Boone County, Kentucky Genealogy

United States

Kentucky

Boone County

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

Kentucky Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Burlington Organized: December 13, 1798 Parent County(s): Campbell Neighboring Counties Dearborn (IN) • Gallatin • Grant • Hamilton (OH) • Kenton • Ohio (IN) • Switzerland (IN) See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

Boone County was named for Daniel Boone. The county is located in the northeast area of the state.

County Courthouse

Boone County Courthouse
2950 E Washington Square
Burlington, KY 41005
Phone: 859-334-2112 or 859-334-2220
Boone County Website

Boone 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.

Known Beginning Dates for Government County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1852	1799	1852	1799	1799	1799	1810
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1911. General compliance by 1917.

Record Loss

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

Boundary Changes

1798--Boone County was created 13 December 1798 from Campbell County. County seat: Burlington Kentucky Individual County Chronologies - Newberry Library list of all boundary changes by county Kentucky Historical Borders - Map at Newberry Library Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; Also at: mapofus.org - animated maps illustrating Kentucky county boundary changes

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
Florence	Union	Walton
Unincorporated communities
Beaverlick Big Bone Bullittsville (hist.) Constance Devon Hamilton	Hopeful Heights Hueys Corners Hume Idlewild Kensington Limaburg	Marydale Richwood Stringtown Taylorsport Waterloo
Census-designated places
Belleview Burlington(County Seat) Francisville	Hebron Oakbrook Petersburg	Rabbit Hash Verona
Ghost towns
Sugartit

Resources

Bible Records

• 1768-1950 Family Bible Records 1768-1950 and a Brief History of Middle Creek Baptist Church, 1803-1903, Boone County, Kentucky(*); at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
• Bible and Cemetery, Marriage Records from Logan, Boone, Pike, Grant, Daviess Cos.(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
• Boone County Bible Records at Access Genealogy
• Boone County Family Bibles and Family Records at Kentucky Genealogy Trails
• Boone County Family Bible Records at USGenWeb

Biographies

• Kentucky Biographies Project

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Boone, Kentucky online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Findagrave.com KYGenWeb KYGenWeb Archives Tombstone Project Kentucky Gravestones BillionGraves
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	FamilySearch Library WorldCat Boone County, Kentucky, Cemeteries, Worrel & Fitzgerald,1996, 476 pages
List of Cemeteries in the County	Findagrave.com BillionGraves Graveyards of Kentucky Boone County Historic Cemeteries, List and map, 2005. FamilySearch Places
See Kentucky Cemeteries for more information

The following web sites have additional information on Boone county cemeteries.

• Naming the Forgotten, The Eastern State Hospital Project
• lists the national cemeteries in Kentucky with links to their web sites

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1800	1,534	—
1810	3,608	135.2%
1820	6,542	81.3%
1830	9,075	38.7%
1840	10,034	10.6%
1850	11,185	11.5%
1860	11,196	0.1%
1870	10,696	−4.5%
1880	11,996	12.2%
1890	12,246	2.1%
1900	11,170	−8.8%
1910	9,420	−15.7%
1920	9,572	1.6%
1930	9,595	0.2%
1940	10,820	12.8%
1950	13,015	20.3%
1960	21,940	68.6%
1970	32,812	49.6%
1980	45,842	39.7%
1990	57,589	25.6%
2000	85,991	49.3%
2010	118,811	38.2%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

1810, 1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930 federal population schedules of Boone 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
• Kentucky Census Transcriptions, 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 Lutheran Churches in Boone County, Kentucky: Together with Sketches of the Pastors Who Have Served Them

Baptist

A large collection of primary and secondary sources on Baptists in the county, which in early days and for years after comprised the largest denomination, are online at the Baptist History Homepage. Among these are:

• Bullittsburg. Church minutes 1795-1842, are transcribed online and searchable at the Baptist History Homepage. Digitized copies of the original minutes 1794-1943 are at the Boone County Public Library web site.
• Middle Creek aka Belleview. Church minutes 1803-1851 & 1872-1873, are transcribed online and searchable at the Baptist History Homepage

List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places
  

Court Records

• 1799-1914 Court Orders, 1799-1914(*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
• 1817-1825 Court Orders, 1817-1825(*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
• 1875-1897 Minute Book, 1875-1897(*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — images
• Boone County, Kentucky : Abstracts from Order Book B, 1817-1825, The Ridge Runners : A Magazine of Migration - v. 11 (1978). 1978. By Yates, William Allen. Murray, Utah : Yates Publishing Company. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
• Boone County, Kentucky Probate Abstracts, Will book C, 1830-1839, The Ridge Runners : A Magazine of Migration - v. 13 (1981). 1981. By Yates, William Allen. Ozark, Missouri : William A Yates. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
• 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

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

African Americans

A 300-plus page database of early African Americans in Boone County is online at https://bcp.ent.sirsi.net/client/en_US/search/asset/30293/0.

More information about African American resources in Kentucky can be found on the Kentucky African Americans and the United States African Americans Wiki pages.

• The KY African American Griots Project
• Sandi Gorin's Tips, Hangings in Kentucky 1792-1900
• Kentucky Minorities has information specific to Kentucky African Americans.

Funeral Homes

• Alliance Funeral Home and Cremation Center in Florence.
• Chambers and Grubbs Funeral Homes in Florence and Walton.
• Linnemann Family Funeral Homes and Cremation Center in Burlington.
• Middendorf-Bullock Funeral Home in Hebron.
• Stith Funeral Home and Cremation Center in Florence and Hebron.

Genealogies

• [Craven] Craven, Patricia. The Craven Clan of Southwestern Pennsylvania and Various Kentucky Counties Nelson, Washington, Marion, Boone, Fayette, Jessamine, Henry. Chicago, Ill.: P. Craven, 1988. FS Library Book 929.273 C855cr.
• [Flournoy] Rivers, Flournoy. "The Flournoy Family," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 2, No. 1 (Jul. 1894):81-90; Vol. 2, No. 2 (Oct. 1894):190-213; Vol. 2, No. 3 (Jan. 1895):318-327; Vol. 2, No. 4 (Apr. 1895):437-447; Vol. 3, No. 1 (Jul. 1895):67-79; Vol. 3, No. 4 (Apr. 1896):414-416; Vol. 4, No. 1 (Jul. 1896):97-101. Digitized by JSTOR - free.
• [Popham] Burgess, Jane F. "William Brown (1758-1843) of Culpeper and Rappahannock Cos., Va., and His Children," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 46, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 2002):202-221. Digital version at American Ancestors ($);FS Library Book 975.5 B2vg v. 46.
• [Riddell] Ridlon, Gideon Tibbetts "History of the Ancient Ryedales: And Their Descendants in Normandy, Great Britain, Ireland, and America from 860 to 1884, Part 2" Digital Version free at Google eBook.

Guardianship

• Administrator & Guardian bonds, 1820-1856, Vol. 2, at FamilySearch
• Guardian bonds, 1854-1882, at FamilySearch
• Guardian bonds, 1860-1868, at FamilySearch
• Guardian bonds, 1866-1884, at FamilySearch
• Guardian bonds, 1911-1920. at FamilySearch

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 Boone 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 Boone County, Kentucky. 1960. By A.M Yealey. Covington, Kentucky : W. Fitzgerald. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, Ancestry ($); At various libraries (WorldCat).

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
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

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 Boone County served in various regiments and companies. Those listed below were specifically formed in this county:

- 12th Regiment, Kentucky Cavalry (Confederate), Company E

- Jesse's Battalion, Kentucky Mounted Riflemen (Confederate), Company B

World War I

• Fallen Soldiers in WWI from Kentucky

Korean War

• Korean War Memorial, Korean War Memorial for Soldiers from KY, KYGenWeb

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

Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Boone County, Kentucky Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Do a Boone 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, Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries including an interactive search function
• Nashville Christian Advocate Death Abstracts

Other Records

• Kentucky Postcards, USGenWeb

Probate Records

Probate records are held by the Boone County, Kentucky Genealogy Clerk of Court and are housed at the Boone 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

• 1731-1832 Indexes to Boone County Wills, Estates, Inventories at Kentucky Pioneers ($)
• 1774–1989 Kentucky, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1774-1989 at Ancestry ($) — index & images
• 1798-1943 Will Books 1 to 8 (1798-1943) at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1800-1897 Will Books A to L (1800-1897) at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1800-1915 Boone County, Kentucky Wills Records at SAMPUBCO

Browsable index of testators of wills, free.

• 1818-1932 Boone County, Kentucky Probate Records, 1818-1932(*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
• 1820-1856 Guardian and Administrator Bonds, 1820-1856(*); County Court at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
• Boone County, Kentucky Probate Abstracts, Vol. 1. 1982. By Pease, Janet Kathleen. Boone County, Kentucky : Boone County, Kentucky. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
• Boone County, Kentucky Probate Abstracts, Vol. 2. 1978. By Pease, Janet Kathleen. Boone County, Kentucky : Boone County, Kentucky. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
• Will Abstracts, Books A/B, 1800-1829. 1971. By Pease, Janet Kathleen. Boone County, Kentucky : Boone County, Kentucky. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
• Wills, Probates, Land, Tax & Criminal Ancestry ($)
• Full-Text Search - Wills and Probate Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

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.

• 1800 - 1800 Tax List of Boone County, Kentucky Genealogy is included in Clift's Second Census of Kentucky 1800, digitized by Ancestry ($).

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 Boone County Clerk, with divorce records 1849-1958 located with the Boone 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
• 1852-1859 - Boone County Birth Index 1852-1859. Batch C517071 at FamilySearch
• 1874-1875 - Boone County Birth Index 1874-1875. Batch C517072 at FamilySearch
• 1875 - Boone County Birth Index 1875. Batch C517073 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 ($)
• 1797-1954 Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954 at FamilySearch — index & images - How to Use this Collection
• 1798-1850 - Boone County Marriages, Worrel & Fitzgerald, 1991. At major libraries.
• 1852-1860 - Boone County Marriage Index 1852-1860. Batch M517071 at FamilySearch
• 1875 - Boone County Marriage Index 1875. Batch M517074 at FamilySearch
• 1876-1878 - Boone County Marriage Index 1876-1878. Batch M517075 at FamilySearch
• Searchable KY Vital Records, Searchable databases of KY Births, Deaths and Marriages
• 1960-1993 Kentucky Marriages, 1960-1993 at MyHeritage ($) — 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 of and Images of Kentucky Death Certificates
• Searchable Kentucky Vital Records, Searchable databases of Kentucky 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 Boone 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

• Cherry Grove/ Eastgate Ohio FamilySearch Center
• Cincinnati Ohio East FamilySearch Center
• Cincinnati Ohio FamilySearch Center
• Fairfield/Hamilton Ohio FamilySearch Center
• National Underground Railroad Freedom Center
• Northern Kentucky FamilySearch Center
• Boone County Public Library - an affiliate library.
• Campbell County Historical and Genealogical Society - an affiliate library.
• Kenton County Library - an affiliate library.

Libraries

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

Boone County Public Library
1786 Burlington Pike
Burlington, KY 41005
Phone: 859-342-2665
Website
Library maintains an extensive local history section.

Societies

Listed below are societies in Boone County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Kentucky Societies.

Boone County Historical Society
PO Box 23
Florence, KY 41022-0023
Website

Websites

• Boone County KYGenWeb
• KYGenWeb project. Has maps, name indexes, history or other information for each county. Select the county.
• State of Kentucky Website
• USGenWeb Kentucky Archives
• USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
• Boone County, Kentucky Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
• Boone 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