Polk County, Arkansas Genealogy

Polk County
	Polk County, Arkansas
	Map
	; Location in the state of Arkansas
	; Location of Arkansas in the U.S.
	Facts
Founded	November 30, 1844
County Seat	Mena
	Courthouse
Address	Polk County Courthouse; 507 Church Avenue; ; Mena, AR 71953; Phone: 501.394.8123 ;

United States Arkansas Polk County

Guide to Polk County Arkansas genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

	Arkansas Online Records

County Courthouse[edit | edit source]

Polk County Courthouse
507 Church Avenue;
Mena, AR 71953
Phone: 501.394.8123

County Clerk has marriage records from 1885, probate records from 1900 and cemetery records; Clerk Circuit Court has divorce, land and court records from 1885 and military records.^[1]

Beginning years for Polk County, Arkansas Genealogy government records^[2]
Birth	Marriage	Death	Court	Land	Probate
1914*	1881	1914*	1885	1885	1900
*State birth and death records began in 1914. Limited compliance until 1920's

History[edit | edit source]

Parent County[edit | edit source]

1844--Polk County was created 30 November 1844 from Sevier County. County seat: Mena ^[3]

Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]

For animated maps illustrating Arkansas county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Arkansas County Boundary Maps" (1813-1925) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Variant Spellings[edit | edit source]

Record Loss[edit | edit source]

For a list of record loss in Arkansas counties see: Arkansas Counties with Burned Courthouses

Places/Localities[edit | edit source]

Populated Places[edit | edit source]

Neighboring Counties[edit | edit source]

Howard • LeFlore County, Oklahoma • McCurtain County, Oklahoma • Montgomery • Scott • Sevier •

Template:ARPolk County, Arkansas Clickable Neighbors

Genealogy Resources[edit | edit source]

Research Guides[edit | edit source]

African Americans[edit | edit source]

Bible Records[edit | edit source]

Cemeteries[edit | edit source]

Online Polk County, Arkansas Genealogy cemeteries from state and national resources

Search for names of people
(County-wide)

Get a list of cemeteries
(Most click to names of people)

Find published records
(Often more complete)

Find A Grave Click "Refine Last Search" on the left, change the name, then "Search"

Arkansas Gravestones Change the name, then "Search"

Billion Graves Change the name, then "Search" (Statewide, many counties nil)

Find A Grave

Interment.net

Access Genealogy

USGenWeb

ARGenWeb Select a county, then "Cemeteries." Some overlap with USGenWeb.

RootsWeb

African American Cemeteries Online Select the county and cemetery. Not all counties are included.

I Dream of Genealogy Select the county and cemetery.

More cemetery lists

Linkpendium
Cyndi's List
DeathIndexes.com
D'Addezio Search/browse by cemetery name, not people. (Statewide)

FamilySearch Catalog Select "Cemeteries"

World Cat

Periodicals

Societies

Census[edit | edit source]

Church Records[edit | edit source]

Court[edit | edit source]

Genealogy[edit | edit source]

Land and Property[edit | edit source]

Local Histories[edit | edit source]

History Timeline[edit | edit source]

Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were gleaned from Arkansas County - The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture [1]

Maps[edit | edit source]

Maps of Arkansas (1813-1925)
Family Maps of Polk County, Arkansas Genealogy (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.

Military[edit | edit source]

Civil War[edit | edit source]

Regiments. Service men in Polk County, Arkansas Genealogy 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 Polk County, Arkansas Genealogy:

- 19th Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Dawson's) (Confederate)

- 33rd Regiment, Arkansas Infantry (Confederate)

- 3rd Regiment, Arkansas Cavalry (Union) ^[4] Company E

Naturalization[edit | edit source]

Newspapers[edit | edit source]

Finding More Arkansas Newspapers Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Polk newspapers in online catalogs like:

WorldCat
FamilySearch. Do a Polk County, Arkansas Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see, FamilySearch Catalog Place-name Search).
Fayetteville Democrat at Ancestry.com ($)
Fayetteville Daily Democrat at Ancestry.com ($)
Daily Fayetteville Democrat at Ancestry.com ($)
Northwest Arkansas Times at Ancestry.com ($)
Courier Times at Ancestry.com ($)

Occupations[edit | edit source]

Probate Records[edit | edit source]

Probate Records 1883-1957 Part of: Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979 FamilySearch Historical Collections (Free, browse images)
- Includes Administration bonds 1883-1919; Guardian bonds 1883-1921; Probate records 1876-1888; Wills 1901-1957.

Taxation[edit | edit source]

Vital Records[edit | edit source]

Birth[edit | edit source]

Marriage[edit | edit source]

1881-1952 - Polk County Marriage Books A-W Index 1881-1952 in Arkansas, County Marriages, 1837-1957 at FamilySearch - free.^[5]
1881-1923 - Polk County Marriage Books A-N Index 1881-1923 in International Genealogical Index at FamilySearch - free.^[6]
Polk county Marriages, 1901-05 at Ancestry.com ($)
Polk county Marriages, 1906-10 at Ancestry.com ($)

Death[edit | edit source]

Vital Record Substitutes[edit | edit source]

Genealogy Societies and Libraries[edit | edit source]

List of Arkansas Archives, Libraries, Publications, Historical & Genealogical Societies

Family History Centers[edit | edit source]

Introduction to LDS Family History Centers
Mena Arkansas Family History Center 2590 Hwy 88 E. Mena AR 71953-4509

United States

Websites[edit | edit source]

Check back often with websites. Local societies and libraries may know of other websites.

Sites with online indexes or images of records
ARGenWeb	Free	Data may be submitted by individuals or complete transcriptions
USGenWeb Archives	Free	Data may be submitted by individuals or may be complete transcriptions

Sites that search for links pertaining to Polk County, Arkansas Genealogy
RootsWeb resources	Free	Data may be submitted by individuals or may be complete transcriptions
Linkpendium	Free	Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)
CyndisList	Free	Click links. Some sites they link to may have fees ($)
StateofUS	Free	family history resources and government records

*Major catalogs for hard copy* collections of Polk County, Arkansas Genealogy** Books, microfilm, or manuscripts of genealogical records
FamilySearch catalog	Select topics. To select towns, add a comma to the search box.
WorldCat	To find nearby libraries that have specific items, see WorldCat Online Catalog.
Allen County Public Library	located in Indiana They are heavily involved in digitizing.
Arkansas History Commission	AR state agency involved in organizing and maintaining state and local history of AR
See also local libraries and Arkansas Archives and Libraries

Social networking sites pertaining to Polk County, Arkansas Genealogy
GeneaBloggers	enter "arkansas" in the search box to see a list and links to Arkansas Blogs
Google+	list of groups from "arkansas genealogy" search
Facebook	list of groups from "Arkansas Genealogy" search
genealogy.com	Polk County, AR Genealogy Forum
ancestry.com	Polk County Message Board

References[edit | edit source]

↑ The Handybook for Genealogists : United States of America, 10th ed., (Draper, UT: Everton Publishers, 2002), p. 70.
↑ Alice Eichholz, Red Book: American State, County and Town Sources, 3rd ed. (Salt Lake City: Ancestry Pub., 2004), 65-67. At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27rb 2004.
↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
↑ Desmond Walls Allen, Third Arkansas Union Cavalry, (Conway, Arkansas: Arkansas Research, c1987), p. 33-92. FHL book 976.7 M28dc
↑ FamilySearch Wiki contributors, "Arkansas County Marriages (FamilySearch Historical Records)," in FamilySearch Wiki, accessed 18 April 2013.
↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/images/d/d7/Arkansasnz.pdf.

[HB-1] The Handybook for Genealogists : United States of America, 10th ed., (Draper, UT: Everton Publishers, 2002), p. 70.

[2] Alice Eichholz, Red Book: American State, County and Town Sources, 3rd ed. (Salt Lake City: Ancestry Pub., 2004), 65-67. At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27rb 2004.

[Handybook-3] The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).

[4] Desmond Walls Allen, Third Arkansas Union Cavalry, (Conway, Arkansas: Arkansas Research, c1987), p. 33-92. FHL book 976.7 M28dc

[hc-5] FamilySearch Wiki contributors, "Arkansas County Marriages (FamilySearch Historical Records)," in FamilySearch Wiki, accessed 18 April 2013.

[vr-6] Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/images/d/d7/Arkansasnz.pdf.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]