Hancock County, Ohio Genealogy

United States Genealogy

Ohio

Hancock County

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

Ohio Online Genealogy Records

Hancock County, Ohio
Map
Location in the state of Ohio, United States Genealogy
Location of Ohio in the U.S.
Courthouse
Address	Hancock County Courthouse 300 S. Main St. Findlay, Ohio 45840 Hancock County Website
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Hancock County, Ohio Record Dates

Known Beginning Dates for Major County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1867	1828	1867	1828	1820	1828	1820
Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1908. General compliance year is unknown.

• Parent Counties: Formed from Logan County 12 February 1820.
• County Seat: Findlay

Description

The county was named for John Hancock, the first signer of the Declaration of Independence. It's county seat is Findlay and was founded 12 February 1820. It is located in the Northwestern area of the state.

Places

Populated Places

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:

Cities
Findlay (county seat)	Fostoria
Villages
Arcadia Arlington Benton Ridge Bluffton	Jenera McComb Mount Blanchard Mount Cory	Rawson Van Buren Vanlue
Unincorporated communities
Cannonsburg Cordelia Deweyville Houcktown	Mortimer New Stark Portage Center	Shawtown West Independence Williamstown
Townships
Allen Amanda Biglick Blanchard Cass Delaware	Eagle Jackson Liberty Madison Marion Orange	Pleasant Portage Union Van Buren Washington

Neighboring Counties

Henry County  • Wood County  • Secena County  • Wyandot County  • Hardin County  • Allen County  • Putnam County

Boundary Changes

For animated maps illustrating Ohio county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Ohio County Boundary Maps" (1788-1888) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Record Loss

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Resources

Bible Records

For an extensive list of resources for Bible Records see Ohio Bible Records.

Cemeteries

Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.

Online Grave Transcripts	Published Grave Transcripts	County Cemetery Directories
Findagrave.com	Family History Library	Findagrave.com
Interment.net	WorldCat	Names in Stone
USGW Tombstones		Billion Graves
Billion Graves
OHGenWeb Tombstone Photos
Ohio Gravestones
See Ohio Cemeteries for more information.

Census

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1830	813	—
1840	9,986	1128.3%
1850	16,751	67.7%
1860	22,886	36.6%
1870	23,847	4.2%
1880	27,784	16.5%
1890	42,563	53.2%
1900	41,993	−1.3%
1910	37,860	−9.8%
1920	38,394	1.4%
1930	40,404	5.2%
1940	40,793	1.0%
1950	44,280	8.5%
1960	53,686	21.2%
1970	61,217	14.0%
1980	64,581	5.5%
1990	65,536	1.5%
2000	71,295	8.8%
2010	74,782	4.9%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

Church 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 Ohio denominations, see Ohio Church Records.

Catholic

• 1796–2004 - Ohio, Diocese of Toledo, Catholic Parish Records, 1796-2004 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free. This collection includes images of parish registers recording the events of baptism, first communion, confirmation, marriage, and death in the Diocese of Toledo (Ohio), Roman Catholic Church. These records are accessed by browsing the images by county. In addition to traditional parish registers, this collection includes miscellaneous cemetery records, Books of the Elect, Professions of Faith, Sick Call registers, etc.
  

History

Local histories are available for Hancock County, Ohio 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 Ohio Local Histories.

Local Histories

• Beardsley, D.B., History of Hancock County, Ohio: from Its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time, (Springfield, Ohio: Republic Print Co., 1881). Digital copy at Google Books Internet Archive, FamilySearch Digital Library, Ancestry ($)(Indexed) FHL film 1000318 Item 1

• Brown, Robert C., History of Hancock County, Ohio: Containing a History of the County, Its Townships, Towns, (Chicago, Illinois: Warner, Beers and Co., 1886). Digital copy at Google Books Internet Archive Ancestry ($)(Indexed) FHL film 931795

• Kimmell, J.A., Twentieth Century History of Findlay and Hancock County and Representative Citizens, (Chicago, Illinois: Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company, 1910). Digital copy at Google Books, FamilySearch Digital Library, FHL film 1000318 Item 4; book 977.119/F1 H2k

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

• 1790-1907 - Bureau of Land Management records Courtesy OhioGenWeb

Maps

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of Ohio (1788-1940)
• Family Maps of Hancock County, Ohio Genealogy (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.

Military

• 1888-1919 - Ohio Soldier Home Records, 1888-1919 at FamilySearch — index and images

Civil War

Civil War service men from Hancock County 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 Hancock County.

• -99th Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Companies D and G
• -Jacob A. Spaythe includes history Hancock County Companies in History of Hancock county, Ohio (1903)

World War I

• 1914-1919 - Ohio, World War I Statement of Service Cards, 1914-1919 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1914-1918 - Ohio, World War I, Enrollment Cards, 1914-1918 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1916-1920 - Ohio, WWI Index and Return Cards, 1916-1920 at FamilySearch — index

Naturalization and Citizenship

• 1800-1977 - Ohio, County Naturalization Records, 1800-1977 at FamilySearch — index and images

Newspapers

Hancock County, Ohio Genealogy newspapers may contain genealogical value including obituaries, births, marriages, deaths, anniversaries, family gatherings, family travel, achievements, business notices, engagement information, and probate court proceedings.

To access newspapers, contact public libraries, Ohio Genealogical Society chapters, college or university libraries, the Library of Congress, Google News, or the Ohio Memory. The Ohio Genealogical Society Obituary Database is another source of newspaper information.

For more Ohio newspaper information see the Newspaper Guides on the wiki page Ohio Newspapers and Obituaries.
Online Newspapers
Online Newspaper Abstracts
Newspaper Extracts and Abstracts in Book Form

USGenWeb Ohio Newspapers

Probate

From 1797 or the creation of the county, probate records were held by the Court of Common Pleas. After 1852, records are held by the {{{1}}} County Probate Court. Records include wills, estates, guardianships, naturalizations, marriage, adoption, and birth and death records (1867-1908 only). The records may give the decedent's date of death, name of spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their place of residence.

See Ohio Probate Records for information about how to use probate records. Online Probate Records

• 1786 - 1998 Ohio Wills and Probate Records 1786-1998 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
• 1789 - 1996 Ohio Probate Records 1789-1996 at FamilySearch.org — images
• 1790–1967 - Ohio, Probate Records, 1790-1967 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free. This collection consists of probate records and estate files from county courthouses in Ohio. The content and time period varies by county, with more records being added as they become available. This Collection will include records from 1789 to 1996. Currently, (September 2012) the collection is only searchable by browsing the images. A list of Fires that have destroyed records in the courthouses of several counties are listed on the Record Description page.
  
• various years - community contributed wills Courtesy OhioGenWeb Archives

Finding More Probate Records

Additional probate records can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Hancock County, Ohio Genealogy Probate Records in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Places Search).

Repositories

Courthouse

Hancock County Courthouse
300 S Main Street
Findlay, OH 45840-3345
Phone: 419.424.3911 

County Recorder has land records;
Probate Judge has birth, marriage,
death and probate

Family History Centers

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.

• Family History Center and Affiliate Library Locator

Local Centers and Libraries

• Lima Ohio Family History Center
• Findlay Ohio Family History Center

For additional nearby Family History Centers, search online in the FHC directory. Put your town name in the top search box.

Libraries

Findlay Hancock County Public Library
206 Broadway Street
Findlay, OH 45840
419-422-1712(voice)
419-422-0638 (fax)

Genealogy Section

Obituary resources

Museums

Hancock Historical Museum
422 West Sandusky Street
Findlay, OH 45840
Phone: 419-423-4433

Research

Societies

Online Genealogy Research Groups

• 
  
• U.S. Midwest Genealogy Research Community - FamilySearch Facebook Research Group
• Ohio Ancestors - FamilySearch Community group, must have a free FamilySearch account to join
• U.S. and Canada Genealogy Research - FamilySearch Community group, must have a free FamilySearch account to join

Taxation

• 1800-1950 - Ohio Tax Records, 1800-1850 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1800-1850 Ohio Tax Records, 1800-1850 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Finding More Tax Records

Additional tax records can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Hancock County, Ohio Genealogy Tax Records in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Places Search).

Vital Records

Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Marriages were usually recorded from the formation of the county and are held at the office of the County Probate Court. Divorce records are located with the county Clerk of Courts.

Any existing birth and death records from 1867 through December 19, 1908 are located at the County Probate Court. The Ohio Department of Health has birth records filed after December 20, 1908 and death records filed after January 1, 1954, while the Ohio History Connection houses death records from December 20, 1908 through December 31, 1953.

Birth

Online Birth Indexes and Records

• 1841-2003 - Ohio, County Births, 1841-2003 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1908-1998 Ohio, Birth Index, 1908-1998 at Ancestry.com ($) — index

Original Birth Records on Microfilm

Marriage

Online Marriage Indexes and Records

• 1789-2013 - Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1800-1958 - Ohio, Marriages, 1800-1958 at FamilySearch – free; Index.
• 1800-1942 - Ohio, Marriages, 1800-1942 at FamilySearch — index
• 1970-2003 Ohio, Marriages, 1970 - 2003 at MyHeritage ($) — index
• various years - community contributed marriage records Courtesy OhioGenWeb Archives

Original Marriage Records on Microfilm

Death

Online Death Indexes and Records

• 1840-2001 - Ohio, County Death Records, 1840-2001 at FamilySearch — index and images
• 1908-1953 - Ohio Deaths Free name indexes and images at FamilySearch. Records include such information as birth date of deceased, city, county, and state of death, name of spouse if married, names of parents, maiden name of mother, name of informant, if deceased was single, married, windowed or divorced, occupation of deceased.
• 1908-1932, 1938-2018 Ohio, Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2018 at Ancestry.com ($) — index and images
• 1913-1944, 1954-1963 Ohio Death Index, 1913-1944, 1954-1963 at MyHeritage ($) — index
• various years - community contributed deaths records Courtesy OhioGenWeb Archives

Finding More Vital Records

Additional vital records can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Hancock County, Ohio Genealogy Vital Records in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Places Search).

Original Death Records on Microfilm

Websites

• Hancock OHGenWeb
• USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
• FamilySearch Catalog
• Hancock County, OH History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
• Hancock County OH Genealogy
• Ohio Genealogy Network Group on Facebook

This website requires a paid subscription for full access.

Family History Library