%
1930	77,442	31.2%
1940	107,152	38.4%
1950	149,264	39.3%
1960	168,403	12.8%
1970	188,322	11.8%
1980	245,738	30.5%
1990	311,921	26.9%
2000	368,021	18.0%
2010	442,179	20.2%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

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

• Tulare County Census Records (USGenWeb Archives)

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

Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

• Porterville
• Visalia

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 Tulare 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.

• Tulare County History Books Excerpts (Genealogy Trails)

Land and Property

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

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

• 1798 - 1937 United States Muster Rolls of the Marine Corps, 1798-1937 at FamilySearch - [[United States Muster Rolls of the Marine Corps - FamilySearch Historical Records

|How to Use this Collection]]; index and images

• 1856 The Indian War on the Tule River (Genealogy Trails)

Civil War

• 1883 Tulare County – List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883 (Genealogy Trails)
• 1886 Civil War Veterans Rosters, G.A.R. Posts in Tulare County (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 Tulare County, World War II Army Enlistees (USGenWeb Archives)
• Tulare County, Honor List of World War II Dead and Missing Army and Army Air Forces Personnel (Genealogy Trails)

Naturalization and Citizenship

• Index to Tulare County Naturalization Records (CAGenWeb Project)

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 Tulare County, California Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Do a Tulare 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

• Index to Tulare County Obituaries (Genealogy Trails)
• Index to Tulare County Individual Obituaries and Obituary Collections (USGenWeb Archives)
• Index to Tulare County Obituary Sources (CAGenWeb Project)

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 - Tular - 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

• Corcoran California Family History Center
• Delano California Family History Center
• Fresno California Family History Center
• Fresno California West Family History Center
• Fresno California North Family History Center
• Hanford California Family History Center
• Porterville California Family History Center
• Sanger California Family History Center
• Selma California Family History Center
• Visalia California Family History Center

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

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

• Index to Tulare County Vital Records (CAGenWeb Project)

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($)

• Tulare County Birth Notices by year (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($)
• 1854 - 1885 Western States Marriage Index.
• 1960 - 1985 California Marriage Index, 1960-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images. Also at: MyHeritage($)
• Tulare County Marriage Notices by year (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
• 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

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 Los Angeles Great Registers from 1873-1896.

The Tulare records for 1869, 1890, and 1898 are available on the RootsWeb site, by clicking here.

• 1866-1898 California, U.S., Voter Registers, 1866-1898 at Ancestry.com - index ($)
• 1866-1910 California, Great Registers, 1866-1910 at MyHeritage - index, ($)

Genealogy Societies, Archives and Libraries

Sequoia Genealogical Society
c/o Tulare City Library, Genealogy Room
113 North "F" Street
Tulare, CA 93274; Phone:559-685-4518
Website

Tulare County Historical Society
27000 South Mooney Boulevard
Visalia, CA 93277
Phone:559-733-6616
Website

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

Websites

• Tulare County, CA History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
• California Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
• Tulare County CAGenWeb
• Linkpendium
• USGenWeb Archives
• FamilySearch Catalog
• Tulare County, California Genealogy Trails
• Tulare County 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.