Difference between revisions of "Lyon County, Kentucky Genealogy"

Parent County

1854--Lyon County was created 14 January 1854 from Caldwell County.
County seat: Eddyville ^[2]

Boundary Changes

For animated maps illustrating Kentucky county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Kentucky County Boundary Maps" (1776-1939) 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

• Caldwell
• Crittenden
• Livingston
• Marshall
• Trigg

Resources

African American

• African American Griots Lyon Co., Ky
• Sandi Gorin's Tips ~ Hangings in Kentucky 1792 - 1900

The following have information concerning African American research.  Both should be used:

•  African American Research (US) has more information about the kinds of records

•  Kentucky Minorities has information specific to Kentucky African Americans.

Cemeteries

The following web sites have additional information on Lyon county cemeteries.

• Interment.net Kentucky cemetery records by county.

• by Westernkyhistory.org Some Lyon Co., Ky. Cemeteries

• ePodunk list of Lyon County cemeteries gives the names of the cemeteries in the county with a link to more information such as address, phone number, and web site.

Census

For tips on accessing Lyon County, Kentucky Genealogy census records online, see: Kentucky Census.

• USGenWeb Census Project ~ Kentucky  Census Transcriptions 1850 - 1930
• The USGenWeb Census Images ~ The USGenWeb Census Images Project
• Kentucky Census Transcriptions ~ The USGenWeb Census Project
• Census Online ~ Census Online

Church

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 Kentucky denominations, view the Kentucky Church Records wiki page.

• A list of Lyon Co., Ky. Churches

Court

• Ky Court of Justice
• Abstracts of Early KY Court Cases Abstracts of Early Supreme Court Cases ~ KYGenWeb Special Project
• Kentucky Court of Justice Research & Reference

Genealogy

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]

Bibliography

• [Baker] Chapman, Peggy Brown. Bakers of Logan, Christian, Muhlenberg, Livingston, Henderson, Hopkins, Caldwell, Union, Todd, Trigg, Crittenden, Lyon, McLean and Webster Counties & Jackson Purchase, Kentucky. Lubbock, Texas: P.B. Chapman, 1995. FHL 751704

Land

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

• The KY Land Office

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Lyon County, Kentucky 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 Kentucky Local Histories.

Lyon Co., Ky. Historical Signs

Maps

• Maps of Kentucky (1776-1939)
• KYGenWeb compiled list of maps
• Click on the county to go to the KYGenWeb site

Military

• Military Resources ~ Revolutionary War through Civil War

Civil War

Online Records

• 1861-1865 - Kentucky Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index
• 1861-1865 - Kentucky Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index
• 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)
• 1912-1950 - Kentucky Confederate Pension Applications 1912-1950 at FamilySearch — index and images

World War I

• Fallen Soldiers in WWI from KY ~ Fallen Soldiers in WWI from Kentucky

Korean War

• Korean War Memorial Korean War Memorial for Soldiers from KY ~ KYGenWeb

Miscellaneous

• Kentucky Postcards ~ The USGenWeb Archives Penny Postcard Project
• The KYGenWeb Footsteps ~ The Kentucky Footsteps Archives ~ KYGenWeb Special Project

Newspapers

• Kentucky News  -  Kentucky Newspaper Index with links
• Another Kentucky Newspaper Index with links
• Kentucky Newspapers on Microfilm   -   Kentucky Newspapers Available On Microfilm

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

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Do a Lyon County, Kentucky Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search).

Obituaries

• KY Footsteps Archives ~ KY Footsteps List Archives - thousands of obituaries here ~ KYGenWeb Project
• KY Obituary Sources ~ Kentucky Obituary Sources ~ Compiled by the KYGenWeb Project
• Links to research and locate obituaries
• Browning Genealogy Database ~ The Browning Genealogy Database - A Collection of Obituaries Compiled by Charles Browning.
• USGenWeb Archives Obituary Project  ~  Kentucky Obituary Project
• Afrigeneas ~ African American death notices, obituaries and funeral programs compiled by users from current newspapers and historical sources
• Obituary Depot  ~  Kentucky Newspaper Citations
• Obituary Daily Times  ~  Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries including interactive search function
• Nashville Advocate ~ Death Abstracts from the Nashville Christian Advocate
• Lyon County, Kentucky Obituary Collection From various funeral homes in the Eddyville and Kuttawa area.

Probate

Probate records are held by the Lyon County, Kentucky Genealogy Clerk of Court and are housed at the Lyon County, Kentucky Genealogy Courthouse. Microfilmed records can be found online at Kentucky, Probate Records, 1792-1977 for Caldwell, Henry, Hickman, Russell and Trimble counties. See the wiki page Kentucky Probate Records for information about how to use probate records.

Content: Probate Records may give the decedent's date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their place of residence.

Record types: Wills, estates, guardianships, naturalizations, and adoptions.

Online Probate Records

• 1774 – 1999 Kentucky Wills and Probate Records 1774-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
• 1727 – 1990 Kentucky Probate Records 1727-1990 at FamilySearch — images
• 1847-1941 - Will Book 1 (1847-1941) have been digitized by FamilySearch - free.

Taxation

Taxes were levied on free white males over 21 and slaves aged 21 to 60. These persons are referred to as "polls." Tax listings, or digests, of a county generally list the taxable landowners and other polls and the amount of tax. The records for each county are divided by militia district. For more background information and state-wide resources see the wiki page Kentucky Taxation.

Vital Records

Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Although Kentucky enacted a statute in 1852-1862 requiring registration of births and deaths,many counties did not comply. A second law was written in 1874-1879, and 1892-1910 but, again, was not always followed. By 1911, the law was more clearly defined and kept by 1920. Any existing births 1852-1960 and death records 1852-1953 can be accessed online. See How to Find Kentucky Birth Records and How to Find Kentucky Death Records for links to indexes and images.

Original marriage records are held at the office of the {{{1}}} County Clerk, with divorce records 1849-1958 located with the {{{1}}} County Circuit Court. For more information see How to Find Kentucky Marriage Records. For Kentucky divorce records see the wiki page Kentucky Vital Records. See also How to order Kentucky Vital Records

Birth

• 1853-1862 - Lyon County Birth Index 1853-1862. Batch C517661 at FamilySearch - free.^[3]
• 1874 - Lyon County Birth Index 1874. Batch C517662 at FamilySearch - free.</ref>
• 1875 - Lyon County Birth Index 1875. Batch C517663 at FamilySearch - free.
• 1911-1930 - Lyon Co., KyGenWeb Births 1911-1930
• Some Lyon Co., KyGenWeb Delayed Birth Records

Marriage

• 1797-1954 - Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954 at FamilySearch — index and images
  
• 1853-1862 - Lyon County Marriage Index 1853-1862. Batch M517661 at FamilySearch - free.</ref>
• 1875 - Lyon County Marriage Index 1875. Batch M517664 at FamilySearch - free.</ref>
• 1876-1878 - Lyon County Marriage Index 1876-1878. Batch M517665 at FamilySearch - free.
• 1891-1910-Lyon Co., Ky. Archives -Marriages 1891-1910 (Partial Listing)

Death

• 1860 - 1860 Lyon Co.,Ky. Mortality Schedule
• 1911-1963 - Kentucky Death Records, 1911-1963 at FamilySearch — index and images
• Ky Vital Records Project-death certs.
• Social Security Death Index
• Lyon Co., Ky Cemeteries Unmarked Burials
• Lyon Co., Ky. mail list obits

Societies and Libraries

Lyon County Historical Society
P.O. Box 811
Eddyville, Kentucky, 42038
Website

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 LDS Family History Centers

Websites

• Lyon County, KY History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
• Lyon County KYGenWeb
• KYGenWeb project. Has maps, name indexes, history or other information for each county. Select the county.
• State of Kentucky Website
• USGenWeb Kentucky Archives ~ Kentucky in the USGenWeb Archives ~ Vital statistics, maps, obituaries, Bible records, tombstone transcriptions and many other records.
• The USGenWeb project May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
• FamilySearch Catalog
• Lyon County, Kentucky Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
• Lyon County KY Genealogy (Kentucky Genealogy)

References

1. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Lyon County, Kentucky page 272, At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
2. ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
3. ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/images/0/0b/Igikentuckygl.pdf.