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United States

Ohio

Belmont County

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

Ohio Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: St. Clairsville Organized: September 7, 1801 Parent County(s): Jefferson, Washington Neighboring Counties Jefferson  • Harrison  • Guernsey  • Noble  • Monroe  • Marshall (WV)  • Ohio (WV) See County Maps Courthouse Location Map Adoption This page is available for adoption

County Information

Description

The county was named for the French word for "beautiful mountain" and refers to the scenery. It is located in the Eastern Central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Belmont County Courthouse
101 Main St.
St. Clairsville, Ohio 43950
Phone: 740-699-2139
Belmont County Website

Court Clerk has divorce and court records from 1820.
County Health Department has burial records.
Probate Court has birth, marriage, death and probate records.

Belmont County, Ohio Record Dates

Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.

Known Beginning Dates for Major County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1867	1803	1867	1820	1800	1804	1820
Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1908. General compliance year is unknown.

Record Loss

1980 A courthouse fire may have damaged records. For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see: Burned Counties. By Michael John Neill at 24-7 Family History Circle. When the Records are Gone. By Arlene Eakle at Arlene Eakle's Tennessee Blog. Burned Counties Research in the FamilySearch Research Wiki.

Boundary Changes

Parent Counties: Formed from Jefferson and Washington counties 7 September 1801. County Seat: St. Clairsville Interactive Map of Ohio County Formation History (1790-1897) - animated maps illustrating Ohio county boundary changes Ohio Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library

Populated 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
Martins Ferry St. Clairsville (county seat)
Villages
Barnesville Bellaire Belmont Bethesda Bridgeport	Brookside Fairview Flushing Holloway Morristown	Powhatan Point Shadyside Wilson Yorkville
Unincorporated communities
Alledonia Anvil Armstrongs Mills Badgertown Barton Blaine Boston Businessburg Captina Centerville Colerain Crescent	Dilles Bottom Egypt Fairpoint Farmington Hendrysburg Hunter Jacobsburg Key Lamira Lloydsville Maynard	McClainville Pleasant Grove Riverview Sewellsville Somerton Steinersville Stewartsville Tacoma Temperanceville Uniontown Warnock
Census-designated places
Bannock Glencoe	Lafferty Lansing	Neffs Wolfhurst
Townships
Colerain Flushing Goshen Kirkwood Mead Pease	Pultney Richland Smith Somerset Union	Warren Washington Wayne Wheeling York

Resources

Bible Records

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

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Belmont County, Ohio online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find A Grave Interment.net Ohio Tombstone Transcription Project Billion Graves Ohio Gravestones
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	Family History Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Findagrave.com
See Ohio Cemeteries for more information.

 

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1810	11,097	—
1820	20,329	83.2%
1830	28,627	40.8%
1840	30,901	7.9%
1850	34,600	12.0%
1860	36,398	5.2%
1870	39,714	9.1%
1880	49,638	25.0%
1890	57,413	15.7%
1900	60,875	6.0%
1910	76,856	26.3%
1920	93,193	21.3%
1930	94,719	1.6%
1940	95,614	0.9%
1950	87,740	−8.2%
1960	83,864	−4.4%
1970	80,917	−3.5%
1980	82,569	2.0%
1990	71,074	−13.9%
2000	70,226	−1.2%
2010	70,400	0.2%
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.

• Our Lady of Angels, Barton, OH church records at OHGenWeb Archives

Court Records

Belmont became part of the State of Ohio on 1 Mar 1803, having formerly been part of the Northwest Territory. It was served by the Ohio District Court from 1803 until 10 Feb 1855, when the court was divided into Northern and Southern districts. Belmont was part of the Southern District. On 3 Mar 1911, the court was further divided and was subsequently part of the Southern Eastern District. See Ohio District Court Jurisdictions for a chart of the Ohio counties and the district courts that served them. District and Circuit Courts had the same jurisdictions.

Land and Property Records

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 database at OHGenWeb Archives

Local Histories

Local histories are available for this county. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see Ohio Local Histories.

• McKelvey, A.T. Centennial history of Belmont County, Ohio and representative citizens (Chicago Biographical Pub. Co. 1903) Digital version at Google Books; FamilySearch Digital Library. Indexed in “Index to McKelvey’s centennial history of Belmont County, Ohio, 1801-1901” (St. Clairsville, Ohio Cumberland Trail Genealogical Society, 2001) FHL book 977.193 H22i..
• Poorman, Christian L., History of the Upper Ohio Valley: with family history and biographical sketches; a statement of its resources, industrial growth and commercial advantages, Vol. 2 (Madison, Wisconsin: Brant & Fuller, c1890) Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library.
• Caldwell J. A., History of Belmont and Jefferson Counties, Ohio (Wheeling, West Virginia Historical Pub. Co., 1880) Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library.
• Ohio Indexes at EveryNameIndex.com — Select the county.

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of Ohio (1788-1940) at MapofUS.org

Military Records

• 1888-1919 - Ohio Soldier Home Records, 1888-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.

Civil War
Civil War service men from Belmont 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 Belmont County.

- 98th Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Companies B and E

World War I

• 1914-1919 Ohio, World War I Statement of Service Cards, 1914-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1914-1918 Ohio, World War I, Enrollment Cards, 1914-1918 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1916-1920 Ohio, WWI Index and Return Cards, 1916-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.

Naturalization and Citizenship

• 1800-1977 Ohio, County Naturalization Records, 1800-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.

Newspapers

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

For more Ohio newspaper information see Ohio Newspapers and Obituaries.

• 1793-late 1900's Newspapers at Ohio History Connection — Select county.
• 1855-1906 Belmont County Newspapers at OHGenWebArchives
• Early to late-1900's Newspapers at Ohio Memory — sort by County, City, Time Period, and more.

Obituaries

• Index of Obituaries at OHGenWeb; From Belmont County Newspapers

Probate Records

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 Belmont 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 ($); index and images
• 1789-1996 Ohio Probate Records 1789-1996 at FamilySearch.org — How to Use this Collection.
• 1814-1905 - USGenWeb Archives Belmont

Social Security Records

• 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index at FamilySearch — How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
• 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records

Ohio tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses before 1820 or to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned taxable property were listed, many residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties.

• 1800-1850 Ohio Tax Records, 1800-1850 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1800-1850 Ohio Tax Records, 1800-1850 at MyHeritage ($); Index

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.

• Vital Records at OHGenWeb Archives

Birth

• 1821-1962 Ohio, Births and Christenings, 1821-1962 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1841-2003 Ohio, County Births, 1841-2003 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1856 Return of Births for the year ending the first of March 1857 in Goshen Township at Internet Archive
• 1867-1918 USGenWeb Archive
• 1908-1998 Ohio, Birth Index, 1908-1998 at Ancestry ($); Index

Marriage

• 1789-2013 Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1800-1958 Ohio Marriages, 1800-1958 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1800-1942 Ohio, Marriages, 1800-1942 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1803-1900 Ohio Marriages, 1803-1900 at Ancestry ($)
• 1898-1912 Ohio Marriages at Ancestry ($)
• 1970-2003 Ohio, Marriages, 1970 - 2003 at MyHeritage ($); Index
• 1970-2007 Ohio Marriage Index, 1970, 1972-2007 at Ancestry ($)
• Belmont County Marriages at Internet Archive Courtesy of OhioGenWeb; most are pre-1900

Death

• 1840-2001 Ohio, County Death Records, 1840-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1854–1997 Ohio, Deaths and Burials, 1854-1997 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1856-1857 Return of Deaths In Somerset Twp., Belmont Co. at Internet Archive Courtesy of OhioGenWeb
• 1908–1953 Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1953 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1908–1932, 1938–1944, and 1958–2007 - Ohio, Death Index, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, and 1958-2007 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection
• 1908-2007 Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, and 1958-2007 at Ancestry ($)
• 1908-1932, 1938-2018 Ohio, Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2018 at Ancestry ($); Index and images
• 1913-1944, 1954-1963 Ohio Death Index, 1913-1944, 1954-1963 at MyHeritage ($); Index

Divorce

• 1962-2007 Ohio Divorce Index, 1962-1963, 1967-1971, 1973-2007 at Ancestry ($)

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Belmont County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Ohio Archives and Libraries.
Belmont County Records Center & Archives
45240 National Road West
St. Clairsville, OH 43950
740-298-8776
Website

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

• Wintersville Ohio Family History Center
  
• Bellaire Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries

Listed below are libraries in Belmont County. For state-wide library facilities, see Ohio Archives and Libraries.

Barnesville Hutton Memorial Library
308 East Main Street
P O Box 285
Barnesville, OH 43713-0285
Phone: 740-425-1651
Website

Belmont County District Library
20 James Wright Place
Martins Ferry, OH 43935
740-633-0314
Website

Museums

Belmont County Museums
67800 Mall Ring Road
c/o Ohio Valley Mall Unit #485
St. Clairsville, OH 43950
740-695-4359
Website

Societies

Listed below are societies in Belmont County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Ohio Societies.

Belmont County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society
P O Box 285
Barnesville, OH 43713-0285
740-425-1760
Website

Websites

• Local Gov't Records by County at Ohio History Connection — Browse their list; records are not online.
• Custom Browse of Historical Collections at Ohio Memory — Use map or alpha bar to select county or place, then browse search options in left sidebar.
• Ohio Genealogical Society ($) - online databases
• Belmont County OHGenWeb
• US GenWeb Archives
• Belmont County OH Genealogy at LDS Genealogy
• FamilySearch Catalog – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.

This website requires a paid subscription for full access.

FamilySearch affiliate libraries may have access to center-only databases, but do not always have all services normally provided by a family history center.