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Daviess County, Kentucky Genealogy

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

County Facts
County seat: Owensboro
Organized: January 14, 1815
Parent County(s): Ohio[1]
Neighboring Counties
Hancock • Henderson • McLean • Ohio • Spencer (IN) • Warrick (IN)
See County Maps
Courthouse
Daviess County, Kentucky Courthouse.JPG
Location Map
Daviess County svg.png

County Information

Description

Daviess County was named for Joseph Hamilton Daviess. The county is located in the western area of the state.[2]

County Courthouse

Daviess County Courthouse
212 St Ann Street
Owensboro, KY 42303
Phone: 270-685-8434[3]
Daviess County Website

Daviess 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[4]
Birth* Marriage Death* Court Land Probate Census
1853 1815 1853 1822 1815 1812 1810
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1911. General compliance by 1917.

Record Loss

1865--A disaster destroyed some records.

For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see:

Boundary Changes

County Pronunciation

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:[7]

Cities
Unincorporated communities
  • Birk city
  • Boston
  • Browns Valley
  • Curdsville
  • Delaware
  • Dermont
  • Ensor
  • Gatewood
  • Grandview
  • Griffith
  • Habit
  • Handyville
  • Henry
Census-designated places


History Timeline

Resources

Bible Records

Biographies

Business, Commerce, and Occupations

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Daviess, Kentucky online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)
List of Cemeteries in the County
See Kentucky Cemeteries for more information

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

Census Records

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1820 3,876 —
1830 5,209 34.4%
1840 8,331 59.9%
1850 12,362 48.4%
1860 15,549 25.8%
1870 20,714 33.2%
1880 27,730 33.9%
1890 33,120 19.4%
1900 38,667 16.7%
1910 41,020 6.1%
1920 40,733 −0.7%
1930 43,779 7.5%
1940 52,335 19.5%
1950 57,241 9.4%
1960 70,588 23.3%
1970 79,486 12.6%
1980 85,949 8.1%
1990 87,189 1.4%
2000 91,545 5.0%
2010 96,656 5.6%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

For tips on accessing Daviess County, Kentucky Genealogy census records online, see: Kentucky Census.

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.

Baptist
  • Whitesville. Church minutes and membership lists, etc. (1826-1932) are available online.
  • Yelvington. Church minutes (1813-1833) are available online.
Catholic


List of Churches and Church Parishes

Court Records

Directories

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.

Funeral Homes

Genealogies

  • [Bauman] Bauman, William A. Baumann / Bauman Family of Daviess County, Kentucky: Including a Genealogy of the Related DeLashmutt, Elliott, Higdon, Kuhn, Powell, Trammell and Wilkerson Families: With a Summary of Christian Heinrich Baumann's Descendants in the Luttrell, Melhiser, Mercer, Peterson, and Taylor Families. 2011. Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library - free.
  • [Beall] Edgeworth, M.J. Some Descendants of Nathaniel and Eli Beall (Bell), Brothers and Early Settlers of Knottsville Precinct, Daviess County, Kentucky. Donated 1959. Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library - free.
  • [Bransford] Bransford, Clifton Wood. "Jacob Ammonet of Virginia: and a Part of His Descendants," Publications of the Southern History Association, Vol. 3, No. 1 (Jan. 1899):35-40. Digitized by Internet Archive. Copy: FS Library Film 1015826 Item 18.
  • [Clay] Smith, Zachary F. and Mary Rogers Clay. The Clay Family. Louisville, Ky.: John P. Morton and Company, 1899. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.
  • [Cottrell] Edgeworth, M.J. Some Descendants of Rev. Reuben Cottrell, Shelby and Daviess Counties, Kentucky. Microfilmed 1968: FS Library Film 564126 Item 10.
  • [Howard] Hamilton, Anna L. The Genealogy of the Howards of Daviess County, Kentucky and Their Ancestors: English Ancestors, Maryland Emigrants, Kentucky Pioneers, and Early American Catholic Heritage. Whitesville, Ky.: A. Hamilton, 1984. Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library - free.
  • [Shoemaker] Edgeworth, M.J. Some Descendants of Price Allen Shoemaker, Daviess County, Kentucky, 1760-1936. Microfilmed 1987: FS Library Film 1321500 Item 28.

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


Local Histories

Local histories are available for Daviess 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.

Maps and Gazetteers

IndianaSpencer CountyHancock CountyOhio CountyMcLean CountyHenderson CountyKY DAVIESS.PNG
Click a neighboring county
for more resources

Migration

Military Records

Civil War

Online Records

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

Confederate Soldiers

- 10th Regiment, Kentucky Cavalry. Companies E and H.
- 10th Regiment, Kentucky Cavalry (Diamond's), Companies E and H.
- 10th Regiment, Kentucky Cavalry (Johnson's), Companies E and H.

Union Soldiers

- 12th Regiment, Kentucky Cavalry, Companies A, C, D, E, F, G, H and K.
- 17th Regiment, Kentucky Cavalry, Companies I and K.
- 35th Regiment, Kentucky Infantry, Companies A, C, D, E, F, G, H and I.

World War I

Korean War

Naturalization and Citizenship

Newspapers

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

Obituaries

Other Records

Periodicals

Probate Records

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


School Records

Social Security Records

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 Daviess County Clerk, with divorce records 1849-1958 located with the Daviess 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

Marriage

Death


Divorce

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Daviess 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

Libraries

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

Museums

Societies

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

Daviess County Historical Society
2020 Frederica St
Owensboro, KY 42301
Facebook

Websites

Research Guides

References

  1. ↑ 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.
  2. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Daviess County, Kentucky" in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daviess_County,_Kentucky."
  3. ↑ 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.
  4. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Daviess 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.
  5. ↑ 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.
  6. ↑ Voice of Dorothy Murphy (b. 1927), life-long resident of Central City, Ky. (2011)
  7. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Daviess County, Kentucky," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daviess_County,_Kentucky, accessed 9 August 2018.
  8. ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at FamilySearch.
  9. ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at FamilySearch.



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