Aitkin County, Minnesota Genealogy
Guide to Aitkin County, Minnesota ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
| Aitkin County, Minnesota | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of Minnesota, United States Genealogy | |
 Location of Minnesota in the U.S. | |
| Facts | |
| Founded | May 23, 1857 |
|---|---|
| County Seat | Aitkin |
| Courthouse | |
 | |
| Address | Aitkin County Courthouse 209 2nd Street NW Aitkin, MN 56431-1297 Phone: 218-927-7336 Aitkin County Website |
Contents
- 1 County Information
- 2 County Courthouse
- 3 History
- 4 Places/Localities
- 5 Resources
- 6 Societies and Libraries
- 7 Websites
- 8 References
County Information[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
The County was named for William Alexander Aitken, a fur trader for the American Fur Company, under John Jacob Astor. The County is located in the central area of the state.[1]
Aitkin County, Minnesota Record Dates[edit | edit source]
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1883 | 1885 | 1887 | 1885 | 1872 | 1885 | 1836 |
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
Aitkin County Government
209 2nd Street NW
Aitkin, MN 56431-1297
Phone: 218.927.218.927.7336
Clerk District Court has birth records from 1883,
marriage records from 1885, death records from 1887,
divorce records from 1886, probate, court and
naturalization records from 1885.
County Recorder has land records. [3]
History[edit | edit source]
- Crow Wing County was formed later same day from Aitkin County.
- Named for William Alexander Aitkin, a fur trader for the American Fur Company, under John Jacob Astor. A brief history of William Alexander Aitkin can be found on the Minnesota Historical Society Place Name page. (Select Aitkin County.)
- The county originally had 17 townships closest to the Mille Lacs Lake.
Parent County[edit | edit source]
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
- Sometime between 1857 and 1871, the county acquired the out-lands of Itasca and Pine Counties to its north and east.
- The county was reorganized in 1871, taking the lands from Cass and Itasca counties and losing a point located in southwest corner to Crow Wing county.
For animated maps illustrating Minnesota County boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Minnesota County Boundary Maps" (1849-1960) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.
Places/Localities[edit | edit source]
Populated Places[edit | edit source]
For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:[5]
| Cities | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
|
||
| Townships | ||
| Unorganized territories | ||
Neighboring Counties[edit | edit source]
Carlton | Cass | Crow Wing | Itasca | Kanabec | Mille Lacs | Pine | St. Louis |
Resources[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
| Tombstone Transcriptions Online | Tombstone Transcriptions in Print | List of Cemeteries in the county |
| Findagrave.com | Family History Library | Findagrave.com |
| USGenWeb | WorldCat | Billion Graves |
| MNGenWeb Archives | FamilySearch Places | |
| Tombstone Project | ||
| MNInterment | ||
| Billion Graves | ||
| See Minnesota Cemeteries for more information. | ||
Census[edit | edit source]
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1860 | 2 | — |
| 1870 | 178 | 8800.0% |
| 1880 | 366 | 105.6% |
| 1890 | 2,462 | 572.7% |
| 1900 | 6,473 | 162.9% |
| 1910 | 10,371 | 60.2% |
| 1920 | 15,043 | 45.0% |
| 1930 | 15,009 | −0.2% |
| 1940 | 17,865 | 19.0% |
| 1950 | 14,327 | −19.8% |
| 1960 | 12,162 | −15.1% |
| 1970 | 11,403 | −6.2% |
| 1980 | 13,404 | 17.5% |
| 1990 | 12,425 | −7.3% |
| 2000 | 15,301 | 23.1% |
| 2010 | 16,202 | 5.9% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
State Census
- 1865 - Minnesota State Census, 1865 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1885 - Minnesota State Census, 1885 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1895 1895 Minnesota State Census at MyHeritage($) — index and images
- 1905 - Minnesota State Census, 1905 at FamilySearch — index and images
Church[edit | edit source]
Most church records are held by individual churches. Some denominations are gathering their records into a central repository. For more information, see Minnesota Church Records.
List of Churches and Church Parishes
Court[edit | edit source]
Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]
- 1912 - 1956 - Minnesota Passenger and Crew Lists, 1912-1956 at FamilySearch — index and images
Land[edit | edit source]
The county register of deeds keeps land records once the land was transferred to private ownership. Abstracts and indexes for these records are generally available at the county courthouse.
Land records for Minnesota are listed in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:
MINNESOTA, AITKIN – LAND AND PROPERTY
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
Local histories are available for Aitkin County, Minnesota 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 Minnesota Local Histories.
Maps[edit | edit source]
- FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places
for more resources
Military[edit | edit source]
World War II[edit | edit source]
- 1940-1945 - Minnesota, World War II Draft Registration Cards,1940-1947 at FamilySearch — index and images
Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]
- 1872-1962 - Minnesota Naturalization Records and Indexes, 1872-1962 at FamilySearch — index
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Aitkin County, Minnesota Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:
- WorldCat
- FamilySearch. Do a Aitkin County, Minnesota Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see, FamilySearch Catalog Places Search).
Obituaries[edit | edit source]
- 1865-2006 - Minnesota Obituaries 1865-2006 at FamilySearch— index and images
Probate[edit | edit source]
Probate records may include wills, bonds, petitions, accounts, inventories, administrations, orders, decrees, and distributions. They may include the decedent’s date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, etc. See Minnesota Probate Records for additional information.
Online Probate Records
- 1801 - 1999 Minnesota Wills and Probate Records 1801-1999 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
Taxation[edit | edit source]
Since Minnesota tax records include only persons who owned taxable property, many residents were not included. Still they complement land records and can be used in place of missing censuses or the years between censuses. There may also be gaps. For more information, see the wiki page Minnesota Taxation.
Vital Records[edit | edit source]
Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents.
A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the Minnesota Department of Health, Office of Vital Records, or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred. See also Minnesota Vital Records.
Birth[edit | edit source]
- 1900-1934 Minnesota, Birth Index, 1900-1934 at MyHeritage($) — index
- 1900-1934 Minnesota Births, 1900-1934 at Minnesota Historical Society - free index, images ($)
Marriage[edit | edit source]
- 1850-2019 WEB: Minnesota, Marriages from the Minnesota Official Marriage System, 1850-2019 at Ancestry($) — index
- 1860 - 1949 Minnesota, County Marriages, 1860-1949 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1976-2003 Minnesota, Marriages, 1976-2003 at MyHeritage($) — index
Death[edit | edit source]
- 1850-2001 - Minnesota, County Deaths, 1850-2001 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1887-2001 - Minnesota Deaths, 1887-2001 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1904-2001 Minnesota, Death Index, 1904-2001 at MyHeritage($) — index
- 1904-2001 Minnesota Deaths, 1904-2001 at Minnesota Historical Society - free index, images ($)
Societies and Libraries[edit | edit source]
- Aitkin County Historical Society
PO Box 215
20 Pacific St
Aitkin, MN 56431
Website
Family History Centers
[edit | edit source]
Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a family history center.
Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries
Websites[edit | edit source]
- Minnesota Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
- FamilySearch Catalog
- The Aitkin County MNGenWeb Project, a member of The MNGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
- Cyndi's List: Aitkin County
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Aitken County, Minnesota" in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aitkin_County,_Minnesota accessed 8 Nov 2018
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Aitkin County, Minnesota. Page 362-370 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 362-365.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Aitkin County, Minnesota page 362, At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Aitkin County, Minnesota," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aitkin_County%2C_Minnesota, accessed 18 January 2020.
