About Family History Research in Vermont
Vermont State House ca. 1808
Vermont is a great place to do research because of the wealth of historical material that can be found at the state's many archives, libraries, and other repositories. In addition to state level archives, records can also be located at the local level at county courthouses, public libraries, churches, county clerks' offices, cemeteries, and local historical societies. Many records are also now available online at a number of great websites like Ancestry.com and FamilySearch, both of which have searchable databases consisting of billions of records relating to the history of Vermont.
Records for the entire state of Vermont can be found at the Vermont State Library in Barre and at the Vermont State Archives in Middlesex. These records include property deeds, court records, newspapers, local histories, military records, family wills, tax lists, vital records, biographies, and other types of records. It might also be worthwhile to visit the Vermont History Center, which is located in Barre and operated by the Vermont Historical Society. Their holdings include vital records, immigration records, newspapers, city directories, biographies, and many other types of records. All of these places house billions of records relating to Vermont history and genealogy.
There are a number of ways to get copies of vital records (birth, marriage, and death certificates) in Vermont. Vermont began statewide registration of births in 1861, but they were discontinued in 1863. It then resumed these registrations 1881. The Vermont State Library has a number of vital records indexes, as well as some copies of original records. Copies of vital records can be ordered from the Vermont State Department of Health in Montpelier. Birth records are open to the general public for births that occurred at least 100 years ago, and marriage and death records are available to anyone over 18 years of age.
The Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah also holds a large collection of historical records relating to the state of Vermont. This is the largest and most important genealogy collection in the world and is worth a visit to explore the many billions of records that can be found there. Published material consists of books, microfilm, microfiche, and other records for the 14 counties of Vermont. The Family History Library also has smaller family history centers located throughout the world where you can order microfilm and have these records shipped from Utah to the local area where you live. The library has also transcribed and indexed millions of Vermont vital, immigration, census, military, and other records which are available to view or download online at FamilySearch.org.
Records for the entire state of Vermont can be found at the Vermont State Library in Barre and at the Vermont State Archives in Middlesex. These records include property deeds, court records, newspapers, local histories, military records, family wills, tax lists, vital records, biographies, and other types of records. It might also be worthwhile to visit the Vermont History Center, which is located in Barre and operated by the Vermont Historical Society. Their holdings include vital records, immigration records, newspapers, city directories, biographies, and many other types of records. All of these places house billions of records relating to Vermont history and genealogy.
There are a number of ways to get copies of vital records (birth, marriage, and death certificates) in Vermont. Vermont began statewide registration of births in 1861, but they were discontinued in 1863. It then resumed these registrations 1881. The Vermont State Library has a number of vital records indexes, as well as some copies of original records. Copies of vital records can be ordered from the Vermont State Department of Health in Montpelier. Birth records are open to the general public for births that occurred at least 100 years ago, and marriage and death records are available to anyone over 18 years of age.
The Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah also holds a large collection of historical records relating to the state of Vermont. This is the largest and most important genealogy collection in the world and is worth a visit to explore the many billions of records that can be found there. Published material consists of books, microfilm, microfiche, and other records for the 14 counties of Vermont. The Family History Library also has smaller family history centers located throughout the world where you can order microfilm and have these records shipped from Utah to the local area where you live. The library has also transcribed and indexed millions of Vermont vital, immigration, census, military, and other records which are available to view or download online at FamilySearch.org.
Immigration to Vermont
Bird's-eye view of Montpelier, 1884
For almost 400 years, Vermont has been one of the primary ports of arrival for immigrants seeking a new life in America. During the 1600s, many immigrants came from the British Isles. The 1700s witnessed a continued influx of people from the British Isles and Germany, and from the mid-1800s to early 1900s, Germans, Irish, Italians and Eastern European Jews came to Vermont. After World War II, people came from even farther afield from countries located in the Middle East, Caribbean, Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
Many immigrants became naturalized U.S. citizens at courts throughout Vermont. Records relating to your ancestors' citizenship can thus often be found at county courthouses when they're not available for download online, or on microfilm at places like the Family History Library, NARA, Vermont State Library, and Vermont History Center. Locating these records can sometimes prove difficult and time-consuming. However, immigration records are some of the most widely used in Vermont family history research and can provide you with a wealth of detail about your ancestor's life story and origins.
If your ultimate goal is to trace your ancestry beyond Vermont to your family's place of origin overseas, it is important to first locate the many different types of records that your immigrant ancestors left behind in Vermont. Records like ships' passenger lists, declarations of intention, naturalization petitions, census records, military records, vital records, obituaries, and cemetery records can often provide you with information about your ancestor's birthplace, names of relatives, and other important information. This will help you narrow down your search parameters when your ancestry search continues overseas. It is generally not possible to locate family records in places like Russia, Germany, Poland, or Italy without first conducting extensive research in the USA.
Many immigrants became naturalized U.S. citizens at courts throughout Vermont. Records relating to your ancestors' citizenship can thus often be found at county courthouses when they're not available for download online, or on microfilm at places like the Family History Library, NARA, Vermont State Library, and Vermont History Center. Locating these records can sometimes prove difficult and time-consuming. However, immigration records are some of the most widely used in Vermont family history research and can provide you with a wealth of detail about your ancestor's life story and origins.
If your ultimate goal is to trace your ancestry beyond Vermont to your family's place of origin overseas, it is important to first locate the many different types of records that your immigrant ancestors left behind in Vermont. Records like ships' passenger lists, declarations of intention, naturalization petitions, census records, military records, vital records, obituaries, and cemetery records can often provide you with information about your ancestor's birthplace, names of relatives, and other important information. This will help you narrow down your search parameters when your ancestry search continues overseas. It is generally not possible to locate family records in places like Russia, Germany, Poland, or Italy without first conducting extensive research in the USA.
Getting Started with Your Research
Vermont state coat of arms, 1876
Many people wonder where they should begin with their family history research in Vermont. If you are new to genealogical research, the first thing you'll need to do is to start building a family tree with the information you already have at your disposal. There are some great genealogy software programs available that will help you get started with this process. Family Tree Maker, Legacy Family Tree, Family Historian, and RootsMagic all make great programs that can help you organize your research.
Get started by first creating a pedigree chart for yourself and family group sheets for your parents, grandparents, and other close family members. You can download free copies of these forms at FamilySearch.org and Ancestry.com. You can also create these records using a genealogy software program. Family group sheets allow you to record information like family members' birth dates, marriage dates, death dates, burial places, spouses' names, and other information that will be helpful to you as your research progresses. Interview living relatives and take notes about the major events of their lives. Add this information to your family files so that you will have a strong foundation of information as you move forward with your project.
During the initial stages of your research, you can accomplish a great deal using online resources. It is highly recommended that you get subscriptions to websites like Ancestry.com and Fold3.com to help with your ongoing research. Information can also be found online at FamilySearch.org. Many types of records including censuses, World War I draft registration cards, naturalization records, and Social Security Index are available online and will help you put in place the building blocks for the first part of your family tree. Using a combination of online resources along with more traditional archival research at places like the Vermont State Library will allow you to create a thoroughly documented family history.
A professional genealogist could also be helpful to your research in Vermont. With the expertise and knowledge of an expert, you can have someone visit local archives and libraries on your behalf throughout the state of Vermont. This is especially helpful if you don't live in the area and don't have ready access to court, land, and many other types of records that can often only be found after a visit to a county courthouse, public library, historical society, or town clerk's office. If you would like a professional genealogist to assist you with your ongoing research in Vermont and elsewhere, please click here.
It is important when carrying out your research that you are thorough in documenting your family tree. Don't overlook the importance of finding your ancestor's siblings, cousins, and other close relatives. Brick walls are often encountered in genealogical research. To get beyond an apparent impasse it is often worthwhile to approach your research holistically. Many researchers who are new to genealogy often just want to get back as far as possible along a direct paternal or maternal family line. However, it is often the death certificates, obituaries, or other records of your direct ancestor's siblings or other close relatives that will provide you with the breakthroughs you are looking for.
Get started by first creating a pedigree chart for yourself and family group sheets for your parents, grandparents, and other close family members. You can download free copies of these forms at FamilySearch.org and Ancestry.com. You can also create these records using a genealogy software program. Family group sheets allow you to record information like family members' birth dates, marriage dates, death dates, burial places, spouses' names, and other information that will be helpful to you as your research progresses. Interview living relatives and take notes about the major events of their lives. Add this information to your family files so that you will have a strong foundation of information as you move forward with your project.
During the initial stages of your research, you can accomplish a great deal using online resources. It is highly recommended that you get subscriptions to websites like Ancestry.com and Fold3.com to help with your ongoing research. Information can also be found online at FamilySearch.org. Many types of records including censuses, World War I draft registration cards, naturalization records, and Social Security Index are available online and will help you put in place the building blocks for the first part of your family tree. Using a combination of online resources along with more traditional archival research at places like the Vermont State Library will allow you to create a thoroughly documented family history.
A professional genealogist could also be helpful to your research in Vermont. With the expertise and knowledge of an expert, you can have someone visit local archives and libraries on your behalf throughout the state of Vermont. This is especially helpful if you don't live in the area and don't have ready access to court, land, and many other types of records that can often only be found after a visit to a county courthouse, public library, historical society, or town clerk's office. If you would like a professional genealogist to assist you with your ongoing research in Vermont and elsewhere, please click here.
It is important when carrying out your research that you are thorough in documenting your family tree. Don't overlook the importance of finding your ancestor's siblings, cousins, and other close relatives. Brick walls are often encountered in genealogical research. To get beyond an apparent impasse it is often worthwhile to approach your research holistically. Many researchers who are new to genealogy often just want to get back as far as possible along a direct paternal or maternal family line. However, it is often the death certificates, obituaries, or other records of your direct ancestor's siblings or other close relatives that will provide you with the breakthroughs you are looking for.
Vermont County Records
Many Vermont family records can be found online and at large state level archives and libraries. Many millions of records aren't yet available online, though, and many of these are awaiting your discovery at the local level at county courthouses, historical societies, churches, town clerks' offices, cemeteries, and elsewhere in Vermont. To find these and other records, click on the links below to find more information about the specific counties where your ancestors lived in Vermont. You'll find information on these pages that will lead you to the specific documentation you're searching for.
It is important to keep in mind when doing research that the names and boundaries of certain counties in Vermont have changed over the past few hundred years. Your ancestors may have lived on a certain farm in one county and when borders were redrawn records relating to your family history might have been located in another area entirely. When searching for land, court, tax, and other records it is also a good idea to search for these records in adjacent counties. Following is a complete list of Vermont's 14 counties along with their formation dates, county seats, and names of parent counties.
It is important to keep in mind when doing research that the names and boundaries of certain counties in Vermont have changed over the past few hundred years. Your ancestors may have lived on a certain farm in one county and when borders were redrawn records relating to your family history might have been located in another area entirely. When searching for land, court, tax, and other records it is also a good idea to search for these records in adjacent counties. Following is a complete list of Vermont's 14 counties along with their formation dates, county seats, and names of parent counties.
County |
Formation Date1785
1779
1792
1787
1792
1792
1802
1835
1781 1792
1781
1810
1779 1781
|
County Seat
Middlebury
Bennington, Manchester
St. Johnsbury
Burlington
Guildhall
St. Albans
North Hero
Hyde Park
Chelsea Newport
Rutland
Montpelier
Newfane Woodstock
|
Parent County
Rutland County.
Original county
Orange County
Addison County
Orange County
Chittenden County
Chittenden & Franklin Counties
Chittenden, Franklin, Orleans & Washington Counties
Cumberland County
Chittenden & Orange Counties
Bennington County
Orange, Caledonia, & Chittenden Counties
Original county
Cumberland County
|
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