Washington County, Oregon Genealogy
Guide to Washington County, Oregon ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
| Washington County, Oregon | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of Oregon, United States Genealogy | |
 Location of Oregon in the U.S. | |
| Facts | |
| Founded | September 3, 1849 |
|---|---|
| County Seat | Hillsboro |
| Courthouse | |
| Address | Washington County Courthouse 155 N 1st Avenue Ste 130 Hillsboro, OR 97124-3072 Phone: 503.864.8741 Washington County Website |
County Information[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
The County was named for George Washington. The County is located in the northwest area of the state. [1]
Washington County, Oregon Record Dates[edit | edit source]
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1907 | 1842 | 1903 | 1844 | 1847 | 1842 | 1845 |
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
Record Section, Assessment & Taxation has marriage,
land and military records from 1850.
Clerk Circuit Court has divorce and court records
from 1896, probate records from 1871 and
naturalization records from 1906. [3]
- Records Held at the Courthouse
County Records Inventory listing the records held at the Washington County Court House as of October 2005.
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.
Quick Facts[edit | edit source]
3 September 1849: Washington county was renamed from Twality County. Named for George Washington, the first president of the United States. [4]
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
16 January 1854: Columbia County set off.
22 December 1854: Multnomah County set off.
For animated maps illustrating Oregon County boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Oregon County Boundary Maps" (1843-1975) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.
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 | ||
|
|
|
| Census-designated places | ||
| Historic communities | ||
Defunct Post Offices[edit | edit source]
- Albion: Albion post office was in service on the extreme north border of the county from March 17, 1902 to Dec. 31, 1908. It was about due south of Vernonia. George M. Holt was the only postmaster. George M. Holt came from Albion, Illinois and he named the office for his old home in the Midwest. FamilySearch Catalog
Neighboring Counties[edit | edit source]
Clackamas | Clatsop | Columbia | Multnomah | Tillamook | Yamhill
Trivia Tidbits[edit | edit source]
Information about localities, too small or too brief to describe in separate pages. Exception to this are Post Offices. > Trivia Tidbits
Resources[edit | edit source]
Archives and Libraries[edit | edit source]
Biography[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
| Tombstone Transcriptions Online | Tombstone Transcriptions in Print | List of Cemeteries in the county |
| Findagrave.com | Family History Library | Findagrave.com |
| ORGenWeb | WorldCat | Billion Graves |
| ORGenWeb Archives | FamilySearch Places | |
| Tombstone Project | ||
| ORInterment | ||
| ORGravestones | ||
| Billion Graves | ||
| See Oregon Cemeteries for more information. | ||
Census[edit | edit source]
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1850 | 2,652 | — |
| 1860 | 2,801 | 5.6% |
| 1870 | 4,261 | 52.1% |
| 1880 | 7,082 | 66.2% |
| 1890 | 11,972 | 69.0% |
| 1900 | 14,467 | 20.8% |
| 1910 | 21,522 | 48.8% |
| 1920 | 26,376 | 22.6% |
| 1930 | 30,275 | 14.8% |
| 1940 | 39,194 | 29.5% |
| 1950 | 61,269 | 56.3% |
| 1960 | 92,237 | 50.5% |
| 1970 | 157,920 | 71.2% |
| 1980 | 245,808 | 55.7% |
| 1990 | 311,554 | 26.7% |
| 2000 | 445,342 | 42.9% |
| 2010 | 529,710 | 18.9% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
- 1845 Territorial Transcription and Index (under name of Tuality, Twalatain and Twality County)
- 1849 Territorial Transcription and Index (under name of Twality County)
- 1850 Territorial Transcription and Index
- 1853 Territorial Transcription and Index
- 1856 Territorial Transcription and Index
Church History and Records[edit | edit source]
List of Churches and Church Parishes
Court Records[edit | edit source]
Gazetteers[edit | edit source]
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
History[edit | edit source]
Land and Property[edit | edit source]
Maps[edit | edit source]
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
for more resources
Military History and Records[edit | edit source]
Civil War[edit | edit source]
- 1861-1865 Oregon, Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index
World War I[edit | edit source]
- 1919-1920 Oregon, World War I, County Military Service Records, 1919-1920 at FamilySearch — index
- 1921-1938 Oregon, World War I, Veteran State Aid Applications, 1921-1938 at FamilySearch — index and images
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
Oregon Online Historical Newspapers - identifies historical archived and digitized newspapers available online on both free and pay-to-access websites.
Historic Oregon Newspapers as a division of the Oregon Digital Newspaper Program has digitzied more than 644,000 pages of newspapers throughout Oregon. Dates range from 1846-1922 with selected issues continuing through 1973.
Of particular interest to Washington county researchers:
The Banner-Courier (Beaverton)
The Owl (Beaverton)
The Argus (Hilsboro)
The Hilsboro Argus (Hilsboro)
Hilsboro Independent (Hilsboro)
Washington County Independent (Hilsboro)
Probate Records[edit | edit source]
Online Records
- 1833 – 1963 Oregon Wills and Probate Records 1833-1963 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
Rivers and Waterways[edit | edit source]
Details about the rivers and waterways where farms and settlements are often found along them. > Rivers and Waterways
School Records[edit | edit source]
Taxation[edit | edit source]
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
The Family History Library has copies of some records such as:
Washington County coroner's inquest records 1854-1889
See also How to order Oregon Vital Records, order electronically online or download an application for Oregon Birth Certificate, Marriage Certificate, Divorce Certificate, Death Certificate Application to mail.
Birth Records[edit | edit source]
- 1842-1917 Oregon, Oregon State Archives, Births, 1842-1917 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images (*); Also at: Ancestry
- 1860 - 1952 Oregon Births, 1860-1952 at FamilySearch — index
Delayed Birth Certificates
Birth Registers
Marriage Records[edit | edit source]
- 1826-1975 Oregon, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index $
- 1842-1917 Oregon, U.S., State Births, 1842-1917 at Ancestry - index and images ($); Also at: FamilySearch
- 1849-1884; 1991-2006 Oregon Marriage Index, 1849-1884; 1991-2006 at FamilySearch — index and images; collection is incomplete.
- 1906-1968 Oregon, U.S., State Marriages, 1906-1968 at Ancestry - index and images ($)
- Extractions of early marriages are listed on the Western States Marriage Index
- Marriage Index 1885-1896 Actually is a book of affiants reporting the marriages. Historical Records Collection
Death Records[edit | edit source]
Societies, Libraries and Museums[edit | edit source]
Washington County Historical Society
Five Oaks Musumn
17677 NW Springville Rd
Portland, OR 97229
503-645-5353
Website
Facebook Page
Washington County Heritage Online
Website
Listing of Partner Institutions
Beaverton Historical Society and History Center
12490 S W First Suite 300
Beaverton, OR 97005
503-430-0160
Website
Facebook Page
Washington County Library Services
155 N 1st Ave
Hillsboro OR 97124
503-846-8685
Website
Facebook Page
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
- Beaverton Oregon West Family History Center
- Cedar Mill Oregon Rock Creek Family History Center
- Cedar Mill Oregon Stake Center Family History Center
- Cedar Mill Oregon West Union Family History Center
- Gresham Oregon Family History Center
- Hillsboro Oregon Family History Center
- Lake Oswego Oregon Family History Center
- Milwaukie Oregon Family History Center
- Portland Oregon Family History Center
- Tualatin Oregon Family History Center
- Wilsonville Oregon Family History Center
- Hillsboro Public Library - an affiliate library
- Lake Oswego Public Library - an affiliate library
- The Genealogical Forum of Oregon - an affiliate library
- Oregon Genealogical Society - an affiliate library
Websites[edit | edit source]
- Washington County, OR History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
- Oregon Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
- The Washington County GenWeb Project, part of The ORGenWeb Project
- Linkpendium
- USGenWeb Archives
- USGenWeb Archives backup site
- FamilySearch FamilySearch Catalog
Washington County Oregon Genealogy References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Washington, Oregon" in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_County,_Oregon accessed 29 Nov 2018
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Washington County, Oregon . Page 572-574 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), 563-564.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Washington County, Oregon page 574, At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ WorldCat 50140092 ▲ FamilySearch Catalog Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed.] (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002)
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Washington County, Oregon" in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_County,_Oregon, accessed 20 January 2019.