Apache County, Arizona Genealogy

United States

Arizona

Apache County

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

Arizona Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: St. Johns Organized: February 14, 1879 Parent County(s): Yavapai Neighboring Counties Graham • Greenlee • Navajo • Montezuma (CO) • Catron (NM) • Cibola (NM) • McKinley (NM) • San Juan (NM) • San Juan (UT) See County Maps Courthouse Location Map

County Information

Description

Apache County was created on 14 Feb 1879 and named for the Apache people. Its county seat is St. Johns. It is located in the northeastern area of the state.

County Courthouse

Apache County Courthouse
70 West 3rd Street South
St Johns, AZ 85936
Phone: 928-337-7555
Apache County Courthouse

Clerk Superior Court has marriage, divorce probate and court records from 1879. County Recorder has land records from 1879

Apache County, Arizona Record Dates

Known Beginning Dates for Government County Records
*Birth	Marriage	*Death	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1887	1879	1887	1879	1879	1879	1830
*Statewide registration for births and deaths began in July 1909. General compliance by 1926

Record Loss

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

Boundary Changes

Parent County(s): Created from Yavapai County, on 14 Feb 1879. County Seat: St. Johns Apache County, Arizona Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library Interactive Map of Arizona County Formation History (1790-1897) - animated maps illustrating Arizona 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
St. Johns (county seat)
Towns
Eagar	Nahata Dziil (Navajo Chapter)	Springerville
Unincorporated communities
Adamana Allentown Bannon Blue Gap Boneyard Chambers Chetco Correjo Crossing Cove Coyote Springs Crosby Crossing El Tule Emmanuel Mission Feaster Flat Rock Green Spot Greer Place Heap Place Horse Mesa	Hunt Hunters Point Junction Overlook Kinlichee Kinney Junction Los Burros Lower Wheatfields Maverick Mexican Water Milkwater Milky Ranch Navajo Navajo Springs Northwoods Paulcell Place Pine Springs Pinta Potter Place Richville	Rosebud Salado Salina Sand Springs Sunrise Springs Tahchee Tanner Springs Tes Nez Iah Three Forks Totacon Troweek Tsintaa Yiti Ii Twin Falls Upper Wheatfields Wheatfields White Clay Wood Springs Wood Springs Trading Post Yazzi
American Indian Communities
Fort Apache Reservation‡	Zuni Reservation
Census-designated places
Alpine Burnside Chinle Concho Cornfields Cottonwood Del Muerto Dennehotso Fort Defiance Ganado Greer Houck	Klagetoh Lukachuka Lupton Many Farms McNary‡ Nazlini Nutrioso Oak Springs Red Mesa Red Rock Rock Point Rough Rock	Round Rock St. Michaels Sanders Sawmill Sehili Steamboat Teec Nos Pos Toyei Tsaile Vernon Wide Ruins Window Rock

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

History Timeline

1852, New Mexico Territory
Arizona is in yellow, left of the dotted line

• 21 Mar 1895 - Arizona created Navajo County from the west half of Apache County. This county named for the Navajo Indians. Look for records in Apache and Navajo counties.

• Until 1821 -New Spain controlled land that later would become Arizona. Some records of early settlers may have been sent to an archives in Seville, Spain, or to archives in Mexico City.
  
• In 1821 - Mexico obtained jurisdiction over the land that later would become Arizona. Some records of this period may have been sent to archives in Mexico City.
• In 1846-18 Aug 1846 - During the war with Mexico, the US took control of Santa Fe and proclaimed sovereignty over the land that later became the New Mexico Territory. Look for records in the National Archives and Records Administration, the Mexico Archives and the New Mexico State Records Center and Archives.
• 4 July 1848 - In the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, Mexico ceded part of present day Arizona, including all of present day Apache County. Look for records in the National Archives and Records Administration, the Mexico Archives and the New Mexico State Records Center and Archives.
• 13 Dec 1850 - The US created the New Mexico Territory from unorganized federal land. This territory named after the Mexican State of New Mexico. Some counties were created, but they were small and covered land only in present day New Mexico. The land in the present day Arizona was at that time non-county land. Also the land south of the Gila River still belonged to Mexico. Look for records in the Mexico Archives and the New Mexico State Records Center and Archives.
• In 1852 - New Mexico Territory created counties that stretched east and west from the Texas border to the California border, including all the land that later became Arizona. The land covered by present-day Apache County, Arizona was once part of Taos (NM), San Juan (NM) (1861-1862 only), Rio Arriba (NM), Santa Ana (NM), Bernalillo (NM), Valencia (NM), and Socorro (NM) counties of New Mexico. Look for records in Socorro, Bernalillo, Rio Arriba, Taos, and Valencia counties.
• 24 Feb 1863 - The US created the Arizona Territory from the western half of New Mexico Territory. All previous counties were discontinued for this new territory. Look for records in the Arizona State Library and New Mexico State Records Center and Archives

Also see Previous Jurisdictions to Land in Arizona showing dates the jurisdictions were created and maps. This will help in determining what jurisdiction your ancestor lived in and where the records are now located.

Resources

Biographies

• Lest Ye Forget. By Esther Wiltbank and Zola Whiting. Apache County, Arizona: Apache County Centennial Committee, 1980. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.WorldCat

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Apache County, Arizona online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find a Grave AZ GenWeb Billion Graves USGW Tombstone Transcription Project Interment.net
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	WorldCat.org
List of Cemeteries in the County	Find a Grave FamilySearch Places
See Arizona Cemeteries for more information

Census Records

For tips on accessing Census records online, see: Arizona Census.

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1880	5,283	—
1890	4,281	−19.0%
1900	8,297	93.8%
1910	9,196	10.8%
1920	13,196	43.5%
1930	17,765	34.6%
1940	24,095	35.6%
1950	27,767	15.2%
1960	30,438	9.6%
1970	32,298	6.1%
1980	52,108	61.3%
1990	61,591	18.2%
2000	69,423	12.7%
2010	71,518	3.0%
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 more about Arizona denominations, see Arizona Church Records.

Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Alpine, Amity, Cooley, Eagar, Greer, Nutrioso, Omer, St. Johns, Union and Vernon.

List of Churches and Church Parishes

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

Court Records

The general trial courts in Arizona are the county Superior Courts. The contact information for the Superior Court is as follows:
Apache County Superior Court
PO Box 667
70 West 3rd South
St. Johns, Az 85936-0667
Phone: (928) 337-7555
Fax: (928) 337-7586
There is also an Apache County Superior Court Website. The Superior Court handles all cases including general civil litigation, probate, conservatorships, guardianships, juvenile cases, divorces and criminal.

Online Court Indexes and Records

• 1881-1916 Index to District Court Papers, 1881-1916(*) Apache County District Court at FamilySearch Catalog - images

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

American Indians

• 1882-1920 Arizona, Apache County, Voting Records, 1882-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Funeral Homes

Burnham Mortuary & Aspen Meadows Crematory in St. John Summit Funeral Home in St. Michaels

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 Arizona Land and Property for additional information about early Arizona land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse.

Online Land Indexes and Records

• Land Records from 1986 at Apache County Recorder's Office
• Full-Text Search - Land Records at FamilySearch - index & images; dates, records, and places vary; How to Search

Local Histories

County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the Wiki page section Arizona Local Histories.

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

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

Military Records

Civil War

• 1861-1865 Arizona Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection

World War I

• Apache County Assessor. Military enrollment list, 1917

World War II

• 1940-1945 Arizona, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1940-1945 at FamilySearch — index and images - How to Use this Collection

Newspapers

• 1800s-Current Arizona, U.S., Newspapers.com™ Stories and Events Index, 1800's-Current at Ancestry — index & images ($)

• 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)

Obituaries

The usage of "Mormon" and "LDS" on this page is approved according to current policy.

• 1959-2014 Arizona, Mesa LDS Family History Center, Obituary Index, 1959-2014 at FamilySearch — index - How to Use this Collection

Other Records

Voting Records

• 1882 – 1920 Arizona, Apache County, Voting Records, 1882-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index and images

Probate Records

From 1850 to 1864, probate records of Arizona were kept by the probate courts of New Mexico. From 1864 to 1912, the records were handled by county probate courts. 1912 to present, records such as wills, claims, administrations, case files, and calendars are kept in the custody of the clerk of the superior court in the county courthouse.

Online Probate Indexes and Records

• 1803-1995 Arizona Wills and Probate Records 1803-1995 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

Vital Records

Vital Records consist of births, adoptions, marriages, divorces, and deaths recorded on registers, certificates, and documents. A copy or an extract of most original records can be purchased from the Arizona Department of Health Services or the county clerk's office of the county where the event occurred.

Birth

• 1800-1946 Arizona Genealogy Birth Certificates, 1800-1947 at Arizona Department of Health Services — images
• 1855-1930 Arizona, Birth Certificates and Indexes, 1855-1930 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1887-1935 Arizona Birth Certificates, 1887-1935 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)
• 1909-1917 Arizona, Births and Christenings, 1909-1917 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index; Also at: Ancestry($)
• 1909-1917 Arizona Birth Certificates, 1909-1917 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index

Marriage

• 1809-2011 Western States Marriage Index, 1809-2011 at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1833-1949 US Marriages – Arizona, 1833-1949 at Findmypast — index ($)
• 1864-1982 Arizona Marriage Collection, 1864-1982 at Ancestry — index ($)
• 1871-1964 Arizona, County Marriages, 1871-1964 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1888-1908 Arizona Select Marriages, 1888-1908 at Ancestry — index ($)
• Western States Marriage Index at BYU Idaho — index; Also at: FamilySearch

Death

• 1800-1972 Arizona Genealogy Record Search at Arizona Department of Health Services — images
• 1870-1951 Arizona Deaths, 1870-1951 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index & images
• 1870-1963 Arizona Death Certificates, 1870-1963 at MyHeritage — index & images ($)

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Apache County. For state-wide facilities, see Arizona 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

• Chinle Arizona FamilySearch Center
• St Johns Arizona FamilySearch Center
• Window Rock Arizona FamilySearch Center
• East Flagstaff Public Library - an affiliate library
• Flagstaff City - Coconino County Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries

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

Societies

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

Apache County Historical Society
180 W. Cleveland
St. Johns, AZ 85936
Phone: 928-337-4737
Facebook
Website

White Mountain Historical Society
504 East Mohave St.
Springerville, AZ 85938
Website

Websites

• Apache County AZGenWeb Project.
• Apache County, Arizona Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
• 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.