Lake County, Ohio Genealogy

United States

Ohio

Lake County

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

Ohio Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Painesville Organized: 6 April 1840 Parent County(s): Cuyahoga, Geauga Neighboring Counties Ashtabula • Geauga • Cuyahoga See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

Lake County was named as a reference to its location on the southern shore of Lake Erie. The county is located in the northeastern area of the state. Lake County was created from Geauga County with one township (Willoughby) from Cuyahoga County. It is the smallest county in the state.

County Courthouse

Lake County Courthouse
47 North Park Place
Painesville, OH 44077-3414
Phone: 440-350-2657
Lake County Website

Clerk has court records from 1840 at 25 N. Park Place.
Probate Judge has marriage and probate records at 25 N. Park Place.
County Recorder has land records at 105 E. Main Street, basement Bldg D.

Lake County, Ohio 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
1867	1840	1867	1840	1839	1840	1820
Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1908. General compliance year is unknown.

Record Loss

Painesville Twp. records before the early 1900s were damaged or lost due to flooding. 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 Counties: Formed from Cuyahoga and Geauga Counties 20 March 1840. County Seat: Painesville Ohio Individual County Chronologies - Newberry Library list of all boundary changes by county Ohio Historical Borders - Map at Newberry Library Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; Also at: mapofus.org - animated maps illustrating Ohio 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
Eastlake Kirtland Mentor	Mentor-on-the-Lake Painesville (county seat) Wickliffe	Willoughby Willoughby Hills Willowick
Villages
Fairport Harbor Grand River Kirtland Hills	Lakeline Madison North Perry	Perry Timberlake Waite Hill
Unincorporated communities
Painesville-on-the-Lake Unionville
Census-designated places
North Madison
Townships
Concord LeRoy	Madison Painesville	Perry

Resources

Bible Records

For an extensive list of resources for Bible Records see Ohio Bible Records.

• Bible transcriptions at OHGenWeb. Also contains church histories and minister records.

Biographies

• Riddle, Albert Gallation; History of Geauga and Lake Counties, Ohio: with illustrations and biographical sketches of its pioneers and most prominent men (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Williams Bros., 1878) Online at Google Books, FamilySearch Digital Library
• Biographical History of Northeastern Ohio, embracing the counties of Ashtabula, Geauga and Lake: ... (Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1893) online at FamilySearch Digital Library
• Biographies on OHGenWeb.

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Lake County, Ohio online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find a Grave Interment.net Ohio Tombstone Transcription Project BillionGraves OHGenWeb OHGenWeb Tombstone Photo Project Ohio Gravestones Ohio, Church and Civil Births and Baptisms, 1765-1947 (cemetery records), incomplete
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	FamilySearch Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Find a Grave FamilySearch Places
See Ohio Cemeteries for more information.

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1840	13,719	—
1850	14,654	6.8%
1860	15,576	6.3%
1870	15,935	2.3%
1880	16,326	2.5%
1890	18,235	11.7%
1900	21,680	18.9%
1910	22,927	5.8%
1920	28,667	25.0%
1930	41,674	45.4%
1940	50,020	20.0%
1950	75,979	51.9%
1960	148,700	95.7%
1970	197,200	32.6%
1980	212,801	7.9%
1990	215,499	1.3%
2000	227,511	5.6%
2010	230,041	1.1%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

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 Ohio denominations, see Ohio Church Records.

• 1765-1947 Ohio, Church and Civil Births and Baptisms, 1765-1947 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; selected counties, incomplete; includes, death, church, and cemetery records
  

List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places
  

• early to 1907 Churches, Ministers and Bibles at OHGenWeb - including Congregational, Episcopal, Baptist, Church of Christ, and Presbyterian

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

• Kirtland
• 1833-1842 Mormon Vital Records Extraction at Ohio GenWeb - Marriages and Deaths abstracted from Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine from original Latter-day Saint newspapers of the day.

Lutheran

• Records of Resurrection Lutheran Church, Painesville, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).
• Lake County Ohio by Ancestry ($). All U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Church Records, 1781-1969 Results

Directories

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

Funeral Homes

Behm Family Funeral Homes in Madison Blessing Cremation Center in Mentor Brickman Bros. Funeral Home in Willoughby Brunner Sanden Deitrick Funeral Home & Cremation Center in Mentor Davis-Babcock Funeral Home in Willoughby DeJohn Funeral Homes & Crematory in Willoughby Hills Jakubs-Waite Funeral Home in Eastlake Jeff Monreal Funeral Home in Mentor Jeff Monreal Funeral Home in Painesville Jeff Monreal Funeral Home in Willoughby Johnson Funeral Home & Crematory in Painesville McMahon-Coyne-Vitantonio Funeral Home in Mentor McMahon-Coyne-Vitantonio Funeral Home in Willoughby Monreal Funeral Home in Eastlake Orlando Donsante Funeral Home in Wickliffe Potti & Marc F. Burr Funeral Homes in Fairport Harbor Potti & Marc F. Burr Funeral Homes in Madison Potti & Marc F. Burr Funeral Homes in Painesville Spear-Mulqueeny Funeral Homes in Fairport Harbor Spear-Mulqueeny Funeral Homes in Painesville

Guardianship

• 1839-1939 Ohio, Lake County, Probate Case Files, 1839-1939(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
• 1840-1860 Probate Record, 1840-1860(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images
• 1869-1908 Ohio, Lake County, Guardianships for Special Needs, 1869-1908(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
• 1879-1936 Ohio, Lake County, Probate Journals, 1879-1936(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — images
• 1907-1929 Cost Bill Record Books: 1907-1929(*) at FamilySearch Catalog — index & images

Land and Property Records

After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and are where records are currently housed. More information about why to use land records and what information land records includes can be found on the Ohio Land and Property Wiki page.

Online Land Indexes and Records

• Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

Local Histories

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

• Riddle, Albert Gallation, History of Geauga and Lake Counties, Ohio: With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Its Pioneers and Most Prominent Men, (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Williams Bros., 1878). Online at Google Books, FamilySearch Digital Library
• Lake County's 125th Anniversary Souvenir Album, 1840-1965, (Painesville, Ohio: The Telegraph, 1965) Online at FamilySearch Digital Library
• Stith, Bary Oyler, Lake County, Ohio: 150 Years of Tradition, (Northridge, California: Windsor Publications, 1988). FS Catalog book 977.1334 H2s

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of Ohio (1788-1940) at MapofUS.org
• Stranahan, H.B., Corey, G.D., Atlas of Lake County, Ohio (Cleveland, Ohio: H.B. Stranahan & Co., 1898) online at FamilySearch Digital Library
• FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

• 1888-1919 Ohio Soldier Home Records, 1888-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.

Revolutionary War

• New Connecticut Chapter (Painesville, Ohio), DAR, A record of the revolutionary soldiers buried in Lake County, Ohio with a partial list of those in Geauga County (Columbus, Ohio: The Champlin Press) 1902. Online at FamilySearch Digital Library

Civil War
Civil War service men from Lake 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 Lake County.

- 1st Regiment, Ohio Light Artillery, Battery C

- 11th Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Company E

- 105th Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Companies D and K

World War I

• 1914-1919 Ohio, World War I Statement of Service Cards, 1914-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection
• 1914-1918 Ohio, World War I, Enrollment Cards, 1914-1918 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1916-1920 Ohio, WWI Index and Return Cards, 1916-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.

Naturalization and Citizenship

Naturalization Records - An Alphabetical Abstract of the naturalization petitions from Lake County Probate Court (1860-1906) and Lake County Common Pleas Court (1906-1975). This includes Declarations of Intention and petitions that failed for a variety of reasons. Naturalizations between 1840 and 1860 were done in a variety of courts, which will be abstracted later.

• 1800-1977 Ohio, County Naturalization Records, 1800-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.

Newspapers

Lake County newspapers often contain genealogical value including obituaries, births, marriages, deaths, anniversaries, family gatherings, family travel, achievements, business notices, engagement information, and probate court proceedings.

• For more online Ohio newspapers index & images, see Ohio Newspapers.

• 1800s-late 1900s Newspapers at Ohio History Connection — Select county.
• 1881-1900 Index to Birth Notices at Ohio GenWeb - index to birth notices in the Painesville Telegraph
• 1897 Willoughby Township Mortuary Report at OhioGenWeb - from The Willoughby (Ohio) Independent.
• Newspapers at Ohio GenWeb - index to newspapers at top; scroll down for Obituaries
• Evening and Morning Star at BYU Digital Collections
• Painesville Telegraph and Telegraph Republican at Google News
• 1800s-Current Ohio, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)

Obituaries

• 1850-1975 Cleveland Necrology File and News Index at Cleveland Public Library - index and abstracts

Probate Records

From 1797 or the creation of the county, probate records were held by the Court of Common Pleas. After 1852, records are held by the Lake County Probate Court. See Ohio Probate Records for information about how to use probate records.

Online Probate Indexes and Records

• 1786-1998 Ohio Wills and Probate Records 1786-1998 at Ancestry ($) — index & images.
• 1789-1996 Ohio Probate Records 1789-1996 at FamilySearch.org — How to Use this Collection.
• 1806-1940 Probate Court Records at Ohio GenWeb - Links to online probate, guardianship, estates and other probate records.
• 1840-1846 Probate Records, Vol. A: 1840-1842; Vol. B: 1842-1846 at USGenWeb Ohio Archives.
• Wills at USGenWeb Ohio Archives.
• 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

Ohio 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.

Online Tax Indexes and Records

• 1800-1850 Ohio Tax Records, 1800-1850 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1800-1850 Ohio Tax Records, 1800-1850 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Vital Records

Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Marriages were usually recorded from the formation of the county and are held at the office of the County Probate Court. Divorce records are located with the county Clerk of Courts.

Any existing birth and death records from 1867 through December 19, 1908 are located at the County Probate Court. The Ohio Department of Health has birth records filed after December 20, 1908 and death records filed after January 1, 1954, while the Ohio History Connection houses death records from December 20, 1908 through December 31, 1953.

Birth

• 1841-2003 Ohio, County Births, 1841-2003 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1867-1908 Probate Birth Records Index at Ohio GenWeb - births from the Probate Court.
• 1867-1908 Corrected and Delayed Birth Records Index at Ohio GenWeb
• 1867-1908 Perry Township Birth Records 1867-1908 at OHGenWeb Archives
• 1867-1908 Registrars Birth Report at Ohio GenWeb - miscellaneous non-probate births.
• 1908-1998 Ohio, Birth Index, 1908-1998 at Ancestry ($) — Index
• 1918-1953 Ohio, Stillbirths, 1918-1953 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1959-1998 Ohio, Birth Index, 1959-1998 at MyHeritage - index ($)

Marriage

• 1789-2013 Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection
• 1789-Onward Ohio Marriages at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
• 1840-1915 Probate Marriage Records Index at Ohio GenWeb - This index includes marriages from Vol. A-K, and 12-14 and part of 15.
• 1970-2003 Ohio, Marriages, 1970 - 2003 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Death

• 1765-1947 Ohio, Church and Civil Births and Baptisms, 1765-1947 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images; selected counties, incomplete; includes, death, church, and cemetery records
  
• 1833-1967 Ohio, Church and Civil Deaths, 1833-1967 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1840-2001 Ohio, County Death Records, 1840-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1867-1908 Probate Death records at Ohio GenWeb.
• 1867-1908 Registrar's Death Report at Ohio GenWeb - miscellaneous non-probate deaths.
• 1867-1908 Perry Township Death Records 1867-1908 at Ohio GenWeb.
• 1908-1932, 1938–1944, and 1958–2007 Ohio Death Index, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, and 1958-2007 at FamilySearch– How to Use this Collection
• 1908-1932, 1938-2018 Ohio, Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2018 at Ancestry ($) — index & images
• 1913-1944, 1954-1963 Ohio Death Index, 1913-1944, 1954-1963 at MyHeritage ($) — index
• 1918-1953 Ohio, Stillbirths, 1918-1953 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images

Divorce

• 1806-1839 Geauga County Supreme Court Divorces, 1806-1839 at Ohio GenWeb - An abstract of the divorce proceedings of the Ohio Supreme Court at Geauga County, mostly residents of what is now Lake County.
• 1878-1881 Divorce Proceedings at GenWeb - This Common Pleas Court volume covers 1878-Feb 1881 and lists over 60 couples applying for divorces.
• 1962-1963, 1967-1971, 1973-2007 Ohio, Divorce Abstracts, 1962-1963, 1967-1971, 1973-2007 at Ancestry ($)
  

Voting Records

• 1900-Onward Ohio, Voter Registrations at MyHeritage — index ($)

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Lake County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Ohio 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

• Kirtland Ohio FamilySearch Center
• Western Reserve Historical Society Library - an affiliate library

Libraries

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

Fairport Harbor Public Library
335 Vine St
Fairport Harbor, OH 44077-5799
440-354-8191
Email: askus@fairport.lib.oh.us
Website

Kirtland Public Library
9267 Chillicothe Rd
Kirtland, OH 44094-8500
440-256-7323
Website

Madison Public Library
6111 Middle Ridge Rd
Madison, OH 44057
440-428-2189
Website

Mentor Public Library
8215 Mentor Ave
Mentor, OH 44060-5786
440-255-8811
Website

Perry Public Library
3753 Main St
Perry, OH 44081-9501
440-259-3300
Email: askus@perry.lib.oh.us
Website

Wickliffe Public Library
1713 Lincoln Rd
Wickliffe, OH 44092-2499
440-944-6010
Email: ref.desk@wickliffe.lib.oh.us
Facebook

Willoughby-Eastlake Public Library
263 E 305th St
Willowick, OH 44095
440-943-2203
Website

Museums

Lake County History Center
415 Riverside Dr
Painesville, OH 44077, USA
440-639-2945
Email: research@lakehistory.org
Website

Museums & Historical Sites
105 Main St
5th Floor Nolan Building
Painesville, OH 44077
440-357-2290
Website

Indian Museum of Lake County, Ohio
Physical Address:
7519 Mentor Ave, Ste A112
Mentor, OH 44060
Mailing Address:
PO Box 883
Willoughby, OH 44096
440-951-3813
Website

Societies

Listed below are societies in Lake County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Ohio Societies.

Western Reserve Historical Society
Research Library in the History Center
10825 East Blvd
Cleveland, OH 44106
216-721-5722
FamilySearch Wiki
Website

Lake County Genealogical Society
c/o Morley Library
184 Phelps St
Painesville, OH 44077
Website

Websites

• Custom Browse of Historical Collections at Ohio Memory — Use map or alpha bar to select county or place, then browse search options in left sidebar.
• Ohio Genealogical Society ($) — online databases
• Lake County OH Genealogy at LDS Genealogy
• OHGenWeb - The GenWeb site has many databases, biographies, vital records, etc.
• Lake County Genealogical Society projects page with the cemetery inscriptions, naturalizations and other information.
• 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.

To access available information, first log into FamilySearch.

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

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.

“Current” indicates records are available as recently as privacy laws allow. This date can change from year to year. To determine the exact dates available, contact the respective organization/repository.

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