Nevada County, California Genealogy

United States

California

Nevada County

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

Nevada County, California
Map
Location in the state of California
Location of California in the U.S.
Facts
Founded	April 25, 1851
County Seat	Nevada city
Courthouse
Address	Nevada County Courthouse  950 Maidu Ave Nevada City, CA 95959 Phone 530.265.1221 Nevada County Website

County Information

Nevada County, California Record Dates

Known Beginning Dates for Major Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1873	1856	1873	1880	1856	1880	1850
Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1905. General compliance by 1920.

County Courthouse

Nevada County Courthouse
 950 Maidu Ave
Nevada City, CA 95959
Phone 530.265.1221

County Clerk has birth and death records from 1873
marriage and land records from 1856
probate and court records from 1880

Historical Facts

Parent County

25 April 1851: Nevada County was created from Yuba County. County seat: Nevada City

Description

The county was named after the mining town of Nevada City, a name derived from the term "Sierra Nevada." The word nevada is Spanish for "snowy" or "snow-covered." The county seat Nevada City and the county was created April 25, 1851. The County is located in the east central area of the state.

Boundary Changes

For animated maps illustrating California county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation California County Boundary Maps" (1850-1925) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Records Loss

1856 and 1863: Courthouse burned twice and many records were damaged.

Places/Localities

Neighboring Counties

• Placer
• Sierra
• Washoe County, Nevada
• Yuba

Resources

Biography

• Nevada County Biographies (Genealogy Trails)
• Index to Nevada County Biographies (USGenWeb Archives)
• Selected Nevada County Biographies (CAGenWeb Project)

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Nevada, California online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Findagrave.com California GenWeb California Genweb Archives Tombstone Project Billion Graves
TombstoneTranscriptions in Print (Often more complete)	Family History Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Findagrave.com Billion Graves California's Genealogy Guide for Finding Obituaries, Cemetery Burials and Death Records Nevada California Cemetery Records
See California Cemeteries for more information

The following web sites may have additional information on Nevada County cemeteries.

• Interment.net California cemetery records by County.

• 1850 - 1960 - California Cemetery Transcriptions, 1850-1960 at FamilySearch — index and images

Census

For tips on accessing Nevada County, California Genealogy census records online, see: California Census.

Church History and Records

Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. For general information about California denominations, view the California Church Records wiki page.

LDS Ward and Branch Records

• Grass Valley

History

Local histories are available for Nevada County, California Genealogy. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the Wiki page section California Local Histories.

• 1867 - Bean’s History and Directory of Nevada County, 1867 (USGenWeb Archives)
• 1891 - Memorial And Biographical History Of Northern California (USGenWeb Archives)
• Nevada County Pioneers (CAGenWeb Project)
• Nevada County Pioneer Diaries - available at the Searls Historical Library in Nevada City. (CAGenWeb Project)

Land and Property

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.

See California Land and Property for additional information about early California land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and where records are currently housed.

• Alphabetical Index of Mining Claims (CAGenWeb Project)
• Original Nevada City Lot owners--1869 CAGenWeb Project)

Maps

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of California (1850-1925)

Migration

Early migration routes to and from Nevada County, California Genealogy for emigrant settlers included:

• California Trail 1844 to 1869 from western Missouri to northern California

• Truckee (River) Trail 1844 crossed the Forty Mile Desert to the Truckee River to follow it west past Reno, Nevada to Donner Pass to Emigrant Gap to Sutter's Fort (Sacramento, California). The exact route varied over the years, the most used being the Nevada City Road and Auburn Emigrant Road combination.

• Roller Pass 1846 alternate to the Truckee Trail two miles south of Donner Pass through Emigrant Gap to Placerville, California
• Nevada City Road 1850 branched off the Truckee Trail through Emigrant Gap to Nevada City, California the most important mining area 1850-1851
• Auburn Emigrant Road 1850 believed to be from Nevada City to Auburn to Sacramento, California
• Henness Pass Road 1850 branched off the Truckee Trail at Verdi, Nevada headed for Camptonville and steamboat service at Marysville, California. In 1860 it became a major route to the Comstock Lode silver mines in Nevada.

• Central Pacific Railroad reached Nevada County in 1866. Tracks completed 1869 from Ogden, Utah to Sacramento, California

• 1906-1935 - California, Pioneer Migration Index, Compiled 1906-1935 at FamilySearch — index

Military History and Records

• Nevada County List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883 (Genealogy Trails)
• Nevada County Military Records - Includes veterans of the Civil War, Draft Registration for World War I, and Army Enlistees for World War II. (USGenWeb Archives)

Civil War

Regiments. Service men in Nevada County, California Genealogy served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in Nevada County, California Genealogy:

- 1st Regiment, California Infantry (Union), Company G

- 4th Regiment, California Infantry (Union), Company I

- 5th Regiment, California Infantry (Union), Company C

World War II

• Nevada County World War II Honor List of Dead and Missing Army and Army Air Forces Personnel (Genealogy Trails)

Naturalization and Citizenship

• Excerpts of Naturalization Record Cards at the Searls Historical Library (CAGenWeb Project)

• 1849-1985 - California County Naturalizations, 1849-1985 at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers

Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Nevada County, California Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Do a Nevada County, California Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog. Do NOT use the word County. (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search).

• NewspaperArchive.com ($) has a collection of digitized Reno, Nevada newspapers going back to 1870 that may include residents from Nevada County. This database is sometimes free at libraries.

Obituaries

• Index to Nevada County Obituaries (Genealogy Trails)
• Index to Nevada County Obituaries (USGenWeb Archives)

Probate Records

Online Probate Records

• 1782 – 1999 California Wills and Probate Records 1782-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
• 1833 – 1991 California Probate Estate Files 1833-1991 at FamilySearch — images
• Index to Selected Will Books at Searls Historical Library (CAGenWeb Project)

Repositories

Archives, Libraries and Museums

Searls Historical Library
161 Nevada City Hwy
Nevada City, CA 95959
(530) 265-5910

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.

• Introduction to Family History Centers
• Nevada City California Family History Center
  

Taxation

California tax records complement land records and can supplement the years between censuses. There may be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information, see the wiki page California Taxation.

Vital Records

Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. See the CDC Where to Write website for information on acquiring copies of these records. The State office has records since July 1905. For earlier records, contact the County Recorder. See also How to order California Vital Records

Birth

• 1800 - 1994 - California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1812 - 1988 - California Births and Christenings, 1812-1988 at FamilySearch — index
• 1905 - 1995 - California Birth Index, 1905-1995 at FamilySearch — index
• Nevada County Birth Notices (Genealogy Trails)

Marriage

• 1800 - 2007 - California, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
• 1850 - 1945 - California Marriages, 1850-1945 at FamilySearch — index
• 1850 - 1952 - California, County Marriages, 1850-1952 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1854 - 1885 - Western States Marriage Index.
• 1960 - 1985 - California Marriage Index, 1960-1985 at FamilySearch — index and images
• Nevada County Marriage Notices (Genealogy Trails)
• Early Nevada County Marriage Certificates (CAGenWeb Project)

Divorce

• 1966 - 1984 - California Divorce Index, 1966-1984 at FamilySearch — index

Death

• 1800 - 1994 - California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1905 - 1939 - California Death Index, 1905-1939 at FamilySearch — index
• 1940 - 1997 - California Death Index, 1940-1997 at FamilySearch — index

Genealogy Societies, Archives and Libraries

Nevada County Genealogical Society
PO Box 176
Cedar Ridge, CA 95924
Website

Nevada County Historical Society
P.O. Box 1300
Nevada City 95959
Website

Truckee-Donner Historical Society
P.O. Box 893
Truckee, CA. 96160
Website

Doris Foley Library for Historical Research
211 N. Pine Street
Nevada City, CA 95959
Open Wed - Sat 10-4
(530) 265-4606
Website

• List of California Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical & Genealogical Societies

Websites

• Nevada County, CA History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
• California Genealogy Network Community on Google+
• California Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
• Nevada County CAGenWeb
• Linkpendium
• USGenWeb Archives
• FamilySearch Catalog
• Nevada County, Nevada Genealogy Trails
• Nevada County CA Genealogy (LDS Genealogy)