Middlesex County, New Jersey Genealogy

United States

New Jersey

Middlesex County

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

New Jersey Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: New Brunswick Organized: 1675 Parent County(s): Colonial lands Neighboring Counties Mercer • Monmouth • Richmond (NY) • Somerset • Union See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

Middlesex County was created 7 Mar 1683 and was named after Middlesex, England. Its county seat is New Brunswick. It is located in the east-central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Middlesex County Courthouse
56 Paterson Street
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
Phone: 732-645-4300
Middlesex County Website

County Clerk has marriage, divorce, court and land records.
County Surrogate has probate records.

Middlesex County, New Jersey Record Dates

Known Beginning Dates for Government County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1901	1683	1901	1786	1766	1786	1830
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started 1 May 1848. General compliance by 1920.

Record Loss

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

Boundary Changes

Parent County(s): Created as one of four original counties on 1 March 1683. County Seat: New Brunswick New Jersey Individual County Chronologies - Newberry Library list of all boundary changes by county New Jersey Historical Borders - Map at Newberry Library Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; Also at: mapofus.org - animated maps illustrating New Jersey 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
New Brunswick	Perth Amboy	South Amboy
Boroughs
Carteret Dunellen Helmetta Highland Park	Jamesburg Metuchen Middlesex Milltown	Sayreville South Plainfield South River Spotswood
Unincorporated communities
Adams Browntown Cottageville Deans Edgars Fresh Ponds Greensand	Hazelton Jefferson Park Keasbey Lahiere Melrose Nixon Outcalt	Parlin Randolphville Samptown Texas Union Valley Valentine Wyckoffs Mills
Census-designated places
Avenel Brownville Clearbrook Park Colonia Concordia Cranbury Dayton Fords	Heathcote Iselin Kendall Park Kingston Laurence Harbor Madison Park Monmouth Junction Old Bridge	Plainsboro Center Port Reading Princeton Meadows Rossmoor Sewaren Society Hill Whittingham Woodbridge
Townships
Cranbury East Brunswick Edison Monroe Township	North Brunswick Old Bridge Piscataway	Plainsboro South Brunswick Woodbridge

History Timeline

• 26 May 1688, part taken for Somerset County.
• 1710, some boundary changes
• 1714, part of Somerset County taken back
• 1790, some boundary changes with Somerset County
• 1822, water boundary established
• 22 February 1838, West Windsor and part of East Windsor twps. to Mercer County.
• 1844, part of Monroe twp. to Monmouth County
• 1844, part of Monroe twp. to Monmouth County and returned in 1845
• 1847, piece of Monroe twp. to Monmouth County
• 1850, part of Franklin twp. of Somerset County to North Brunswick twp.; water boundary clarified
• 1855, some changes to boundary with Somerset County and again in 1858
• 1860, part of Woodbridge twp. to Rahway, Union County
• 1871, boundary with Plainfield, Union County changed
• 1878, boundary at Kingston, Somerset County clarified
• 1892, water boundary further clarified
• 1939, land to Matawan, Monmouth County.

Resources

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Middlesex County, New Jersey online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find a Grave NJGenWeb USGenWeb Archives NJ Tombstone Transcription Project Interment.net BillionGraves
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	FamilySearch Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Find a Grave FamilySearch Places
See New Jersey Cemeteries for more information.

Census Records

For tips on accessing census records online, see: New Jersey Census.

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1790	15,956	—
1800	17,890	12.1%
1810	20,381	13.9%
1820	21,470	5.3%
1830	23,157	7.9%
1840	21,893	−5.5%
1850	28,635	30.8%
1860	34,812	21.6%
1870	45,029	29.3%
1880	52,286	16.1%
1890	61,754	18.1%
1900	79,762	29.2%
1910	114,426	43.5%
1920	162,334	41.9%
1930	212,208	30.7%
1940	217,077	2.3%
1950	264,872	22.0%
1960	433,856	63.8%
1970	583,813	34.6%
1980	595,893	2.1%
1990	671,780	12.7%
2000	750,162	11.7%
2010	809,858	8.0%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

• 1855 New Jersey State Census, 1855 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1865 New Jersey State Census, 1865 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1895 New Jersey State Census, 1895 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1915 New Jersey State Census, 1915 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

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 denominations, view the New Jersey Church Records wiki page.

• 1675-1970 New Jersey, Church Records, 1675-1970 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Lutheran

• Records of Our Savior's Lutheran Church, Perth Amboy, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

Methodist

• 1708-1985 Pennsylvania, Church and Town Records, 1708-1985 at Historical Society of Pennsylvania – ($), free to members of the society; Also available at Ancestry.com – $; 7,542,774 entries. This database is incomplete for all counties.

Contains the church records of:

• Monroe: Methodist Church

Quakers

• 1687-1825 Vail, Hugh D. "Records of Rahway and Plainfield (N.J.) Monthly Meeting of Friends (Formerly Held at Amboy and Woodbridge) from 1687 to 1825," The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, Vol. 8, No. 4 (Oct. 1877):176-181; Vol. 9, No. 1 (Jan. 1878):28-37; Vol. 9, No. 2 (Apr. 1878):64-71; Vol. 9, No. 4 (Oct. 1878):174-180; Vol. 10, No. 1 (Jan. 1879):20-23; Vol. 10, No. 3 (Jul. 1879):139-143; Vol. 11, No. 1 (Jan. 1880):42-46. Digital version at New York Family History ($); FS Library Book 974.7 B2n v. 8-11. Internet Archives has digitized Vols. 8-9, Vol. 10, and Vol. 11 - free. Includes births, marriages.
  
• 1826-1889 Haviland, Frank. "Records of Rahway and Plainfield (N.J.) Monthly Meetings of Friends (Formerly Held at Amboy and Woodbridge)," The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, Vol. 114, no. 1 (Jan. 1983):23-36. Digital version at New York Family History ($); FS Library Book 974.7 B2n v. 114.

Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

• New Brunswick

List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Directories

• 1909 New Brunswick, New Jersey, City Directory, 1909 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
• 1948 Polk's New Brunswick, Middlesex County, New Jersey, City Directory, 1948 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
• 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

• 1780-1846 United States, Slave Birth Records, 1780-1846

Funeral Homes

Aftercare Cremation Service in South Amboy Ana Maria Zevallos/Skrocki Home for Funerals in Perth Amboy Anderson Funeral Service in New Brunswick Asian Indian Funeral Service in Highland Park Boylan Funeral Home in New Brunswick Bronson & McNamara Memorial Home in Milltown Brunswick Memorial Home in East Brunswick Chubenko Funeral Home in Port Reading Chubenko Funeral Home in Woodbridge Township Costello-Greiner Funeral Home in Woodbridge Township Costello-Koyen Funeral Home in Avenel Costello-Runyon Funeral Home in Iselin Costello-Runyon Funeral Home in Metuchen Crabiel Parkwest Funeral Chapel in New Brunswick Flynn and Son Funeral Homes in Fords Flynn and Son Funeral Homes in Metuchen Flynn and Son Funeral Homes in Perth Amboy Gleason Funeral Home in North Brunswick Township Gosselin Funeral Home in Edison Gustav J. Novak Funeral Home in Perth Amboy Hakim's Funeral Services in Sayreville Jaqui-Kuhn Funeral Home in Highland Park Kurzawa Funeral Home in South Amboy Lester Memorial Home in Jamesburg M. David DeMarco Funeral Home, Inc. in Monroe Township Maliszewski and Spezzi Funeral Homes in Parlin Maliszewski and Spezzi Funeral Homes in Sayreville Maliszewski and Spezzi Funeral Homes in South River McCriskin-Gustafson Family of Funeral Homes in Middlesex McCriskin-Gustafson Family Of Funeral Homes in Piscataway McCriskin-Gustafson Family Of Funeral Homes in South Plainfield Michael Hegarty & John Vincent Scalia Home for Funerals and Cremation Service in Old Bridge Mount Sinai Memorial Chapels in East Brunswick Norman L. Jeffer Community Chapels of New Jersey in Old Bridge Old Bridge, Waitt, & Bedle Funeral Homes in Old Bridge Paak Funeral Home Sayreville Raritan Bay Funeral Service in South Amboy Rezem Funeral Home in East Brunswick Ruby Memorial in North Brunswick Township Saul Funeral Homes in Cranbury Sheenan Funeral Home in Dunellen Spotswood Funeral Home in Spotswood Synowiecki Funeral Home, Inc. in Carteret The Crabiel Home for Funerals in Milltown The Gleason Funeral Home of North Brunswick in North Brunswick Township The Gundrum Service "Home For Funerals" in South Amboy

Land and Property Records

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a specific location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.

See New Jersey Land and Property for information about New Jersey Proprietary land records. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse.

Online Land Indexes and Records

• 1784-1922 Deeds, 1784-1942; deed indexes, 1784-1922. Middlesex County (New Jersey). County Clerk. Online at: FamilySearch Catalog(*).
• Middlesex County Land Records Search Website Middlesex County land records are freely searchable online back to January 1950. Watermarked copies are free to print; printing clean copies is a paid service. Cookies must be enabled for the site to function properly and be sure to read the User Guide.
• Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

Local Histories

Your relatives may be included in biographies, in church, school and government history, or in military events and lists. For more information, see New Jersey History and scroll to Local Histories.

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

The Sanborn Map Company is the oldest mapping company in the United States. Founded in 1866, the company created detailed building maps of cities and towns all across the country, primarily for use by insurance companies. These maps also have been used extensively by local government agencies for over a century in conducting their daily operations efficiently. Genealogists, local history buffs, city planners, architects, and countless others have been drawn to the quality of detail found in them. Digital archive provided by Princeton University.

• Sanborn Maps of New Jersey: Perth Amboy
• Sanborn Maps of New Jersey: Woodbridge
• Sanborn Maps of New Jersey: South Amboy
• Sanborn Maps of New Jersey: Metuchen
• Sanborn Maps of New Jersey: Carteret
• Sanborn Maps of New Jersey: Sayreville
• Sanborn Maps of New Jersey: South River
• Sanborn Maps of New Jersey: New Brunswick
• FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Migration

Early migration routes to and from Middlesex County for settlers included:

• Raritan River a navigable river which rises in Morris County and flows through central New Jersey past Manville to New Brunswick where it meets the tide.
• King's Highway 1673 connected Boston, Massachusetts to Charleston, South Carolina and many coastal cities between including Philadelphia, New Brunswick, and New York City.
• Delaware and Raritan Canal 1834 connected New Brunswick, New Jersey on the Raritan River (and NY City) to Bordontown, New Jersey on the Delaware River and parts of Pennsylvania including Philadelphia.

Military Records

• Veterans individual grave field report sheets, Middlesex County, New Jersey

Civil War

• Middlesex County. Civil war enlistments bounties, 1864-1865

Naturalization and Citizenship

Online Naturalization Indexes and Records

• 1796-1991 New Jersey Naturalization Records, 1796-1991 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1905-1944 United States, New Jersey, Naturalization records from various counties, 1905-1944 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Newspapers

• New Brunswick Daily Times 1871-1916 - digitized archive of the newspaper; freely available via the New Brunswick Public Library
• New Brunswick, New Jersey Newspaper Extracts is a database part of an ongoing project to extract deaths, marriages, and notable events such as disappearances, fires, and crimes reported by The Daily Times in the 1870’s. Use this database as an aid for finding articles and obituaries in the New Brunswick Public Library's images of The Daily Times.
• The South Amboy Citizen (1910-1943)
• The South Amboy Citizen (1944-2000)
  The South Amboy Citizen offers online access from July 2, 1910, through December 29, 2000. Provided by the Sadie Pope Dowdell Library. (Note: There is no search capability for the South Amboy Citizen but you can use Google Advanced search http://www.google.com/advanced_search and enter "dowdell.org/citizen" into the bottom box labeled “Search within a site or domain” to search the paper.)
  
• Woodbridge Township Newspapers digitized archive freely available via the Woodbridge Township Public Library
• Carteret Press (1925 -1965)
• Fords Beacon (1936 - 1961)
• Independent Leader (1940 -1965)
• Leader Press (1967 - 1970)
• The Independent Hour (1876 - 1877)
• The Weekly Register (1898 - 1902)
• The Woodbridge Leader (1927 - 1928)
• The Woodbridge News (1899 - 1902)
• Woodbridge Independent (1919 - 1938)
• Woodbridge Leader (1926 -1939)
• New Jersey Online Historical Newspapers - identifies historical archived and digitized newspapers available online on both free and pay-to-access websites.
• 1800s-Current New Jersey, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• New Jersey Digitized Historic Newspapers at New Jersey State Library - lists Middlesex County newspapers and links to the newspaper

Probate Records

From 1797 or the creation of the county, probate records were held by the Court of Common Pleas and may have earlier records. In 1852, most of those records were transferred to the Middlesex County Probate Court. For more complete information and for online and other resources, see New Jersey Probate Records.

Online Probate Indexes and Records

• 1656-1999 New Jersey Wills and Probate Records 1656-1999 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 1670-1760 Calendar of New Jersey Wills 1670-1760 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 1670-1817 New Jersey Abstract of Wills 1670-1817 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 1678-1980 New Jersey Probate Records, 1678-1980 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; images only; Use the Surrogate's Docket Index 1700-1972 to obtain the Docket Number for the name. Then, use the Docket Number to locate the correct Estate file.
• 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
• 1936-2007 United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index

Tax Records

New Jersey tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses before 1820 or to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned taxable property were listed, many residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information see the wiki page New Jersey Taxation.

Vital Records

Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. United States Vital Records has additional research guidance on researching and using vital records. A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the New Jersey Vital Records State Department of Health or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred. Original marriage records are usually held at the county Bureau of Vital Statistics.

Birth

• 1600-1990 New Jersey Vital Records, Historical Society of Pennsylvania at Findmypast — index & images ($)
• 1660-1980 New Jersey Births and Christenings, 1660-1980 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; Also at: Ancestry Index ($)
• 1746-1795 New Jersey Baptisms 1746-1795 at Findmypast — index($)
• 1901-1903 New Jersey, Reclaim the Records, New Jersey Birth Index, 1901-1903 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1901-1929 New Jersey, Reclaim the Records, Geographic Birth Index, 1901-1929 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index; Also at: MyHeritage ($)

Marriage

• 1600s-1900s US Marriages, New Jersey at Findmypast — index($)
• 1670-1965 New Jersey Marriage Records, 1670-1965 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 1670-1980 New Jersey Marriages, 1670-1980 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1678-1985 New Jersey Marriages, 1678-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1683-1802 New Jersey Marriage Records, 1683-1802 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 1684-1895 New Jersey Compiled Marriage Records, 1684-1895 at Ancestry — index($)
• 1901-1914 New Jersey Marriage License Index, 1901-1914 at MyHeritage — index($)
• 1901-2016 New Jersey Marriage Index, 1901-2016 at Ancestry — index($);
• 1901-2016 New Jersey Marriage Index, 1901-2016 at Findmypast - Browse index ($)
• 1915-2016 New Jersey Marriage License Index, 1915-2016 at MyHeritage — index($)
• For a complete list of all New Jersey Marriage databases

Death

• 1600-1990 New Jersey Vital Records, Historical Society of Pennsylvania at Findmypast — index & images ($)
• 1798-1971 New Jersey Deaths and Burials Index, 1798-1971 at Ancestry — index($)
• 1848-1878 Death Records, May 1848 - May 1878 at New Jersey State Archives - index, $ for photocopies
• 1878-1900 Death Records, June 1878 - December 1900 at New Jersey Department of State — index, $ for photocopies
• 1901-1929 New Jersey Death Index, 1901-1903; 1916-1929 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1901-2017 The New Jersey Death Index at New Jersey Death Index — index; Also at: Ancestry index ($)
• 1920-2017 New Jersey Death Index, 1920-1929, 1949-2017 at MyHeritage — index($)
• For a complete list of all New Jersey Death databases

Research Facilities

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

• East Brunswick New Jersey FamilySearch Center
• Scotch Plains New Jersey FamilySearch Center
• Middletown Township Public Library - an affiliate library
• Monmouth County Library - an affiliate library
• Monmouth County Library - Atlantic Highlands - an affiliate library
• Monmouth County Library - Colts Neck - an affiliate library
• Monmouth County Library - Hazlet - an affiliate library
• Monmouth County Library - Holmdel - an affiliate library
• Monmouth County Library - Marlboro - an affiliate library

Libraries

Middlesex County Cultural and Heritage Commission
Middlesex County Annex
841 Georges Rd.
North Brunswick, NJ 08902
Telephone: 732-745-4489
Website

Societies

Plainsboro Historical Society
641 Plainsboro Rd Ste A
Plainsboro, NJ 08536
Telephone: 609-799-9040

Metuchen/edison Historical Society
PO Box 61
Metuchen NJ
Website

South River Historical and Preservation Society
PO Box 446
South River 08882
Website
Website

Websites

• Middlesex County NJGenWeb, a member of The NJGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
• Middlesex County NJ Genealogy

• FamilySearch Catalog – 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.