Bell County, Kentucky Genealogy
Guide to Bell County, Kentucky ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, and military records.
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County Information
Description
Bell County was named for Joshua Fry Bell. The county is located in the southeast area of the state. [2]
County Courthouse
Bell County Courthouse
Courthouse Square, Floor 1
PO Box 156
Pineville, KY 40977
Phone: 606-337-6143[3]
Bell County Website
Bell County, Kentucky 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.
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1874 | 1867 | 1874 | 1867 | 1867 | 1869 | 1810 |
Record Loss
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1914, 1918, 1944, 1976--Disasters caused the loss of some records.
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Boundary Changes
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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:[6]
| Cities | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
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History Timeline
Resources
Bible Records
- 1806-1837 Church Records, 1806-1837(*); at FamilySearch Catalog — images
- Bell County Family Bible Records at KyKinFolk
Biographies
Business, Commerce, and Occupations
Cemeteries
The following web sites have additional information on Bell county cemeteries.
- Cemeteries in Kentucky database gives directions to cemeteries in Bell county.
- Naming the Forgotten, The Eastern State Hospital Project
Census Records
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1870 | 3,731 | — |
| 1880 | 6,055 | 62.3% |
| 1890 | 10,312 | 70.3% |
| 1900 | 15,701 | 52.3% |
| 1910 | 28,447 | 81.2% |
| 1920 | 33,988 | 19.5% |
| 1930 | 38,747 | 14.0% |
| 1940 | 43,812 | 13.1% |
| 1950 | 47,602 | 8.7% |
| 1960 | 35,336 | −25.8% |
| 1970 | 31,121 | −11.9% |
| 1980 | 34,330 | 10.3% |
| 1990 | 31,506 | −8.2% |
| 2000 | 30,060 | −4.6% |
| 2010 | 28,691 | −4.6% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930 federal population schedules of Bell County are available online. For tips on accessing census records online, see Kentucky Census. If you're having trouble finding your ancestors in online indexes, try checking printed indexes. Created by local experts familiar with the area's families, these indexes are often transcribed more accurately than online nationwide indexes.
See Kentucky Population Schedule Indexes: Fiche, Film, or Book for more information about statewide printed indexes.
- Kentucky Census Transcriptions 1850-1930, USGenWeb
- Census Images, USGenWeb
- KY Census Online, Links to online census records
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 Kentucky denominations, view the Kentucky Church Records wiki page.
- Christian Church Directory for Kentucky at ChurchFinder
- Catholic Parishes in the Diocese of Lexington
- Catholic Parishes in the Archdiocese of Louisville
- History of the Bell County Association of Baptists: Over a Quarter of a Century of Growth, 1896-1922
List of Churches and Church Parishes
Court Records
- 1867-1903 Court Orders, 1867-1903(*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1875-1901 Court Orders, 1875-1901(*); Circuit Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1785-1792 Cases Heard Before the Supreme Court for the District of Kentucky, 1785-1792 at KYKinFolk.com - index
- Kentucky Court of Justice at KYCourts.gov
Directories
- 1970-2024 United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index, coverage may vary
Emigration and Immigration
Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
African Americans
More information about African American resources in Kentucky can be found on the Kentucky African Americans and the United States African Americans Wiki pages.
- Kentucky Minorities has information specific to Kentucky African Americans.
- Sandi Gorin's Tips, Hangings in Kentucky 1792-1900
Funeral Homes
- Arnett and Steele Funeral Home Inc. in Pineville.
- Brooks Durham Funeral Home in Pineville (Facebook).
- Cawood Funeral Home in Middlesboro.
- Green Hills Funeral Home in Middlesboro.
- Shumate Funeral Home in Middlesboro.
Genealogies
Guardianship
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 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.
Online Land Indexes and Records
- The KY Land Office
- Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search
Local Histories
Local histories are available for Bell 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.
- History of Bell County, Kentucky. 2 volumes. 1947. By Henry Harvey Fuson. New York, New York : Hobson Book Press. Online at: Vol. 1 - FamilySearch Digital Library; At various libraries (WorldCat). Volume 1 is the history of the county.
Maps and Gazetteers
for more resources
- KYGenWeb compiled list of maps
- Click on the county to go to the KYGenWeb site
- FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places
Migration
Military Records
- 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 - How to Use this Collection
- 1861-1865 Kentucky Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
- 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 & images - How to Use this Collection
Regiments. Men in Bell County served in various regiments and companies. Those listed below were specifically formed in this county:
- - 1st Battalion, Kentucky Mounted Rifles (Confederate). Company E.
- - Fields' Company, Kentucky Partisan Rangers (Confederate), Company E
World War I
Korean War
- Korean War Memorial, Korean War Memorial for Soldiers from KY, KYGenWeb
Naturalization and Citizenship
Newspapers
- 1800s-Current Kentucky, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)
- USNPL, Kentucky, Kentucky newspaper index with links
- World-Newspapers, Kentucky, Kentucky newspaper index with links
- Kentucky Newspapers on Microfilm
- Middlesboro Daily News (Middlesboro, Kentucky) at Ancestry ($)
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Bell County, Kentucky Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:
- WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
- Do a Bell County, Kentucky Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search).
Obituaries
- Kentucky Footsteps Archives, KYGenWeb
- Kentucky Obituary Sources, KYGenWeb
- Browning Genealogy Database, Compiled by Charles Browning.
- Kentucky Obituaries, USGenWeb
- Obituary Daily Times, (Ancestry) Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries including interactive search function
- Nashville Christian Advocate Death Abstracts
Other Records
- Kentucky Postcards, USGenWeb
Periodicals
Probate Records
Probate records are held by the Bell County, Kentucky Genealogy Clerk of Court and are housed at the Bell 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 Indexes and Records
- 1774–1989 Kentucky, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1774-1989 at Ancestry ($) — index & images
- 1798-1943 Will Books 1 to 8 (1798-1943) at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
- 1869-1920 Will Book 1 (1869-1920) at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
- 1869-1920 Wills, 1869-1920(*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
- 1874-1921 Settlements, Inventories, Appraisals, 1874-1921(*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
- Wills, Probates, Land, Tax and Criminal at Ancestry ($)
- Full-Text Search - Wills and Probate Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search
School Records
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 ($) — index, click here for more information.
- 1936-2007 United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
Tax Records
Taxes were levied on free white males over 21 and slaves aged 21 to 60. These persons are referred to as "polls." Tax listings, or digests, of a county generally list the taxable landowners and other polls and the amount of tax. The records for each county are divided by militia district. For more background information and state-wide resources see the wiki page Kentucky Taxation.
Vital Records
Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Although Kentucky enacted a statute in 1852-1862 requiring registration of births and deaths,many counties did not comply. A second law was written in 1874-1879, and 1892-1910 but, again, was not always followed. By 1911, the law was more clearly defined and kept by 1920. Any existing births 1852-1960 and death records 1852-1953 can be accessed online. See How to Find Kentucky Birth Records and How to Find Kentucky Death Records for links to indexes and images.
Original marriage records are held at the office of the Bell County Clerk, with divorce records 1849-1958 located with the Bell County Circuit Court. For more information see How to Find Kentucky Marriage Records. For Kentucky divorce records see the wiki page Kentucky Vital Records.
Birth
- 1839-1960 Kentucky Births and Christenings, 1839-1960 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
- 1874 - Bell County Birth Index 1874. Batch C518101 at FamilySearch.[7]
- 1875 - Bell County Birth Index 1875. Batch C518102 at FamilySearch
- Searchable KY Vital Records, Searchable databases of KY Births, Deaths and Marriages
- 1911-1999 Kentucky Births, 1911-1999 at MyHeritage ($) — index
Marriage
- 1609-2016 Kentucky, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index $
- 1785-1979 Kentucky Marriages 1785-1979 at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection
- 1785-Onward Kentucky Marriages at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
- 1797-1954 Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954 at FamilySearch — index & images - How to Use this Collection
- 1875 - Bell County Marriage Index 1875. Batch M518103 at FamilySearch
- 1876-1878 - Bell County Marriage Index 1876-1878. Batch M518104 at FamilySearch
- Searchable KY Vital Records, Searchable databases of KY Births, Deaths and Marriages
- 1960-1993 Kentucky Marriages, 1960-1993 at MyHeritage ($) — index
Death
- 1843-1970 Kentucky Deaths and Burials 1843-1970 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
- 1911-1965 Kentucky Death Records, 1911-1965 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection
- 1900-1999 Kentucky Deaths, 1900-1999 at MyHeritage ($) — index
- The Kentucky Vital Records Project, Transcriptions and Images of KY Death Certificates
- Searchable KY Vital Records, Searchable databases of KY Births, Deaths and Marriages
- United States Social Security Death Index - How to Use this Collection
Divorce
- 1962-2005 Kentucky, U.S., Divorce Records, 1962-2005 at Ancestry - index ($)
Research Facilities
Archives
Listed below are archives in Bell County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Kentucky Archives and Libraries.
Archives of Appalachia
East Tennessee State University
Sherrod Library, Room 422
344 J L Seehorn Rd
Johnson City, TN 37614
Phone: 423-439-4338
Email: archives@etsu.edu
Facebook
Website
FamilySearch Centers
FamilySearch Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local FamilySearch Centers or Affiliate Libraries
- FamilySearch 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 FamilySearch center.
Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries
- Corbin Kentucky FamilySearch Center
- Cumberland Gap Tennessee FamilySearch Center
- La Follette Tennessee FamilySearch Center
- Breathitt County Library - an affiliate library.
Libraries
Listed below are libraries in Bell County. For state-wide library facilities, see Kentucky Archives and Libraries.
Museums
Societies
Listed below are societies in Bell County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Kentucky Societies.
Bell County Historical Society
207 N 20th St
Middlesboro, KY 40965
Phone: 606-242-0005
Email: BellCountyHistoricalSociety@gmail.com
Website
Websites
- Bell County TXGenWeb
- KYGenWeb project. Has maps, name indexes, history or other information for each county. Select the county.
- State of Kentucky Website
- USGenWeb Kentucky Archives
- Bell County, Kentucky Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
- Bell County KY Genealogy (Kentucky Genealogy)
- FamilySearch Catalog . Free - 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
Research Guides
References
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Kentucky. At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Bell County, Kentucky" in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_County,_Kentucky."
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Bell County, Kentucky page 268, At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Bell County, Kentucky. Page 268-276 At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 251-254.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Kentucky. At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Bell County, Kentucky," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_County,_Kentucky, accessed 3 August 2018.
- ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at FamilySearch.