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Cayuga County, New York Genealogy

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Guide to Cayuga County, New York ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

County Facts
County seat: Auburn
Organized: March 8, 1799
Parent County(s): Onondaga
Neighboring Counties
Cortland • Onondaga • Oswego • Seneca • Tompkins • Wayne
See County Maps
Courthouse
New York, Cayuga County Courthouse.png
Location Map
Ny-cayuga.png


Cayuga-Seneca Canal

County Information

Description

The county was named for the Cayuga people." The county is located in the north-central area of the state. [1]

County Courthouse

Cayuga County Courthouse
157 Genesee St
Auburn, NY 13021
Phone: 315-237-6420
Cayuga County Website

The Cayuga County Clerk's office has probate, court, land and DAR county cemetery records.

Cayuga County, New York 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[2]
Birth* Marriage Death* Court Land Probate Census
1880 1908 1880 1799 1794 1799 1663
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1880. General compliance for births by 1915 and deaths by 1890.

Record Loss

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this 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:[5]

Cities
Towns
Villages
Hamlets
Census-designated places


History Timeline

  • 29 March 1804 Seneca County set off.
  • 17 April 1817 Part along with a part taken from Seneca County to create Tompkins County.

Resources

Bible Records

  • Bible Records USGenWeb Archives
  • 1581-1917 New York, Family Bible Records at Ancestry($) – index. Database is a collection of genealogically important records taken from the Bibles of colony and state residents. Reveals the Bible's original owner, brief record of descendants,and a particular event such as birth or marriage as recorded in Bible.

Biographies

  • Biographical Review, This Volume Contains Biographical Sketches of the Leading Citizens of Cayuga County New York; Boston; Biographical Review Publishing Company; 1894 (USGenWeb Archives)
  • Odds and Evens (USGenWeb Archives)

Business, Commerce, and Occupations

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Cayuga County, New York online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)
List of Cemeteries in the County
See New York Cemeteries for more information.

Census Records

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1800 15,871 —
1810 29,843 88.0%
1820 38,897 30.3%
1830 47,948 23.3%
1840 50,338 5.0%
1850 55,458 10.2%
1860 55,767 0.6%
1870 59,550 6.8%
1880 65,081 9.3%
1890 65,302 0.3%
1900 66,234 1.4%
1910 67,106 1.3%
1920 65,221 −2.8%
1930 64,751 −0.7%
1940 65,508 1.2%
1950 70,136 7.1%
1960 73,942 5.4%
1970 77,439 4.7%
1980 79,894 3.2%
1990 82,313 3.0%
2000 81,963 −0.4%
2010 80,026 −2.4%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".
  • For information and tips on using and accessing online census records, see New York Census.

Federal

1800
1800 Federal Census USGenWeb Archives

1840

U.S. Census Mortality Schedules for New York, 1850-1880:

  • Available online at Ancestry ($).
  • Deaths are included for the 12 months prior to the census, 1849-50, 1859-60, 1869-70, and 1879-80 beginning 1 June and ending 31 May of the census year.[6]
  • Basic contents of the records include: Name, sex, age, color, marital status, place of birth, month of death, occupation, and cause of death. 1870 also has parents' birthplace. 1880 lists how long a resident of the county.
  • Also on FS Library Films 1415128–42.

1890

  • The 1890 Census is lost. For a substitute, see Cayuga.

State

Source 1825 1835 1845 1855 1865 1875 1892 1905 1915 1925
Ancestry.com - - - Yes - Yes Yes - Yes Yes
FS Library film - - - Yes Yes Yes Yes
FamilySearch image - - - Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
New York State Library film - - - Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
  • 1864-5, 1874-5 See Marriage Schedule information in the State Census section of Census for marriage information for 1864-5, and 1874-5.

New York State 1865 and 1875 Census Marriage, Mortality; and 1865 Soldier Mortality records:

  • Images available online at New York State Census, 1865 and New York State Census, 1875. Click on the link to go to the page, then click on the ‘Browse through images’ link and select your county, then select an ancestor's town and browse to the end of the population schedule until you find the Marriage, Mortality, and 1865 soldier mortality schedules.
  • Includes marriages and deaths for the 12 months prior to the census, ending 1 June of the census year.
  • Marriage entry content: Husband's name, wife's name, ages and previous marital status, month and day and place of marriage, and church or civil ceremony.
  • Death entry content: Name, age, sex, color, marital status, month and day of death, native state or country, occupation and cause of death.
  • 1865 deaths of officers and enlisted men entry content: Name, age, marital status, citizenship status, enlistment date, original regiment, original rank, regiment at death, rank at death, promotions, death date and place, manner of death, surviving associates, and burial place.
  • Also on microfilm. See the FamilySearch Library line in the above State Census Chart.
  • 1864-5, 1874-5 See Mortality Schedule information in the State Census section of Census for death information for 1864-5, and 1874-5.

Church Records

A variety of local church records representing the Baptist, Church of Christ, Congregational, Dutch Reformed, Episcopal, Methodist, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, and Society of Friends faiths are available online at NYGenWeb.

List of Churches and Church Parishes

Court Records

Ancestors may have been involved in municipal, state, or federal court cases and actions. See also New York Court Records and United States Court Records.

Directories

Emigration and Immigration

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

Funeral Homes

Genealogies

Guardianship

Land and Property Records

Some of the early grantor and grantee indexes for Cayuga County (for example, 1836-1856) are organized by the first letter of the last name, and thereunder by the first letter of the first name. This system makes it difficult to search for all parties bearing a particular surname.

Online Land Indexes and Records

Local Histories

Maps and Gazetteers

Wayne CountyOswego CountyOnondaga CountyCortland CountyTompkins CountySeneca CountyNY CAYUGA.PNG
Click a neighboring county
for more resources

Migration

Early migration routes to and from Cayuga County for European settlers included:

Military Records

Revolutionary War

Civil War

Town registers. The New York town clerks kept a bound register of all soldiers from their town serving in the Civil War 1861-1865. Registers are arranged by county, and town. Some town registers are missing. The registers include an index at the start of each town.

Content. Many register entries include full name, residence, date and place of birth, parents names, marital status, date of enlistment and muster and rank, discharges, death, or promotion.

Access. The original registers are at the New York State Archives in Albany, New York. Microfilm copies are found at the FamilySearch Library (FS Library Film 1993401-37). They are also indexed and available at Ancestry.com ($). Available towns. Registers are available for: Aurelius · Brutus · Cato · Conquest · Fleming · Genoa · Ira · Ledyard · Locke · Mentz · Montezuma · Moravia · Niles · Scipio · Sempronius · Sennett · Sterling · Summerhill · Throop · Victory.

Regiments. Civil War service men from Cayuga 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 Montgomery County.

- 1st Independent Battery, New York Light Artillery
- 8th Regiment, New York Cavalry, Company G, 2nd Companies I and L, and Company M.
- 10th Regiment, New York Cavalry, Company A.
- 11th Regiment, New York Cavalry, Company K.
- 22nd Regiment, New York Cavalry, Companies I and M.
- 23rd Regiment, New York Cavalry, Company A.
- 24th Regiment, New York Cavalry, Companies B, C, L and M.
- 116th Regiment, New York Infantry, Companies B, D and H.
- 75th Regiment, New York Infantry
- 111th Regiment, New York Infantry, Companies C, F, G, H, I and K.
- 138th Regiment, New York Infantry, Companies C, E, F, G, H and I.
- 160th Regiment, New York Infantry, Companies A, B, C, E, F, H and I.
- 193rd Regiment, New York Infantry, Companies A, H and K.
- 194th Regiment, New York Infantry, Companies H and I.

World War II

Naturalization and Citizenship

Online Naturalization Indexes and Records

Newspapers

  • Auburn Gazette
  • Auburn NY Argus 1891-1903
  • Auburn NY Cayuga Chief 1849-1854
  • Auburn NY Cayuga County Independent 1886-1897
  • Auburn NY Cayuga County News 1914-1920
  • Auburn NY Cayuga Patriot 1826-1828
  • Auburn Ny Cayuga Republican 1819-1833
  • Auburn NY Christian Advocate 1845-1878
  • Auburn NY Citizen 1905-1931
  • Auburn NY Citizen Advertiser 1931-1989
  • Auburn NY Daily Advertiser 1846-1847
  • Auburn NY Daily American 1855-1859
  • Auburn NY Daily Bulletin 1870-1905
  • Auburn NY Daily Union 1860-1861
  • Auburn Ny Democrat 1868-1869
  • Auburn NY Democrat Argus 1894-1913
  • Auburn NY Evening Auburnian 1878-1885
  • Auburn NY Free Press 1824-1941
  • Auburn NY Journal 1833-1877
  • Auburn NY Journal and Advertiser 1837-1847
  • Auburn NY Morning Dispatch 1886
  • Auburn NY Morning News 1872-1879
  • Auburn NY News And Bulletin 1880-1885
  • Auburn NY Semi Weekly Journal 1906-1913
  • Auburn NY Weekly Auburnian 1885-1888
  • Auburn NY Weekly Bulletin 1895-1913
  • Auburn NY Weekly Journal 1850-1861
  • Auburn NY Weekly News and Democrat 1872-1897
  • Auburn NY Western Federalist 1811-1813
  • Cato NY Citizen 1893-1966
  • Fair Haven NY Register 1890-1969
  • Genoa NY Tribune 1891-1931
  • Locke NY The Locke Courier 1907-1910
  • Moravia NY Republican Register 1900-1981
  • Moravia NY Valley Register 1871-1945
  • Union Springs NY Advertiser 1883-1942
  • Union Springs NY News 1943-1959
  • Weedsport NY Cayuga Chief 1954-1962
  • Weedsport NY Cayuga Chief Chronical 1968-1975

Obituaries

Obituaries and Death Notices USGenWeb Archives

Other Records

Periodicals

Probate Records

Probate records (wills, bonds, petitions, accounts, inventories, administrations, orders, decrees, and distributions) for New York are held in the office of the county Surrogate Court beginning in 1787, or when the county was formed. Prior to 1787, most are housed at the New York State Archives.
Content: Probate Records may give the decedent's date of death, names of spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their place of residence.
Probate Petitions In 1830, state law required the Surrogate Court clerk to issue a probate petition for a deceased individual with property. This petition, unique to New York, usually lists the deceased's death date. It also lists the heirs, their relationship to the deceased, and their residence. These petitions are often found in the estate files.[8] See New York Probate Records for online resources, details, links, and more.

Online Probate Indexes and Records

School Records

Social Security Records

Tax Records

Town Records

Town records in New York may include early births, marriages, deaths, divorces, local histories, selected military records, and town meeting minutes. Vital records from 1880/1882 are kept by town and village clerks, although some (Kent’s and Putnam Valley’s) are available in the County Historian’s Office. See:

  • New York Towns, Villages, and Cities: A Guide to Genealogical Sources by Gordon L. Remington. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2002. FS Library Book 974.7 D27r; At various libraries (WorldCat); Alphabetical list including date founded, if a town history exists, church and cemetery sources, and if a Civil War register (TCR) exists.

Vital Records

Vital records of birth, marriage or death were first recorded at the local level in the village clerk, town clerk, or city clerk’s ledger book. In 1880, town clerks were to record the marriage and a copy was sent to the New York State Department of Health (state level). The marriages in this county were recorded by the county clerk from Cayuga until 1908.[9] If you know where a birth, marriage or death took place, a copy of the certificate or record may be obtained by writing to the town, village or city clerk.

Birth

Marriage

Death


Divorce

Divorce judgment papers often include date and place of the marriage and the names and birthdates of any children. Local newspapers may publish notices of divorce actions.

  • Pre–1787 All divorces were granted by the governor or legislature and were very rare.
  • 1787–1847 All divorces were granted by the court of chancery. These records are found in the New York State Archives or for the New York City area at the New York County Clerk's office.These divorces were granted only on the grounds of adultery.
  • 1847–present All divorces are handled by the county Supreme Court where the divorce was granted. Divorce files in New York are sealed for 100 years. Contact the County Clerk for information about divorce records.

Voting Records

Research Facilities

Archives

Cornell University, Guide to Historical Resources in Cayuga County, New York Repositories. ([Ithaca, New York]: New York Historical Resources Center, Olin Library, Cornell University, 1984). At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 974.768 A3. Includes index. Includes references to some family histories and genealogies.

County Historian
Cayuga County Historian's Office
Linda Frank, County Historian
Historic Old Post Office Bldg., 3rd floor
157 Genesee Street
Auburn, NY 13021
Phone: (315) 253-1300
Email: Historian@cayugacounty.us

The County Historian may provide access to obituaries, vital records, church records, maps, and family files or journals. Some historians provide search services for their office records and others may refer you to local genealogists who research in the area. This repository Includes Census, Land, Surrogate, Newspaper, Card File, Topical Files, Cemetery Records, Church Records, etc. Family Files Surnames are available online.

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

Libraries

The Finger Lakes Library System consists of public libraries in Cayuga, Cortland, Seneca, Tioga and Tompkins Counties. Libraries for towns in Cayuga County are: Auburn, Aurora, Cato, Fair Haven, Moravia, Poplar Ridge, Port Byron, Union Springs and Weedsport.
Website

Hazard Library
PO Box 2487
Route 34B
Poplar Ridge, NY 13139-0003
Phone: 315-364-7975
Fax 315/364-6704
Email: hazardlib@clarityconnect.comWebsite
This library holds collections for local history which contain: autobiographies, biographies, town and village histories, genealogies and church histories.

Museums

Societies

Listed below are societies in Cayuga County. For state-wide genealogical and historical societies, see New York Societies.

Cayuga-Owasco Lakes Historical Society
14 West Cayuga Street
P.O. Box 247
Moravia, NY 13118-0247
315-497-3906
Website

Central New York Genealogical Society[10]
Box 104, Colvin Station
Syracuse, New York 13205
Email: contact@cnygs.org
Web Contact Form

Member queries; surname research list; online resources; six meetings/year; publication: Tree Talks (At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 974.7 B2t) quarterly with annual index.
Counties served: Albany, Allegany, Broome, Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Chautauqua, Chemung, Chenango, Clinton, Columbia, Cortland, Delaware, Erie, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Genesee, Greene, Hamilton, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Livingston, Madison, Monroe, Montgomery, Niagara, Oneida, Onondaga, Ontario, Orange, Oreleans, Oswego, Otsego, Rensselaer, St. Lawrence, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Tioga, Tompkins, Washington, Wayne, Warren, Wyoming, and Yates.

Old Mentz Heritage Center
PO Box 52
73 Pine St
Port Byron, NY 13140
Email: oldmentzhistory@gmail.com
Website

Historical society for the towns of Mentz and Montezuma, and the village of Port Byron, NY.

Websites

Research Guides

References

  1. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Cayuga, New York" in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cayuga_County,_New_York accessed 19 Nov 2018
  2. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Cayuga County, New York. Page 488-493 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), 490-492.
  3. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), 488. At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
  4. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002).At various libraries (WorldCat); FSC Book 973 D27e 2002.
  5. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Cayuga County, New York," in "Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cayuga_County,_New_York, accessed 18 December 2019.
  6. ↑ Arlene Eakle, and Johni Cerni, The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy (Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1984), 103. At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27ts.
  7. ↑ Compare the more northerly route in Handybook, 849, with the more southerly route described in Wikipedia contributors, "New York State Route 5" in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_State_Route_5 (accessed 28 June 2011).
  8. ↑ Alice Eichholz, Red Book: American State, County and Town Sources, 3rd ed. (Salt Lake City: Ancestry Pub., 2004), 479. At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27rb 2004. Henry B. Hoff, "Navigating New York Probate," American Ancestors 12 (Fall 2011): 54.
  9. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), 488-493. At various libraries (WorldCat); FS Library Book 973 D27e 2002.
  10. ↑ Central New York Genealogical Society at http://cnygs.org/ (accessed 14 November 2018).
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