Union County, New Jersey Genealogy

Guide to Union County, New Jersey ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Description
Union County is located in the northeastern region of the state. It was created in 1857. Elizabeth is the county seat. The county was named for The union of the United States, which was being threatened by the dispute over slavery.

County Courthouse
 Union County Courthouse 2 Broad Street Elizabeth, NJ 07207-2204 Phone: 908-787-1650 Union County Courthouse

County Clerk has land records from 1857 and military discharge records from 1941. Clerk Superior Court has divorce records from 1848 and court records. County Surrogate has probate records from 1857. Town Clerks have birth and death records.

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:

Census Records

 * 1855 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1895 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1915 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Church Records

 * 1675-1970 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

List of Churches and Church Parishes
 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Maps and Gazetteers

 * FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

 * Goodwin, Aaron. "The Elizabeth-Town Associates: Signatures on the Original Answer, 1751," The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, Vol. 138, No. 3 (Jul. 2007):189-198. Digital version at New York Family History ($);.

Civil War Regiments. Civil War service men from Union County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in Union County.
 * - 83rd Regiment, New York Infantry, Company K

Naturalization and Citizenship
Online Naturalization Indexes and Records
 * 1796-1991 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Newspapers
Courtesy of the Plainfield Public Library:
 * Courier News Obituary Index: mid-1920s-mid-1980s

Probate Records
Online Probate Indexes and Records
 * 1656-1999 New Jersey Wills and Probate Records 1656-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
 * 1670-1760 Calendar of New Jersey Wills 1670-1760 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
 * 1670-1817 New Jersey Abstract of Wills 1670-1817 at Ancestry.com — index and images ($)
 * 1678-1980 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images only; Use the Surrogate's Docket Index 1700-1972 to obtain the Docket Number for the name. Then, use the Docket Number to locate the correct Estate file.

Social Security Records

 * 1935-2014 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

Birth

 * 1901-1903 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index

Marriage
Online Marriage Indexes and Records
 * 1670-1980 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1930-1938 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Death

 * 1901-1903;1916-1929 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images
 * 1901-2017 New Jersey, U.S., Death Index, 1901-2017 at Ancestry - index ($)

Family History Centers

 * Maplewood New Jersey Family History Center
 * Morristown New Jersey Family History Center
 * Newark New Jersey Family History Center
 * Scotch Plains New Jersey Family History Center
 * Bloomfield Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Morristown & Morris Township Library - an affiliate library
 * New Providence Memorial Public Library - an affiliate library
 * Plainfield New Jersey Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries
Plainfield Public Library 800 Park Avenue Plainfield, NJ 07060 Telephone: 908-757-1111 The Local History, Genealogy & Special Collections Department offers newspapers, city directories, local histories, church records, biographies, and more.Website

Societies
Union County Historical Society 116 E. Fourth Ave. Roselle, NJ 07203 Telephone: 908-245-9010 Website Cranford Historical Society 38 Springfield Avenue Cranford, NJ 07016 Telephone: 908-276-0082 E-mail:[mailto:info@unioncountyhistoricalsocietynj.org info@unioncountyhistoricalsocietynj.org] Website Hillside Historical Society 111 Conant St Hillside, NJ 07205 Telephone: 908-353-8828 Website New Providence Historical Society 1350 Springfield Ave. New Providence 07974 Website Plainfield, Historical Society 602 West Front Street Plainfield NJ Website Rahway Historical Society 1632 St. Georges Ave. Rahway Website Springfield Historical Society 126 Morris Ave Springfield, NJ. Telephone: 973-912-4464 Facebook Summit Historical Society 90 Butler Parkway Summit, NJ 07901 Telephone: 908-277-1747 Website Westfield, Genealogical Society Of 550 East Broad Street Westfield Website

Websites

 * Union County NJGenWeb Project, a member of The NJGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
 * Union County NJ Genealogy


 * – 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.