Carroll County, Arkansas Genealogy

United States Arkansas  Carroll County

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

County Courthouse


Carroll County Courthouse 210 W Church Street Berryville, AR 72616-4233 Phone: 870.423.2022

County Clerk has marriage and probate records from 1870. Clerk Circuit Court has land, divorce records from 1870.

History


Carroll County, Arkansas from Izard County by a legislative act passed 1 Nov 1833. That act took effect on 25 Dec 1833, making the county Arkansas's 26th county.

Prior to that, part of what is currently Northwest Arkansas and Northeast Oklahoma became Lovely County. Lovely County, which was intended as a residence for Native Americans, was in operation from 1827 to 1828. The Lovely County Citizen, published today in Carroll County's Eureka Springs, is named for the earlier county. Lovely County derived its name from William and Persis Lovely, a white couple who lived among the Cherokee.

In Jan 1834, Carrollton became the county seat and remained so until 1875 or 1880 (sources differ), when Berryville took its place. Currently, the county has dual county seats, Berryville and Eureka Springs. King's River serves as the jurisdictional line between these two county seats, with Berryville serving as the primary seat.

The White River flows through Carroll County. The area contains some of the most mountainous portions of the Ozark Mountains. The county has been noted for its oak and hickory forests and, currently, for poultry and beef production.

Tourism is also a significant industry in Carroll County. This is largely because of Eureka Springs, known as "Little Switzerland." Eureka Springs is characterized by Victorian buildings clustered on steep mountain streets. The county's other county seat, Berryville, is home to the Saunders Museum.

The county is named after Charles Carroll (1737-1832) of Maryland. He was the last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence. Carroll had died just the year before Carroll County was founded.

See also:


 * Bunch, Bradley, History of Carroll County Arkansas, 1876 (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Carroll County (Encyclopedia of Arkansas History &amp; Culture)
 * Carroll County, Arkansas (e-Reference Desk)

Parent County

 * 1833--Caroll County was created 1 November 1833 from Izard County. County seats: Carroll County currently has dual county seats, Berryville and Eureka Springs.

Boundary Changes

 * Carroll County originally comprised most of what is today Boone, Newton, and Carroll Counties, along with a small area that is now in northeastern Pope County.
 * Part of Carroll County became Madison County in 1836.
 * Part of Carroll County became Newton County in 1842.
 * The northern part of Madison County was added to Carroll County in 1867.
 * The eastern part of Carroll County became Boone County in 1869.
 * Other minor boundary changes occurred in 1838, 1843, 1846, 1854, 1857, and 1869.

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
A courthouse fire in Dec 1869 destroyed all courthouse records dated up to that time. For a list of record loss in Arkansas counties see: Arkansas Counties with Burned Courthouses

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



Populated Places

 * Alpena (Boone and Carroll Cos.): Wikipedia page
 * Beaver: Wikipedia page
 * Berryville: Berryville (Encyclopedia of AR History &amp; Culture) | Historic Berryville (official site) | Wikipedia page
 * Blue Eye: Wikipedia page
 * Carrollton: Wikipedia page
 * Eureka Springs: City History • Eureka Springs (Encyclopedia of AR History &amp; Culture) • Eureka Springs: The Extraordinary Escape (official site) • Eureka Springs History • Wikipedia page
 * Green Forest: Wikipedia page
 * Oak Grove

See also:


 * Carroll County, Arkansas - Populated Place Names (Carroll County Historical Society)

Neighboring Counties
Barry County, Missouri • Benton •  Boone •  Madison •  Newton  •  Stone County, Missouri •  Taney County, Missouri

Biographies
Biographies from The History of Carroll County, Arkansas (1889) published by Goodspeed Publishing Company are available free on the My Genealogy Hound website.

Cemeteries

 * Carroll County, Arkansas Cemeteries (Access Genealogy)
 * Carroll County, Arkansas Tombstone Photos (GenWeb)
 * Carroll County Cemeteries (GenWeb)
 * Carroll County Cemeteries (Tombstone Transcription Project)
 * Carroll County Cemetery Listings (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Carroll County Cemetery Locations (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Cemeteries (Linkpendium)
 * Full Name Index (A-H) (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Full Name Index (I-P) (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Full Name Index (O-Z) (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Harrington, Jessie F., and Annie E. Harrington. Cemetery Records from Carroll Co., Arkansas and Barry Co., Missouri. [n.p.]: Self-published, 19--. WorldCat page
 * Surname Cemetery Index (A-H) (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Surname Cemetery Index (I-J) (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Surname Cemetery Index (O-Z) (Carroll County Historical Society)

By individual cemetery

BillionGraves: Has Google map, searchable database for each cemetery, photos of headstones. Can also search globally for the burial in case the burial may have taken place at a different cemetery.


 * Eureka Springs Cemetery, Eureka Springs

General

 * Early Census Statistics (Carroll County Historical Society)

1830

 * 1830 census, Izard County (Carroll's parent county) (Carroll County Historical Society)

1840

 * 1840 Census Index (S-K Publications via GenWebArchives)
 * 1840 Census Index (Peggy Seidler via GenWeb Archives): Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
 * 1840 U.S. Census, Carroll County, Arkansas. Wichita, KS: S-K Publications, [1987?]. WorldCat page
 * Worley, Ted R. United States Census (Index) Carroll County, Arkansas 1840; U.S. Census, Carroll County, Arkansas, 1850. Little Rock, AR: Arkansas History Commission, 1957. WorldCat page

1850

 * 1850 Census (Peggy Seidler via GenWeb Archives): Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
 * 1850 Census Index (S-K Publications via GenWeb Archives)
 * 1850 Census Index (Peggy Seidler via GenWeb Archives): Part 1 | Part 2
 * 1850 Slave Schedule (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Crisp, Robert M. Index to Heads of Households, Carroll Co., Arkansas 1850 Census. Fayetteville, AR: University of Arkansas College of Engineering, 1991. WorldCat page
 * Melson, James E. Arkansas, Carroll County, 1850 Census. Muskogee, OK: Self-published, 1995. WorldCat page
 * Presley, Mrs. Leister E. Carroll County, Arkansas, 1850. Searcy, AR: Self-published, 1970. WorldCat page
 * Schunk, John F. 1850 U.S. Census, Carroll County, Arkansas. Wichita, KS: S-K Publications, 1987. WorldCat page
 * Snow, Joy L. 1850 Carroll County, Arkansas. Marshfield, MO: J.L. Snow, n.d. Family History Library
 * Worley, Ted R. U.S. Census, Carroll County Arkansas, 1850. [1959?]. WorldCat page

1860

 * 1860 census index (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Buckley, Sandra Johns. 1860 Federal Census Carroll County, Arkansas. Fair Play, MO: Self-published, 1991. WorldCat page

1870

 * 1870 Census Images (GenWeb Archives)
 * 1870 Census Index (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Index to Online Census Images, 1870 (GenWeb Archives)
 * Looney, Janice Soutee. Carroll Co. Arkansas 1870 Federal Census. Walnut Grove, MO: J.S. Looney, 1989. WorldCat page

1880

 * 1880 Census Images (GenWeb Archives)
 * 1880 Census Surname Index (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Fayetteville Public Library Genealogy Dept. Partial Index to the 1880 Carroll County Arkansas Federal Census. Fayetteville, AR: Fayetteville Public Library, 1990. WorldCat page

1920

 * "Anna (Allred Smith) - Pension Mountain Teacher - 1920 Census" (article about collecting the 1920 census), Carroll County Historical Quarterly, Sep 1963, pp. 5-6 (Carroll County Historical Society)

1930

 * "Census Work" (article about preparations for collecting the 1930 census), Green Forest Tribune, 22 Mar 1900 (Carroll County Historical Society)

Church Records

 * Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center, Springfield, MO: Eureka Springs figures prominently in the early 20th century pre-denominational history of Pentecostalism. The Flower Center houses a number of periodicals, photographs, and other archival materials pertaining to pre-World War I Pentecostalism in Eureka Springs, Carroll Co., AR.
 * Hicks, Freda Biggerstaff. Church Records of Union United Baptist Church, Carroll County, Arkansas. [AR?]: Self-published, 1989. WorldCat page

Court
The Clerk of the Circuit Court for Carroll County, at 210 West Church Street in Berryville, has court records dating from 1870.


 * Agee, Peg. Eureka Springs Feud Ends Deadly: Based on Actual Events - Court Transcripts Included. Bloomington, IN: Anchor House, 2008. Google Books preview

Education

 * Douglass Community School History (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Green Forest High School 1892 Closing Exercise Program (Carroll County Historical Society)

Guardianship

 * Probate Records 1866-1940 County portion of the collection: : Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979 FamilySearch Historical Collections (Free, browse images)
 * Includes Administration bonds and letters 1883-1918; Letters of guardianship 1883-1920; wills 1866-1940.

General:

 * Biographies: Extensive menu, primarily from Goodspeed's history (GenWeb Archives)
 * History and Families, Carroll County, Arkansas. Paducah, KY: Turner Publishing Co., 2003. WorldCat page
 * Russell, Jesse Lewis. Behind These Ozark Hills (manuscript). Family History Library
 * York, Courtney. Arkansas Carroll County Biographies, 1889. San Jose, CA: House of York, 1971. WorldCat page
 * Biographies from The History of Carroll County, Arkansas (1889) published by Goodspeed Publishing Company are available free on the My Genealogy Hound website.

Specific families:

 * [Bunch]: Bradley Bunch (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * [Chaney]: Chaney Log House (Historic American Building Surveys at Library of Congress)
 * [Gaskins]: Gaskins, John. Life and Adventures of John Gaskins in the Early History of Northwest Arkansas: True Tales by an Old Hunter. Eureka Springs, AR: Eureka Springs Historical Museum, [1980?]. WorldCat page
 * [Usrey]: Rob &amp; Janie (Phillips) Usrey (Carroll County Historical Society)

Land and Property
The Clerk of the Circuit Court for Carroll County, at 210 West Church Street in Berryville, has land records dating from 1870.


 * Allen, Desmond Walls. Arkansas State Donation and Swamp Lands: Baxter, Boone, Carroll, Fulton, Izard, Madison, Marion, Newton, Searcy, and Stone Counties, 1855-2001. Conway, AR: Arkansas Research, 2003. WorldCat page
 * Allen, Desmond Walls, and Bobbie Jones McLane. Arkansas Land Patents, Carroll County: Granted Through 30 Jun 1908. Conway, AR: Arkansas Research, 1991. WorldCat page
 * Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office: Land patents for Carroll County can be searched and viewed online, with scans of the original documents accessible. Searching for Carroll County patents with no particular individual's name yields 205 pages of hits.

Local Histories

 * Bunch, Bradley. History of Carroll County Arkansas, 1876. (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * City of Eureka Springs: City History
 * Cragon, Harvey G. The Eureka Springs Railway: An Automobile Tour into the Past. Dallas, TX: Cragon Books, 2007.
 * Danielson, Kay Marnon. Eureka Springs, Arkansas (Images of America series). Chicago: Arcadia Publishing, 2001. Google Books preview 
 * Eureka Springs History
 * Griffith, Rue. History of Rule Community, 1955. (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Hanley, Ray, and Diane Hanley. Carroll and Boone Counties, Arkansas. Charleston, SC: Arcadia, 1999. WorldCat page
 * History and Families, Carroll County, Arkansas. Paducah, KY: Turner Publishing Co., 2003. Family History Library | WorldCat page
 * History of Carroll County, Arkansas. Berryville, AR: Carroll County Historical Society, 2005 (reprint of Goodspeed's 19th century history with extra material added). WorldCat page
 * Keefe, James F., and Lynn Morrow, eds. The White River Chronicles of S.C. Turnbo: Man and Wildlife on the Ozarks Frontier. University of Arkansas Press, 1994. Google Books preview | publisher's page
 * Lair, Jim, ed. Carroll County Families: These Were the First. Berryville, AR: Carroll County Historical and Genealogical Society, 1991. Family History Library
 * Lair, Jim, and O. Klute Braswell. An Outlander's History of Carroll County, Arkansas, 1830-1983. Marceline, MO: Walsworth Publishing Co., 1983. Family History Library | WorldCat page
 * A Pictorial Heritage of Carroll County, Arkansas. Paducah, KY: Turner Publishing Co., 2003. WorldCat page
 * History of Benton, Washington, Carroll, Madison, Crawford, Franklin, and Sebastian Counties, Arkansas. Chicago, IL, USA: Goodspeed Publishing, 1889. Ancestry.com ($)
 * Pioneer tales of Eureka Springs and Carroll County. Eureka Springs, Ark.: unknown,c1930. Ancestry.com ($)

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 Arkansas County page on the website, The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture.


 * 1808 - The Osage ceded their rights to northwest Arkansas to the government of the USA.
 * 1818 - The United States government established a reservation for the Western Cherokee.
 * 1828 - The reservation was given up, and the land became the property of the federal government once more.
 * 1833 - November 1, Carroll County was created
 * 1840s - William and Charles Sneed were the area’s first settlers.
 * 1840s - In the county’s early years, lumber mills appeared, farmers grew sustenance crops, and an abundance of game made for good hunting.
 * 1879 - The use of mineral springs in the western part of the county brought a rapid population increase in the area.
 * 1883 - The railroad reached Eureka Springs.
 * 1901 - Additional rail travel came to Carroll County with the completion of the St. Louis and North Arkansas line from Harrison (Boone County) to Green Forest, Berryville, and Eureka Springs
 * 1920s-1930s - Due to an economy based on agriculture, many residents had to seek employment elsewhere. Some headed to the oil fields in Oklahoma, others to California. Thus began a population decline that lasted until 1960.

Maps

 * Maps of Arkansas (1813-1925)
 * Carroll County Section/Township/Range Map (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Eureka Springs Sanborn Maps (Eureka Springs History)
 * Libre Map Project: Contains extremely detailed online topographic maps for Carroll County
 * Map of 1889 Carroll County, Arkansas with numerous small settlements. (My Genealogy Hound)

General

 * 1883 Pension List (Carroll County Historical Society)

Civil War

 * - 1st Battalion, Arkansas Cavalry (Stirman's) (Confederate), Companies A, B and C
 * - 14th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Powers') (Confederate)
 * - 16th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate), Companies D and E
 * - 27th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate), Companies B and C (old), Company D


 * Captain Larkin Bunch's Civil War Unit Roster (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Carroll County, Arkansas (Community &amp; Conflict: The Impact of the Civil War in the Ozarks)
 * Carroll County Sesquicentennial Civil War Marker (grant award mentioned; Arkansas Humanities Council)
 * Carroll County United Confederate Veteran Reunion Extractions fromGreen Forest Tribune (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Civil War Unit of Captain George E. Gaddy, Carroll County, Arkansas (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Known Confederate Soldiers Buried in Carroll County (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Known Union Soldiers Buried in Carroll County (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Lemley, J.B., Lester Finley, and Elaine Cia. Civil War Letters: Capt. Jno. R. Homer Scott's Squadron of Cavelry [sic] in Pope County, Arkansas and Carroll County, Arkansas. [no publication data]: 1986. WorldCat page
 * Massey, James Troy. Confederates Buried in Boone, Baxter, Carroll, Newton and Searcy Counties, Arkansas. Harrison, AR: Self-published, 1997. Family History Library | WorldCat page

World War II

 * McGaughey, Muriel. Carroll County Men with the Colors: 1942-1945. [S.I.]: O.K. Braswell, 194-. WorldCat page
 * WW 2 Army and Air Force Casualties Carroll County ARGenweb

Miscellaneous

 * Bird's Eye View of Eureka Springs, Ark. (abt 1914; Library of Congress)
 * Carroll County Oral Histories (grant award mentioned; Arkansas Humanities Council)
 * Carroll County Postcards (Penny Postcards from Arkansas)
 * Panoramic View of Eureka Springs, Arkansas (abt 1901; Library of Congress)
 * Photos (Carroll County Historical Society)

Newspapers

 * Carroll County News, Berryville, Carroll Co., AR (currently in operation)
 * Chronicling America list of historic newspapers in Carroll County (Library of Congress)
 * Eureka Springs Flashlight, Friday, January 8, 1909 (transcriptions; Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Green Forest Tribune, Thursday, December 28, 1899 (transcriptions; Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Lovely County Citizen, Eureka Springs, Carroll Co., AR (currently in operation; see the History section, above, for an explanation of the paper's unique title)

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

The County Clerk, at 210 West Church Street in Berryville, has probate records dating as early as 1870.


 * Eastern District Will Book A, 1869-1930 (index; Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Western District Will Book A, 1883-1909 (index; Carroll County Historical Society)


 * Probate Records 1866-1940 County portion of the collection: : Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979 FamilySearch Historical Collections (Free, browse images)
 * Includes Administration bonds and letters 1883-1918; Letters of guardianship 1883-1920; wills 1866-1940.

Taxation
Tax records are housed at the county courthouse and at the Arkansas History Commission.


 * 1834 Tax List (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Pyron, Shirley Hamby, and Juanita Norris Buell. 1890 Reconstructed Census of Carroll County, Arkansas, from 1890 Personal Property Tax Records. AR: Carroll County Historical and Genealogical Society, [1986?]. WorldCat page

Vital Records
See also How to order Arkansas Vital Records

Marriage
The County Clerk, at 210 West Church Street in Berryville, has marriage records dating as early as 1870.


 * Carroll County, Arkansas Historic Marriage Index. Berryville, AR: Carroll County Historical and Genealogical Society, 1995. WorldCat page
 * 1869-1930 - Carroll County Arkansas Marriage Records Eastern District Grooms Index 1869-1930 (Carroll County Historical Society)
 * Carroll County Marriages (GenWeb)
 * Pinkerton, Shirley, and O. Klute Braswell. Carroll County, Arkansas Marriage Index, Eastern District. [no publication data], 1983. WorldCat page
 * 1869-1951 - Shubert, Dwight. Carroll County, Arkansas Marriage Index, 1869-1951. Sherwood, AR: Self-published, 1999. WorldCat page
 * 1869-1930 - Snow, John L. Carroll County, Arkansas Marriages 1869-1930 Eastern &amp; Western District, Grooms. Marshfield, MO: Self-published, 200-. WorldCat page
 * 1870-1944 - Carroll County Marriage Books A-Q Index 1870-1944 in at FamilySearch - free.
 * 1874-1922 - Carroll County Marriage Books A-I Index 1874-1922 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.

Divorce

 * 1870-1897 Carroll County Arkansas Divorce Records, Chancery Court Book A, 1870-1897 (Carroll County Histoirical Society)

Death

 * Allen, Desmond Walls. Northwestern Arkansas Death Record Index: Benton, Boone, Carroll, Madison, Marion, Newton, Searcy, and Washington Counties. Conway, AR: Arkansas Research, 1996. WorldCat page
 * Parton, Reta DeShields, Tonya Parton Williams, and Vineta Wingate. Carroll County, Arkansas Burial Association, Member Deaths, 1941-1962. AR: R.D. Parton, [2002?]. WorldCat

Genealogy Societies and Libraries

 * List of Arkansas Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical &amp; Genealogical Societies
 * Berryville Public Library
 * Carroll County Arkansas Historical Society
 * Eureka Springs Carnegie Public Library
 * Eureka Springs Historical Museum
 * Saunders Museum, Berryville
 * Shiloh Museum of Ozark History, Springdale, Washington Co.

Family History Centers

 * Introduction to LDS Family History Centers

Societies
Carroll County Historical Society


 * website contains many County records including school, Cemeteries, Census, Tax, Marriage, Divorce, Civil War records and more.