Sutter County, California Genealogy

United States

California

Sutter County

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

California Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Yuba City Organized: February 18, 1850 Parent County(s): Original Neighboring Counties Butte • Colusa • Placer • Sacramento • Yolo • Yuba See County Maps Courthouse Location Map Sutterfort

County Information

Description

Sutter County was created 18 Feb 1850 and was named after General John Sutter, a native of Switzerland, who obtained a large land grant from the Mexican government and called his first settlement New Helvetia (now the City of Sacramento). Its county seat is Yuba City. It is located in the north-central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Sutter County Courthouse
1175 Civic Center Blvd
Yuba City, CA 95993
Phone: 530-822-3300
Sutter County Website

County Clerk Recorder has birth and death records from 1873, marriage, land and military records from 1850.
Civil Division of Courts has divorce, probate and court records.

Sutter County, California 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
1873	1850	1873	1854	1850	1872	1850
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1905. General compliance by 1920.

Record Loss

1871: The Courthhouse was destroyed by fire in 1871. A second and larger courthouse, completed in 1873, was also set fire and many records were damaged. For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see: Burned Counties. By Michael John Neill at 24-7 Family History Circle. When the Records are Gone. By Arlene Eakle at Arlene Eakle's Tennessee Blog. Burned Counties Research in the FamilySearch Research Wiki. List of counties in the United States with Record Loss

Boundary Changes

Parent County(s): Created 18 February 1850 as an original county. County Seat: Yuba City California Individual County Chronologies - Newberry Library list of all boundary changes by county California Historical Borders - Map at Newberry Library Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; Also at: mapofus.org - animated maps illustrating California 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
Live Oak	Yuba City
Unincorporated communities
Catlett Kirkville Lee	Pleasant Grove Riego Rio Ramaza	Verona Tierra Buena Tudor
Census-designated places
East Nicolaus Meridian Nicolaus	Rio Oso Robbins	Sutter Trowbridge

Resources

Biographies

• Sutter County Biographies (Genealogy Trails)
• Index to Sutter County Biographies (USGenWeb Archives)

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Sutter, California online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find a Grave BillionGraves Interment.net USGW Tombstone Transcription Project
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	FamilySearch Catalog WorldCat.org
List of Cemeteries in the County	Find a Grave FamilySearch Places
See California Cemeteries for more information

Census Records

For online censuses (state and federal) and for more information, see California Census.

Church Records

Church records vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. Usually listed on the town level, they may contain ages, dates (baptism, christening, birth, marriage, death), maiden names, and more. See also California Church Records.

• 1864-1985 California, Church Records, 1864-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

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

• Sutter
• Yuba City

List of Churches and Church Parishes

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

Directories

• 1970-2024 United States, Residence Database, 1970-2024 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index, coverage may vary
  

Funeral Homes

Chapel of the Twin Cities in Yuba City Holycross Funeral Home and Crematory in Yuba City Ullrey Memorial Chapel in Yuba City

Land and Property Records

Land and property records provide exact location of land, often reveal family relationships, and give names of witnesses and neighbors. They include deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents. See California Land and Property for online resources, including early land grants.

Online Land Indexes and Records

• 1849-1937 Deeds, Patents, and Homestead Records, 1849-1937(*); Sutter County Recorder at FamilySearch Library Catalog — images
• Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Sutter County. Histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see California Local Histories.

• Index to Sutter County History (USGenWeb Archives)
• Sutter County History (CAGenWeb Project)

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of California (1850-1925)
• 1895 map of Sutter County, California
• FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Migration

• 1906-1935 California, Pioneer Migration Index, Compiled 1906-1935 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Military Records

• 1883 Sutter County – List of Pensioners on the Roll, January 1, 1883 (Genealogy Trails)

World War I

• 1914-1918 California, Geographical and Name Index of Californians who served in WWI, 1914-1918 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

World War II

• Sutter County, Index to World War II Army Enlistees (USGenWeb Archives)
• Sutter County World War II Honor List of Dead and Missing Army and Army Air Forces Personnel (Genealogy Trails)

Naturalization and Citizenship

Online Naturalization Indexes and Records

• 1831-1985 California County Naturalizations, 1831-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Newspapers

• 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
• California Digital Newspaper Collection at UCR Center for Bibliographical Studies and Research
• California, U.S., Newspapers.com Stories and Events Index at Ancestry — index & images ($)

Obituaries

• Sutter County Transcribed Obituaries (Genealogy Trails)
• Index to Sutter County Obituaries (USGenWeb Archives)

Other Records

Voting Records

• 1866-1898 California, U.S., Voter Registers, 1866-1898 at Ancestry - index ($)
• 1866-1910 California, Great Registers, 1866-1910 at MyHeritage - index ($)

Probate Records

Probate records include wills, fee books, claim registers, legacy records, inheritance records, probate ticklers, and dockets. They may give the decedent's date of death, names and residences of spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, and others. For online records and more information, see California Probate Records.

Online Probate Indexes and Records

• 1782-1999 California Wills and Probate Records 1782-1999 at Ancestry — index & images ($)
• 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

California tax records complement land records and can supplement the years between censuses. There may be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information, see California Taxation.

Vital Records

Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. The state has records since July 1905, although county records may start earlier. See California Vital Records for more information.

Birth

• 1800-1994 California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1812-1988 California Births and Christenings, 1812-1988 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1905-1995 California Birth Index, 1905-1995 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at: MyHeritage($)
• Early Sutter County Birth Notices (Genealogy Trails)

Marriage

• 1800-2007 California, United States Marriages at Findmypast — index ($)
• 1850-1945 California Marriages, 1850-1945 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1850-1952 California, County Marriages, 1850-1952 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images. Also at: MyHeritage($)
• 1960-1985 California Marriage Index, 1960-1985 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at: MyHeritage($)
• Western States Marriage Index at BYU-Idaho
• Early Sutter County

Death

• 1776-2000 California Deaths and Burials, 1776-2000 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1800-1994 California, County Birth and Death Records, 1800-1994 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1905-1939 California Death Index, 1905-1939 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1940-1997 California Death Index, 1940-1997 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index. Also at: MyHeritage($)

Divorce

• 1966-1984 California Divorce Index, 1966-1984 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Sutter County. For state-wide facilities, see California Archives and Libraries.

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

• Loma Rica California FamilySearch Center
• Oroville California FamilySearch Center
• Yuba City California FamilySearch Center
• Doris Foley Library for Historical Research Nevada County Library - an affiliate library
• Sacramento California FamilySearch Library - an affiliate library
• Sutter County Library - an affiliate library

Libraries

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

Museums

Sutter County Historical Society
1333 Butte House Road
Yuba City, CA 95993-2301
Phone: (530) 822-7141
Website
Facebook

Societies

Listed below are societies in Sutter County. For state-wide genealogical and historical societies, see California Societies.

Sutter County Historical Society
1333 Butte House Road
Yuba City, CA 95993-2301

Websites

• Sutter County CAGenWeb
• Linkpendium
• USGenWeb Archives
• Sutter County, California Genealogy Trails
• Sutter County CA Genealogy (ldsgenealogy.com)
• 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.

This table contains the dates the local or state government began recording in the county or county equivalent. Use substitute records for earlier dates. If you believe there is an error, email us at wikisupport@familysearch.org.

County boundary maps are currently unavailable. Download information instead.

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Users should verify which locations and dates are included in this collection.

Due to contractual agreements, some images and/or databases on FamilySearch.org may only be viewed at a FamilySearch Center or FamilySearch Affiliate Library.

This website requires a paid subscription for full access. Some subscription websites are available for free at your local FamilySearch Center or Affiliate Library.

FamilySearch affiliate libraries may have access to center-only databases, but do not always have all services normally provided by a FamilySearch center.