Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

United States Pennsylvania Westmoreland County

Historical Facts

 * Parent Counties: Formed from Bedford County 26 February 1773.
 * County Seat: Greensburg
 * Neighboring Counties: residents may also have records in Armstrong (north)  •  Fayette (south)  •  Allegheny (west)  •  Cambria (east)  •  Washington (southwest)  •  Somerset (southeast)  •  Indiana (northeast)  •  Butler (northwest)

Boundary Changes
Several counties were set off over the years.


 * 28 March 1781: Washington County
 * 26 September 1783: Fayette County
 * 24 September 1788: Allegheny County
 * 12 March 1800: Armstrong County
 * 30 March 1803: Indiana County

Cemeteries
Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.


 * Feightner Cemetery, Greensburg BillionGraves
 * Union Cemetery, Arnold BillionGraves

The Mennonite Heritage Center 565 Yoder Road Harleysville PA 19438-1020 215-256-3020 [mailto:library@mhep.org library@mhep.org] Hours: Tuesday thru Friday, 10am–5pm, Saturday, 10am–2pm The Cemetery Database at the Mennonite Heritage Center includes 86,000 burial records from 125 local cemeteries. Records cover cemeteries in the counties of Berks, Bucks, Butler, Chester, Lehigh, Montgomery, Northampton, and Westmoreland. The database provides transcriptions from Mennonite, Brethren, Lutheran, Reformed, Union, Baptist, Methodist, Episcopal, community, and private cemeteries. Search the list of cemeteries and the alphabetical surname lists in Adobe PDF format. Visit the Mennonite Heritage Center to search the cemetery database by various criteria. The transcriptions are available for further research at the MHC library.

Census

 * 1783 - Returns of Taxables for the Counties of Bedford (1773 to 1784), Huntingdon (1788), Westmoreland (1783, 1786), Fayette (1785, 1786), Allegheny (1791), Washington (1786) and Census of Bedford (1784) and Westmoreland (1783). (Pennsylvania Archives, Series 3, Vol. 22). Digital versions at Ancestry ($); Google Books - free.

Church Records
The Westmoreland County Historical Society's library has church records and histories. You can look at them at their library for free if you are a member or for a minimal fee if you are not. Check their webpage for current prices. You can also have research in the records by mail. Instructions are under "Genealogy and Research" on their Internet site.

Additional church records can be located at Linkpendium and by searching the Family History Library Catalog. The FHLC has a plethora of for Westmoreland County, many are limited in the time frame they cover. When searching the FHL catalog, be sure to also search at the town and township level.

County-wide Database - Multi-denominational

 * 1708-1985 - Pennsylvania, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 at Historical Society of Pennsylvania – $, free to members of the society; Also available at Ancestry.com – $; 7,542,774 entries. This database is incomplete for all counties.

Catholic

 * "100 years of the Pittsburgh Catholic Diocese 1843–1943". Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society Quarterly, 17:1. FamilySearch Library book 974.8 B2wg. Contains chronolgy, map, county-by-county information.

Land and Property
Land records in Westmoreland County began in 1773. These records are filed with the Recorder of Deeds office in Greensburg, Pennsylvania.

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts, indexes, mortgages, leases, grants, sheriff sales, land patents, and maps. Property records include liens as well as livestock brands and estray records.

The following are examples of available resources:

Online Land Records


 * 1850–present The Recorder of Deeds offers online access to land records. The online indexes are free but fees apply for copies.

Land Records on Microfilm


 * 1773-1886 Deeds and Index

Additional Resources

Note that the "Maps" section below includes maps related to land ownership.

See Pennsylvania Land and Property for more information about using land records, especially about original land warrants, surveys, and patents filed at the state land office.

Additional resources can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Westmoreland County Pennsylvania Land in online catalogs such as:


 * Historical Society of Pennsylvania
 * WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog.)
 * (For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search.)

Maps

 * Ancestor Tracks has posted free downloadable images from the Map of Westmoreland Co. Pennsylvania from Actual Surveys by D.J. Lake &amp; N.S. Ames, published by Wm. J. Barker in 1857
 * Ancestor Tracks also has an Atlas of the Township Warrantee Maps of Westmoreland County and a Companion Scans of Township Warrantee Maps plus Current Road Overlay CD ($). They show precise outlines in metes and bounds of each original tract and all surrounding tracts in each township, giving the names of the warrantee and patentee; dates of the warrant, survey, and patent; and the patent and survey book and page of each recorded patent.
 * The 1867 Atlas of Westmoreland County has been posted at USGenWeb Digital Map Library.

Revolutionary War
Westmoreland County men also served in the 3rd Pennsylvania Regiment, the 8th Pennsylvania Regiment and the 9th Pennsylvania Regiment.

Obituaries
Courtesy of the Baltzer Meyer Historical Society:

Obituary Index created from their collection of obituaries of the years of individuals who resided in or had connections to Westmoreland County.

Courthouse
Westmoreland County Courthouse 2 N. Main Street Greensburg, PA 15601

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers
 * Greensburg Pennsylvania Family History Center

Taxation

 * 1783, 1786 - Returns of Taxables for the Counties of Bedford (1773 to 1784), Huntingdon (1788), Westmoreland (1783, 1786), Fayette (1785, 1786), Allegheny (1791), Washington (1786) and Census of Bedford (1784) and Westmoreland (1783). (Pennsylvania Archives, Series 3, Vol. 22). Digital versions at Ancestry ($); Google Books - free.


 * 1798 - Pennsylvania, U.S. Direct Tax Lists, 1798 at Ancestry ($).

Birth

 * 1782-1930 - - free index. Not complete for all years.
 * 1852-1854 – Pennsylvania Births Ancestry.com – $ Index with images.

The Register of Wills have incomplete birth records from 1852 to 1855 and complete records 1893 to 1905. You may obtain the records from:

Register of Wills 2 N. Main Street, Suite 301 Greensburg, PA 15601 Phone: 724-830-3177 Fax: 724-850-3976 Email: row@co.westmoreland.pa.us Hours: Monday, Wednesday to Friday 8:15 am to 4:15 am Tuesday 8:15 am to 6:00 pm

Marriage

 * 1802-1976 - - free index. Not complete for all years.

The Register of Wills have incomplete marriage records from 1852 to 1855 and complete records 1885 to the present. You may obtain the records from:

Register of Wills 2 N. Main Street, Suite 301 Greensburg, PA 15601 Phone: 724-830-3177 Fax: 724-850-3976 Email: row@co.westmoreland.pa.us Hours: Monday, Wednesday to Friday 8:15 am to 4:15 am Tuesday 8:15 am to 6:00 pm

In May 2012, the Register of Wills of the Orphan Court discovered marriages performed by District Judge, Raymond Tubbs from 1974 to 1989 had not been filed. This office is now trying to reconstruct the marriages. To learn about this problem visit their website. at http://www.co.westmoreland.pa.us/westmoreland/cwp/view.asp?a=1453&amp;q=639334.

Divorce
Divorce records are handled by the office of the Prothonotary. While no on-line indexes or records are available, records may be obtained by visiting or writing to the Prothonotary at:

Westmoreland Prothonotary P.O. Box 1630 2 N. Main Street Suite 501 Greensburg, PA 15601 Phone: 724-830-3502

Death

 * 1852-1854 – Pennsylvania Deaths Ancestry.com – $ Index with images.

The Register of Wills have incomplete death records from 1852 to 1855 and complete records 1893 to 1905. You may obtain the records from:

Register of Wills 2 N. Main Street, Suite 301 Greensburg, PA 15601 Phone: 724-830-3177 Fax: 724-850-3976 Email: row@co.westmoreland.pa.us Hours: Monday, Wednesday to Friday 8:15 am to 4:15 am Tuesday 8:15 am to 6:00 pm

Web Sites

 * USGenWeb project. Westmoreland County. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
 * An early history of the county published in 1906 and biographical sketches of early residents can be found in this transcription project: Westmoreland County History.
 * An early history of the county published in 1906 and biographical sketches of early residents can be found in this transcription project: Westmoreland County History.