Lee County, North Carolina Genealogy
Guide to Lee County, North Carolina ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
Lee County, North Carolina | |||||||||
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![]() Location in the state of North Carolina | |||||||||
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Founded | March 6, 1907 | ||||||||
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County Seat | Sanford | ||||||||
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Contents
County Information
Description
Lee County is located in the Central portion of North Carolina and was named for Confederate general Robert E. Lee[1].
County Courthouse
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Lee County Courthouse
1400 S Horner Blvd
Sanford, NC 27330
Mailing Address:
PO Box 4209
Sanford, NC 27331
Telephone: (919) 718-6300
Register of Deeds
P.O. Box 2040
Sanford, NC 27331
Phone: 919-718-4585 x1
Fax: 919-718-4586
Website
Clerk Superior Court
P.O. Box 4209
Sanford, NC 27331
Phone: (919) 718-6300
History
Parent County
1907--Lee County was created 6 March 1907 from Moore and Chatham Counties.
County seat: Sanford [2]
Boundary Changes
For animated maps illustrating North Carolina county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation North Carolina County Boundary Maps" (1664-1965) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.
Record Loss
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.
Places/Localities
Populated Places
Neighboring Counties
Resources
Cemeteries
Tombstone Transcriptions Online | Tombstone Transcriptions in Print | List of Cemeteries in the county |
Findagrave.com | Family History Library | Findagrave.com |
NCGenWeb | WorldCat | Billion Graves |
NCGenWeb Archives | ||
Tombstone Project | ||
North Carolina Cemeteries | ||
Billion Graves | ||
See North Carolina Cemeteries for more information. |
- North Carolina, Historical Records Survey, Cemetery Inscription Card Index at FamilySearch — index and images
Census
For tips on accessing Lee County, North Carolina Genealogy census records online, see: North Carolina Census.
Church Records
Presbyterian
- Buffalo, Sanford, N.C. Founded 1797.[3]
County Records
- 1833-1970 - North Carolina, County Records, 1833-1970 at FamilySearch — index and images
Court
The Clerk of Superior Court is elected for four years and must be a resident of the county in which he or she is elected. Unlike clerks of court in other states, the Clerk of Superior Court in North Carolina has numerous judicial functions.
As judge of probate, the Clerk has exclusive original jurisdiction over matters relating to the probate of wills, and the administration of estates, including appointing personal representatives, auditing their accounting, and removing them from office if necessary. The Clerk also presides over many other legal matters including adoptions, incompetency proceedings, condemnation of private lands for public use, and foreclosures. The Clerk is responsible for all clerical and record-keeping functions of the district and superior court. In addition, the Clerk receives and disburses money collected each year from court fees and fines.
Lee County Clerk of Court
Address: 1408 S. Horner Blvd. Sanford, NC 27330- Ph. (918) 774-4821
Records available: Wills and Estates, Court Records
Land
Lee County Register Of Deeds
Lee County Courthouse
1408 S. Horner Blvd
P.O. Box 2040
Sanford, NC 27330
Telephone: (919)718-4585
Has land records starting from 1908
Deed Records available for online research
Local Histories
Maps
Military
Revolutionary War
- 1779 - 1782 - North Carolina Revolutionary Pay Vouchers 1779-1782 at FamilySearch — index and images
Civil War
Online Records
- 1861 - 1865 - North Carolina, Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch.org — index and images
- 1861 - 1865 - North Carolina, Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch.org — index and images
- 1861 - 1865 - U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
- 1861 - 1865 - U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
- 1885 - 1953 - North Carolina, Confederate Soldiers and Widows Pension Applications, 1885-1953 at FamilySearch — index and images
World War I
- 1917 - 1919 - North Carolina, World War I Service Cards, 1917-1919 at FamilySearch — index and images
World War II
- 1940 - 1948 - North Carolina, Discharge and Statement of Service Records, 1940-1948 at FamilySearch — index and images
Newspapers
Probate
Online Probate Records
- 1660 - 1790 - North Carolina Will Abstracts 1660-1790 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
- 1663 - 1979 - North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1665 - 1998 - North Carolina Wills and Probate Records 1665-1998 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
- 1735 - 1970 - North Carolina Probate Records 1735-1970 at FamilySearch.org — images
- 1760 - 1800 - North Carolina Will Abstracts 1760-1800 at Ancestry.com — index and images
- 1908 - 1937 - Will Books 1 to 2 (1908-1937) have been digitized by FamilySearch - free.
There are Probate records available through theLee County Clerk of the Superior Court which includes wills, estate records and all transactions in reference to settlement of estates.
Taxation
Vital Records
Lee County Register Of Deeds
Lee County Courthouse
1408 S. Horner Blvd
P.O. Box 2040
Sanford, NC 27330
8:00am - 5:00pm Mon - Fri
(919)718-4585
Records available: Birth, delayed Birth, Death, Marriage, Deeds, Military Discharges
Copies of transcribed Vital Records can be found at the following websites:
- 1888 - Vital Statistics from the Jonesboro Leader
- Lee County Obituaries USGenWeb Archives
- Lee County Marriages USGenWeb Archives
Birth
- 1800 - 2000 - North Carolina Birth Index 1800-2000 at FamilySearch.org — index
- 1866 - 1964 - North Carolina Births and Christenings 1866-1964 at FamilySearch.org — index
Death
- 1898 - 1994 - North Carolina Deaths and Burials, 1898-1994 at FamilySearch.org — index
- 1906 - 1930 - North Carolina Deaths 1906-1930 at FamilySearch.org — index and images
- 1908 - 2004 - North Carolina Death Indexes 1908-2004 at Ancestry.com — index $
- 1909 - 1975 - North Carolina Death Certificates 1909-1975 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
- 1931 - 1994 - North Carolina Deaths 1931-1994 at FamilySearch.org — index
Divorce
- 1926 - 1975 - North Carolina, County Divorce Records, 1926-1975 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1958 - 2004 - North Carolina Divorce Index 1958-2004 at Ancestry.com — index $
Marriage
- 1741 - 2004 - North Carolina, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
- 1741 - 2004 - North Carolina Marriage Index 1741-2004 at Ancestry.com — index $
- 1759 - 1979 - North Carolina Marriages 1759-1979 at FamilySearch.org — index
- 1762 - 1979 - North Carolina, County Marriages, 1762-1979 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1763 - 1868 - North Carolina, Civil Marriages, 1763-1868 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1908 - 1926 - Lee County Marriage Index 1908-1926 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.[4]
Societies and Libraries
Lee County Genealogical and Historical Society
PO Box 3216
Sanford 27331-3216
Family History Centers
Family history centers provide one-on-one assistance and free access to premium genealogical websites. In addition, many centers have free how-to genealogy classes. See family history center for more information. Search the online FHC directory for a nearby family history center.
Websites
- Lee County, NC History, Records, Facts and Genealogy (Genealogy Inc)
- USGenWeb Project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
- Lee County NCGenWeb
- Lee County NCGenWeb Archives
- FamilySearch Catalog
References
- ↑ https://www.ncpedia.org/geography/lee
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ "Buffalo Church," North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program, http://www.ncmarkers.com, accessed 22 October 2012.
- ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/images/9/91/Iginorthcarolinag.pdf.