Caroline County, Maryland Genealogy

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

Maryland Courthouse
Caroline County Maryland Courthouse

Clerk Circuit Court has marriage, divorce, court and land records from1774; Register of wills has death and probate records.

History

 * Named for Lady Caroline Eden, wife of Maryland's last appointed royal colonial governor, Robert Eden, 1st Baronet of Maryland before he was usurped by the Annapolis Convention in 1776.
 * Pig Point was the county seat. The name has since been renamed Denton.

Parent County

 * 1773 Caroline County was created 15 June 1773 from Dorchester and Queen Anne's Counties. County seat: Denton.

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Maryland county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Maryland County Boundary Maps" (1637-1997) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Record Loss

 * Lost censuses: 1790, 1890

Neighboring Counties


Maryland counties:


 * Dorchester
 * Queen Anne's
 * Talbot

Delaware counties:


 * Kent
 * Sussex

Census
Federal Census reports available 1800-1930 including slave and veterans schedules.

Church

 * 1668-1995 at FamilySearch — index
 * Guide to Maryland Religious Institutions is not intended to be a complete listing of all Religious institutions in Maryland. It was originally based upon the churches recorded by the Federal Works Progress Administration during a records survey conducted from 1935 to 1941. It has been expanded by later acquisitions from religious organizations to the Maryland State Archives.

Church of England
See also St. John's Parish

Family Histories
It is anticipated that this bibliography will eventually identify all known family histories published about residents of this county. Use this list to:


 * Locate publications about direct ancestors
 * Find the most updated accounts of an ancestor's family
 * Identify publications, to quote Elizabeth Shown Mills, about an ancestor's "FAN Club" [Friends, Associates, and Neighbors]

General


 * Barnes, Robert W., F. Edward Wright, Vernon L. Skinner and Henry C. Peden. Colonial Families of the Eastern Shore of Maryland. 23 vols. Westminster, Md.: Family Line, 1996-2003; Lewes, Del.: Delmarva Roots and Colonial Roots, 2007. ff. [Caroline County families appear in Vols. 7 and 11.]

Bibliography


 * [Genn] Hillman, Ralph E. "James Genn of Northumberland County, Virginia, and Some of His Descendants," The American Genealogist, Vol. 72, No. 1 (Jan. 1997):32-38; Vol. 72, No. 2 (Apr. 1997):101-108.
 * [Wright] Wright, Charles W. The Wright Ancestry of Caroline, Dorchester, Somerset and Wicomico Counties Maryland. Baltimore: Baltimore City Printing and Binding Co., 1907. Available at

Land
Maryland State Archives has uploaded free images and indexes to the complete series of Caroline County Deed Books (1774-present). Visit their site to find the land records that interest you: A Digital Image Retrieval System for Land Records in Maryland. (Free registration is required.)

Revolutionary War
Caroline County men served in the 5th Maryland Regiment.


 * A Census of Pensioners for Revolutionary or Military Services: With their Names, Ages, and Places of Residence, as Returned by the Marshalls of the Several Judicial Districts, Under the Act for Taking the Sixth Census]. 1841. Digital version at Google Books et. al. 1967 reprint: 973 X2pc 1840. [See Maryland, Caroline County on page 127.]

War of 1812

 * List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883; Giving the Name of Each Pensioner, the Cause for Why Pensioned, the Post-Office Address, the Rate of Pension Per Month, and the Date of Original Allowance... Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1883. 973 M2Lp v. 5; digital versions at Google Books and Internet Archive. [See Vol. 5, Maryland, Caroline County, pp. 139-140. Identifies War of 1812 veterans living in this county in 1883.]
 * Wright, F. Edward Caroline County (Maryland) militia in the War of 1812, (1977) pages 65.

Civil War

 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index
 * 1861-1865 - at FamilySearch — index


 * - 1st Regiment, Maryland Eastern Shore Infantry, Company D, E, F, and G:

Newspapers

 * Caroline County newspapers are identified in "Guide to Maryland Newspapers," available online, courtesy: Special Collections, Maryland State Archives.

Probate

 * Probate Records, Colonial Index, 1634-1777 online at Maryland State Archives website - free

Online Probate Records


 * 1635 – 1777 Maryland Wills and Probate Records 1635-1777 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1635 – 1743 Maryland Calendar of Wills 1635-1743 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1796 – 1940 at FamilySearch images

Taxation

 * [1783] Caroline County Tax List of 1783: This is an alphabetical index to names to all property owners assessed. The index cards at the Maryland State Archives include county, hundred, names of tracts of land and whether individuals were paupers or single males as provided in the law.

Marriage

 * 1658-1940 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1666 - 1970 at FamilySearch — index
 * 1774-1815 - Cranor, Henry Downes. "Marriage Licenses of Caroline County, Maryland, 1774-1815," The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, 1774-1778: Vol. 28 (1904):209-215; 1779-1799: Vol. 28 (1904):320-345; 1800-1815: Vol. 28 (1904):428-455. For free online access, see WeRelate.
 * Marriage Records - Maryland State Archives

Death

 * 1898-1944 - Maryland Death Index 1898-1944

Societies and Libraries
Caroline Historical Society The Museum of Rural Life Ridgely Historical Society 16 N. Second St. Denton, MD 21629 Phone: 410-479-2730 E-Mail: [mailto:info@carolinehistory.org info@carolinehistory.org] Website

Greensboro Historical Society 111 South Main Street Greensboro, MD 21639 Phone: 410-482-2100 E-Mail: [mailto:gpnash1@gmail.com gpnash1@gmail.com] Website Facebook

Old Methodist Church Cemetery Greensboro Historical Society 209 N. Main Street Greensboro, MD 21639

Preston Historical Society P. O. Box 661 167 Main Street Preston, MD 21655 Phone: 410-200-6547 E-Mail: [mailto:prestonhistorical@gmail.com prestonhistorical@gmail.com] Website Facebook

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers

Websites

 * Caroline County, Maryland Genealogy, History and Facts (Genealogy Inc)
 * The Caroline County MDGenWeb Project, a member of The MDGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project
 * "Caroline Co.," in Genealogical Sources in Periodicals at The Maryland State Archives.
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project, Caroline County
 * The USGenWeb Archives Project, Caroline County (Backup site)
 * , Caroline County