Clearfield County, Pennsylvania Genealogy

United States Pennsylvania  Clearfield County Clearfield County, Pennsylvania genealogy and family history research page. Guide to genealogy, history, and courthouse sources including birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, wills, deeds and land records, Civil War records, Revolutionary War records, family histories, cemeteries, churches, tax records, newspapers, and obituaries.   Clearfield County Pennsylvania Historical Facts  Parent Counties: Formed from Lycoming and Huntingdon Counties 26 March 1804.Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), [FHL book 973 D27e 2002]. </li></ul> <ul><li>County Seat: Clearfield </li></ul> <ul><li>Neighboring Counties: <span class="fck_mw_template"> &#160;residents may also have records in <span class="fck_mw_ref" _fck_mw_customtag="true" _fck_mw_tagname="ref">Wikipedia contributors, &quot;Adams County, Pennsylvania&quot; in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adams_County,_Pennsylvania (accessed 17 July 2012). </li></ul> <ul><li><ul><li>Elk</a> (north) </li><li>Cameron</a> (north) </li><li>Clinton</a> (northeast) </li><li>Jefferson</a> (west) </li><li>Cambria</a> (south) </li><li>Blair</a> (southeast) </li><li>Centre</a> (east) </li><li>Indiana</a> (southwest) </li></ul> </li></ul> Boundary Changes <ul><li>9 March 1771: The southern part of today's Clearfield County was part of Bedford</a> County when it was formed. </li><li>1785: The northern part of future Clearfield County was tansferred to Northumberland</a> County; the southern part remained in Bedford</a> County. </li><li>20 September 1787: The southern part of future Clearfield County went with Huntingdon</a> County when it was created; the northern part remained with Northumberland</a> County. </li><li>13 April 1795: The northern part of future Clearfield County became part of Lycoming</a> County when it was created in 1795; the southern part remained in Huntingdon</a> County. </li><li>18 April 1843: A northern swath of Clearfield County became part of Elk</a> County when it was created. </li></ul> Clearfield County Pennsylvania Genealogy Resources Bible Records Cemeteries Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information. <a href="http://www.pagenweb.org/~clearfield/cemet.htm">Clearfield County PA USGenWeb Cemetery Project</a> <a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/tsimages.htm">Clearfield County PA USGenWeb Archives Tombstone Photo Project</a> Census <span class="fck_mw_template"> Church Records <span class="fck_mw_template"> <img src="/learn/wiki/en/images/6/6e/Clearfield_county_pennsylvania_churches.png" _fck_mw_filename="Clearfield county pennsylvania churches.png" _fck_mw_location="right" _fck_mw_width="400" _fck_mw_type="thumb" alt="" class="fck_mw_frame fck_mw_right" style="width: 400;" /> <span class="fck_mw_template"> County-wide Database - Multi-denominational <dl><dd><ul><li>1708-1985 - <a href="http://hsp.org/collections/catalogs-research-tools/members-only-database">Pennsylvania, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985</a> at <a href="http://hsp.org/">Historical Society of Pennsylvania</a> – $, free to members of the society; Also available at <a href="http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2451">Ancestry.com</a> – $; 7,542,774 entries. This database is incomplete for all counties. </li></ul> </dd></dl> <dl><dd><dl><dd>Contains church records of: <ul><li>Clearfield: United Methodist Church; West Side United Methodist Church </li><li>DuBois: Lebanon Lutheran Church </li><li>Houtzdale: Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church; St. John's Lutheran Church </li><li>Kylertown: Kylertown Presbyterian Church </li><li>Morrisdale: United Methodist Church </li><li>Osceola Mills: Osceola Mills Presbyterian Church </li><li>Wallaceton: United Methodist Church </li><li>Winburne: Winburne Presbyterian Church </li><li>Woodward: Beulah Presbyterian Church </li></ul> </dd></dl> </dd></dl> <dl><dd><ul><li><a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/church.htm">Clearfield County Church History</a> at <a href="http://usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/">Clearfield County, Pennsylvania USGenWeb Archives</a> Includes histories and photos. </li></ul> </dd></dl> Catholic <ul><li>"100 years of the Pittsburgh Catholic Diocese 1843–1943". Western Pennsylvania Genealogical Society Quarterly, 17:1. FamilySearch Library book <a href="https://familysearch.org/search/catalog/show?uri=http%3A%2F%2Fcatalog-search-api%3A8080%2Fwww-catalogapi-webservice%2Fitem%2F151821">974.8 B2wg</a>. Contains chronology, map, county-by-county information. </li></ul> Quaker <dl><dd><ul><li>1800s-1900s - <a href="http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=5996">Pennsylvania Quaker Records</a> at <a href="http://www.ancestry.com/">Ancestry.com</a> - ($); book transcription. </li></ul> </dd></dl> Reformed <ul><li><a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/1picts/churches/stlukereformed-marriages.htm">St. Lukes Reformed Church</a> </li></ul> Court Records <span class="fck_mw_template"> Court of Common Pleas The Courts of Common Pleas are the trial courts of Pennsylvania. Major civil and criminal cases are heard in these courts. Judges also decide cases involving adoption, divorce, child custody, abuse, juvenile delinquency, estates, guardianships, charitable organizations and many other matters. The Common Pleas courts are organized into 60 judicial districts. <span class="fck_mw_template"> has its own judicial district. Judges of the Common Pleas courts are elected to 10-year terms. A president judge and a court administrator serve in each judicial district.<span class="fck_mw_ref" _fck_mw_customtag="true" _fck_mw_tagname="ref">The Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania http://www.pacourts.us/T/CommonPleas/ accessed 10 July 2012. Clerk of the Court <span class="fck_mw_template"> Prothonotary <span class="fck_mw_template"> Orphans' Court <span class="fck_mw_template"> <span class="fck_mw_template"> Emigration and Immigration <span class="fck_mw_template"> Ethnic Groups Germans Gazetteers Genealogy History Published Histories The following historical books about Clearfield County can be viewed and searched on the <a href="http://www.pagenweb.org/~clearfield/history.htm">Clearfield County PAGenWeb Area History Page</a>: <ol><li>The <a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/1picts/aldrich/aldrich-history.htm">HISTORY OF CLEARFIELD COUNTY</a> by Lewis Cass Aldrich published 1887 </li><li>The <a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/1picts/swoope/swoope.htm">TWENTIETH CENTURY HISTORY OF CLEARFIELD COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS</a> by Roland D. Swoope, Jr. published in 1911 </li><li>The <a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/1picts/wall/wall-history.htm">CLEARFIELD COUNTY PENNSYLAVANIA PRESENT AND PAST</a> by Thomas Lincoln Wall, published in 1925 </li></ol> Land and Property Land records in Clearfield County began in 1805. These records are filed with the <a href="http://www.clearfieldco.org/recorderofdeeds.htm">Recorder of Deeds</a> office in Clearfield, 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 <ul><li>1986–present Clearfield County offers free <a href="http://www.landex.com/remote/">online access</a> to indexes. Fees apply to view images. </li></ul> Land Records on Microfilm <ul><li>1804–1935 Deeds, 1805-1901; Index, 1804-1935. <span class="fck_mw_template"> </li></ul> Additional Resources Note that the "Maps" section below includes maps related to land ownership. See <a _fcknotitle="true" href="Pennsylvania Land and Property">Pennsylvania Land and Property</a> 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 Clearfield County Pennsylvania Land in online catalogs such as: <ul><li><a href="http://discover.hsp.org/Search/Results?lookfor=Clearfield+land&amp;type=AllFields&amp;submit=Find">Historical Society of Pennsylvania</a> </li><li><a href="http://www.worldcat.org/search?qt=worldcat_org_all&amp;q=Clearfield+county+pennsylvania+land">WorldCat</a> (For instructions see <a _fcknotitle="true" href="WorldCat Online Catalog">WorldCat Online Catalog</a>.) </li><li><span class="fck_mw_template"> (For instructions see <a href="Family History Library Catalog Place-name Search">FHL Catalog Place-name Search</a>.) </li></ul> Maps <dl><dd><ul><li><a href="http://ancestortracks.com/">Ancestor Tracks</a> has posted free, downloadable images from the <a href="http://ancestortracks.com/Clearfield_by_Ed_heary.html">Clearfield Co. Township Warrantee Maps by Ed Heary</a>. &#160;These map images belong to us and are not be used commercially. &#160;We hereby give permission to use them strictly for personal use; please attrbiute to Ancestor Tracks.&#160; </li><li><a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/land.htm">Clearfield County Maps</a> at <a href="http://usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/">Clearfield County, Pennsylvania USGenWeb Archives</a> including Clearfield County Clickable USGS Township Map. </li></ul> </dd></dl> Migration Military World War II <dl><dd><ul><li><a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/news.htm">Clearfield County Military Records</a> at <a href="http://usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/">Clearfield County, Pennsylvania USGenWeb Archives.</a> WWII Soldiers killed in action, missing in action, prisoners of war and wounded. </li></ul> </dd></dl> Naturalization and Citizenship <span class="fck_mw_template"> Naturalization records available for Clearfield County, Pennsylvania include the following: Online Naturalization Indexes and Records <dl><dd><ul><li>1820-1906 – <a href="http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=1192">Index to Declarations and Petitions in the Western District of Pennsylvania, US Circuit and District Courts</a> located in US Naturalization Records Indexes, 1794-1995 database on <a href="http://ancestry.com">Ancestry.com</a> - ($), National Archives publication M1208 </li><li>1820-1930 – <a href="http://www.fold3.com/titleinfo.php?id=119&amp;title=naturalizations_pa_western%2F&amp;xid=319">Naturalization Petitions of the U.S. District Court, 1820-1930, and Circuit Court, 1820-1911, for the Western District of Pennsylvania</a> on <a href="http://www.fold3.com/">Fold3.com</a> - ($), indexed, National Archives publication M1537, incomplete for all counties </li><li>1820-1930 - <a href="http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=1554">Naturalization Petitions of the U.S. District Court, 1820-1930, and Circuit Court, 1820-1911, for the Western District of Pennsylvania</a> located in Selected US Naturalization Records - Original Documents, 1790-1974 database on <a href="http://ancestry.com">Ancestry.com</a> - ($), indexed, National Archives publication M1537 </li></ul> </dd></dl> Original Naturalization Records on Microfilm <dl><dd><ul><li>1805-1906 Naturalization Petitions and Alien Dockets <span class="fck_mw_template"> </li></ul> </dd></dl> <span class="fck_mw_template"> Newspapers <span class="fck_mw_template"> Newspapers of Clearfield County <dl><dd><ul><li><a href="http://www.usnpl.com/panews.php">Pennsylvania Newspapers</a> </li><li><a href="http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/search/titles/results/?state=Pennsylvania&amp;county=Clearfield&amp;city=&amp;year1=1690&amp;year2=2012&amp;terms=&amp;frequency=&amp;language=&amp;ethnicity=&amp;labor=&amp;material_type=&amp;lccn=&amp;rows=20">Chronicling America</a> US Newspaper Directory </li></ul> </dd></dl> Online Newspapers To learn if there are newspapers online for a specific town or city in Pennsylvania, see <a href="http://news.google.com/newspapers">news.google.com/newspapers</a> and search for the town or the name of a newspaper. <dl><dd><ul><li><a href="http://digitalnewspapers.libraries.psu.edu/Default/Skins/civilwar/Client.asp?skin=civilwar&amp;AppName=2">Pennsylvania Civil War Era Newspaper Collection</a> available through the Penn State University Library. </li></ul> <dl><dd>Democratic Banner 9 October 1845-14 February 1849 </dd><dd>Country Dollas 20 June 1849 - 26 July 1850 </dd><dd>Clearfield Republican 14 Nov 1851 - 30 Dec 1854; 7 April 1858 - 5 July 1865. </dd></dl> </dd></dl> Online Newspaper Abstracts <dl><dd><ul><li><a href="http://www.pa-roots.org/data/list.php?255">PA-Roots Newspaper Articles</a> for Clearfield County. </li></ul> </dd></dl> Newspaper Excerpts and Abstracts <dl><dd><ul><li>County Review, DuBois Area Historical Society (DuBois, PA), compiled by Shirley Clark, The County Review, December 1881 to September 1883 (DuBois, PA:DuBois Area Historical Society, c1990) <span class="fck_mw_template"> ; <span class="fck_mw_template"> </li></ul> </dd></dl> Obituaries Obituaries are generally found in local newspapers where the person died. However, sometimes an obituary is found in the location from which he or she originated. To find an obituary, see the information under the <a href="Clearfield County, Pennsylvania#Newspapers">Newspaper heading</a> <span class="fck_mw_template"> Online Obituary Abstracts <dl><dd><ul><li><a href="http://www.pa-roots.org/data/list.php?256">PA-Roots Obituaries</a> of Clearfield County. </li><li><a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/obits.htm">Clearfield County Obituaries</a> at <a href="http://usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/">Clearfield County, Pennsylvania USGenWeb Archives</a> </li></ul> </dd></dl> Obituary Excerpts and Abstracts <dl><dd><ul><li>Mignot, Margaret Billotte, History of the French Settlers in Covington and Girard Townships, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania (1981?] <span class="fck_mw_template"> ; <span class="fck_mw_template"> . Includes some obituaries. </li><li>Wion, John H. and Democratic Watchman (Bellefonte, PA), Deaths in Central Pennsylvania; an Index to the Obituaries Appearing in the Democratic Watchman, Bellefonte, Pa. (S.I.:s.n., 1969) <span class="fck_mw_template"> ; <span class="fck_mw_template"> An alphabetical listing with name and death date. </li><li>County Review (Clearfield County, PA), DuBois Area Historical Society (DuBois, PA), compiiled by Shirley Clark, The County Review, December 1881 to September 1883 (DuBois, Pennsylvania:DuBois Area Historical Society, c1990) <span class="fck_mw_template"> ; <span class="fck_mw_template"> </li></ul> </dd></dl> Occupations  Indentured Servants Periodicals Photos <a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/photos.htm">Clearfield County PA USGenWeb Archives Photo Page</a> Poorhouse, Almshouse Probate Records <span class="fck_mw_template"> Online Probate Records Original probate records for some Pennsylvania counties are available free online as digital images at <a href="https://www.familysearch.org/">FamilySearch.org</a>. The dates vary significantly for each county and not all counties are listed. Some counties may only have probate indexes. This Pennsylvania collection of images may be browsed through the links listed below: Complete Collection: <dl><dd><ul><li>1683-1994-<span class="fck_mw_template"> at <a href="https://www.familysearch.org/">FamilySearch.org</a> </li></ul> </dd></dl> Clearfield County Only: <dl><dd><ul><li>1823-1919-<a href="https://www.familysearch.org/search/image/index#uri=https%3A%2F%2Ffamilysearch.org%2Frecords%2Fwaypoint%2FMM5Y-7JM%3An2085668771%3Fcc%3D1999196">Clearfield County Probate Records</a> </li></ul> </dd></dl> Original Probate Records on Microfilm <dl><dd><ul><li>1823-1919 Probate Records <span class="fck_mw_template"> - Indexes included </li></ul> </dd></dl> Repositories Archives <dl><dd><ul><li><span class="fck_mw_template"> </li></ul> </dd></dl> Courthouse <a href="http://www.clearfieldco.org/">Clearfield County Courthouse</a> 230 East Market Street P.O. Box 549 Clearfield, PA 16830 Phone: 814-765-2641 Hours: 8:30 am - 4 pm M-F The Courthouse Annex is located at 230 East Market Street and the Administrative Offices are located at 212 East Locust Street. <a href="http://www.clearfieldco.org/registerrecorder.htm">Register and Recorder's Office</a> P.O. Box 361 Clearfield, PA 16830 Phone: 814-765-2641, ext. 5987  The Register and Recorder's Office is responsible for recording deeds, wills, estates, marriages, adoptions, and guardianships. The office can be found on the first floor of the County Courthouse. <a href="http://www.clearfieldco.org/registerofwills.htm">The Clerk of the Orphan's Court/Register of Wills</a> holds marriage liceneses (1885-present), Estates (1832-present), and births and deaths (1893-1905). <a href="http://www.clearfieldco.org/recorderofdeeds.htm">The Recorder of Deed's Office</a> holds original deeds, copies of which cost $.50. <a href="http://www.clearfieldco.org/prothonotary.htm">Office of the Prothonotary</a> PO Box 549 230 E. Market Street Clearfield, PA 16830 Phone: 814-765-2641 Family History Centers <span class="fck_mw_template"> Libraries Museums Societies Rich in history, <span class="fck_mw_template"> contains a number of societies dealing with the history of the area. <a href="http://www.clearfieldcountyhistoricalsociety.net/">Clearfield County Historical Society</a> 104 East Pine St Clearfield, PA 16830 Hours: 1:30 pm - 4:30, Thurs &amp; Sun, May-Oct Free admission to the museum and $5 a visit to the Research Library. Membership costs $10 (Individual) or $15 (Family). Taxation Vital Records <span class="fck_mw_template"> Birth <span class="fck_mw_template"> <dl><dd><ul><li>1852 - Clearfield County Marriage Index 1852 in <a href="https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/igi">International Genealogical Index</a> at FamilySearch - free. Batch <span class="fck_mw_template"> .<span class="fck_mw_ref" _fck_mw_customtag="true" _fck_mw_tagname="ref" name="vr">Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/images/2/23/Igipennsylvaniac.pdf. </li><li>1852-1854 – <a href="http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2349">Pennsylvania, Births, 1852-1854</a> Index with images. Ancestry ($). </li><li>1941-1963 - Clearfield County Birth Index 1941-1963 in <a href="https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/igi">International Genealogical Index</a> at FamilySearch - free. Batch <span class="fck_mw_template"> .<span class="fck_mw_ref" _fck_mw_customtag="true" _fck_mw_tagname="ref" name="vr" /> </li><li>1726-1930 - <span class="fck_mw_template"> - free index. Not complete for all years. This index is an electronic index for the years 1726 to 1930. It is not necessarily intended to index any specific set of records. This index is not complete for any particular place or region. This collection may include information previously published in the International Genealogical Index or Vital Records Index collections. </li><li><a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/births.htm">Clearfield County Birth Records</a> by last name at <a href="http://usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/">Clearfield County, Pennsylvania USGenWeb Archives</a> </li></ul> </dd></dl> Marriage <span class="fck_mw_template"> <dl><dd><ul><li>1700-1821 - Pennsylvania Marriage Records <a href="http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2383">Ancestry.com</a> – ($) This database is incomplete for all counties. </li><li>1725-1976 - <span class="fck_mw_template"> - free index. Not complete for all years. This index is not necessarily intended to index any specific set of records. This index is not complete for any particular place or region. This collection may include information previously published in the International Genealogical Index or Vital Records Index collections. </li><li>Pre-1810 – Pennsylvania Marriages <a href="http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2098">Ancestry.com</a> – ($) This database is incomplete for all counties. Includes 35,000 marriage records from vol. VIII of of the second series of the Pennsylvania Archives. </li><li>1852-1854 - Pennsylvania Marriages <a href="http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2486">Ancestry.com</a> – ($) Index with images. </li><li>1885-1950 - <span class="fck_mw_template"> Extracted marriage records – free. This database is incomplete for all counties. May also contain marriage records earlier than 1885. </li></ul> </dd></dl> Divorce Divorce records are available through the office of the Prothonotary. The office of the Prothonotary is located in the <a href="#Courthouse">courthouse</a> building. Death <span class="fck_mw_template"> <dl><dd><ul><li>1852-1854 – Pennsylvania Deaths <a href="http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2487">Ancestry.com</a> – ($) Index with images. </li><li>1891-1906 - Clearfield County Marriage Index 1891-1906 in <a href="https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/igi">International Genealogical Index</a> at FamilySearch - free.<span class="fck_mw_ref" _fck_mw_customtag="true" _fck_mw_tagname="ref" name="vr" /> </li><li><a href="http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/clearfield/deaths.htm">Clearfield County PA USGenWeb Archives Death Register Page</a> </li></ul> </dd></dl> <span class="fck_mw_template"> Clearfield County Pennsylvania Genealogy Websites <ul><li><a href="http://www.pagenweb.org/~clearfield/">Clearfield County PA USGenWeb Project. </a><a href="http://www.pa-roots.com/clearfield/"> </a> </li><li><a href="http://www.linkpendium.com/genealogy/USA/PA/Clearfield/">Linkpendium - Clearfield County</a> </li><li><a href="http://www.pa-roots.com/clearfield/">Clearfield County PA-Roots Genealogy Project </a> </li><li><span class="fck_mw_template"> </li></ul> Clearfield County Pennsylvania Places Populated Places A listing of the Towns, Boroughs, and Villages of Clearfield County can be found at <a href="http://www.pagenweb.org/~clearfield/towns-boroughs.htm">Clearfield County PAGenWeb Project - Towns Boroughs Villages</a> Clearfield County Pennsylvania Genealogy References <span class="fck_mw_references" _fck_mw_customtag="true" _fck_mw_tagname="references" /> <span class="fck_mw_template">

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