Greene County, Arkansas Genealogy

United States Arkansas  Greene County

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

County Courthouse
Greene County Courthouse PO Box 62 Paragould, AR 72451-0364 Phone: 870.239.6311 County Clerk has marriage, probate, court and land records from 1876. Clerk Circuit Court has divorce records.

Parent County

 * 1833--Greene County was created 5 November 1833 from Lawrence County. County seat: Paragould

Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating Arkansas county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Arkansas County Boundary Maps" (1813-1925) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Record Loss
Prior to 1883 the county courthouse was burned twice. For a list of record loss in Arkansas counties see: Arkansas Counties with Burned Courthouses

Places/Localities
Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog'



Neighboring Counties
Clay •  Craighead  •  Dunklin County, Missouri  •  Lawrence  •  Randolph

Guardianship

 * Probate Records 1876-1953 Greene County portion of the collection: : Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979 FamilySearch Historical Collections (Free, browse images)
 * Includes Accounts 1898-1908; Administration bonds 1876-1906; Claims against estates no date; Guardian bonds and letters 1876-1905; Probate case files 1905-1937; Probate records 1876-1899; Wills 1894-1953.

History

 * History of Greene County at Ancestry.com ($)

Local Histories
AR History


 * Goodspeed's history of Greene County, Arkansas. Van Buren, Arkansas : Press-Argus, 1963.
 * Online at FamilySearch Catalog (Free) and at Ancestry.com ($)


 * History of Greene County, Arkansas. By Vivian Hansbrough. Little Rock, Ark.: Democrat Print. &amp; Lithographing Co., 1946. Online at: http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=27093 Ancestry.com] ($)

History Timeline
Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were taken from the Greene County page on the website, The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture.


 * 1715 - Louisiana Governor Antoine de La Mothe Cadillac was probably the first European to visit this part of northeast Arkansas
 * 1833 November 5 - The territorial legislature approved the petition to form Greene County.
 * 1850s (mid) - The growth of Gainesville, the drainage activities, and the arrival of land speculators, helped Greene County finally to boom.
 * 1884 - Paragould, a new town grew rapidly and became the county seat, beginning the sharp and sudden decline of Gainesville.
 * 1890s - Northeast Arkansas offered one of the few remaining hardwood forests in the nation. With rail transportation and drainage improvements, Greene County experienced a major boom.

Maps

 * Maps of Arkansas (1813-1925)

Civil War

 * - 8th Battalion, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate), Company D
 * - Davies' Battalion, Arkansas Cavalry (Confederate), Companies D, E and F
 * - Davies' Battalion, Arkansas Cavalry (Confederate), Companies D, E and F


 * Men from this county served in the 1st Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate), 25th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate) and Kuykendall's Company, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate).

Probate Records
Online Probate Records


 * 1783 – 1998 Arkansas Wills and Probate Records 1783-1998 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
 * 1817 – 1979 at FamilySearch — images
 * Probate Records 1876-1953 Greene County portion of the collection: : Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979 FamilySearch Historical Collections (Free, browse images)
 * Includes Accounts 1898-1908; Administration bonds 1876-1906; Claims against estates no date; Guardian bonds and letters 1876-1905; Probate case files 1905-1937; Probate records 1876-1899; Wills 1894-1953.

Vital Records
See also How to order Arkansas Vital Records

Marriage

 * 1876-1955 - Greene County Marriage Books 2-36 and License Applications Index 1876-1955 in at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1876-1922 - Greene County Marriage Books 2-16 Index 1876-1922 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.

Genealogy Societies and Libraries

 * List of Arkansas Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical &amp; Genealogical Societies
 * Greene County Arkansas Historical and Genealogical Society 212 W Court Street (7 room research center open 9-4 Monday through Friday) P.O. Box 121 Paragould, AR 72451 Phone: (870) 240-8944

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers