Erie County, New York Genealogical Records Information

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Erie County History and Information

Erie County Facts

Erie County was created in April 2, 1821 and formed from Niagara County. Erie County was named for Erie Native American tribe and the County Seat is Buffalo .In 1813, the British burned the Courthouse in Buffalo, which was then the County seat of Niagara County, destroying records that also included Cattaraugus and Chautauqua Counties. See also Extended History for more historical details.

The Erie County Courthouse is located at Erie County Office Bldg., 95 Franklin St., Buffalo , NY 14202; 716-858-6000 and the Official County Website is located at http://www.erie.gov/.

Erie County Borders Niagara County (North), Wyoming County (East), Genesee County (East), Cattaraugus County (South), Chautauqua County (Southwest) .

Erie County Municipalities: Akron (village), Alden (town), Alden (village), Amherst (town), Angola on the Lake, Angola (village), Aurora (town), Billington Heights, Blasdell (village), Boston (town), Brant (town), Buffalo (city), Cheektowaga (town), Clarence Center, Clarence (town), Colden (town), Collins (town), Concord (town), Depew (village), East Amherst (hamlet), East Aurora (village), Eden (town), Elma Center, Elma (town), Evans (town), Farnham (village), Gowanda (village), Grand Island (town), Hamburg (town), Hamburg (village), Harris Hill, Holland (town), Kenmore (village), Lackawanna (city), Lake Erie Beach, Lake View (hamlet), Lancaster (town), Lancaster (village), Marilla (town), Newstead (town), North Boston, North Collins (town), North Collins (village), Orchard Park (town), Orchard Park (village), Sardinia (town), Sloan (village), Springville (village), Tonawanda (town), Tonawanda (city), Town Line, Wales (town), West Seneca (town), Williamsville (village) . Town Clerks are responsible for vast amounts of local information from deeds, property transfers, and genealogical materials. Research on place and road names, the history of property transfers and much more are available through your Town Clerk. They are a tremendous resources.

Erie County, New York History Books at Amazon.com
Family History Library - The largest collection of free family history, family tree and genealogy records in the world.

There are free downloadable and printable forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms, U.K. Census Extraction Forms, Research Calendar, Ancestral Chart, Research Extract, Correspondence Record , Family Group Sheet , Source Summary Form.

Erie County Court Records

See Also New York Land Records, Marriage Records, Court & Probate Records

PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information.

Erie County Clerk has Land & Court Records from 1808 and is located at 25 Delaware Ave., Buffalo, New York 14202; (716) 858-8865, Fax: (716) 858-6550, [EMAIL] .
The county clerk is the keeper of most civil and criminal trial court records for Supreme Court and County Court, naturalizations, marriages (1908–35), censuses (Some county clerks' offices hold duplicate copies of some of the State censuses taken periodically between 1825 and 1925 and copies of the federal census), as well as deeds and mortgages.

Land conveyances (deeds and mortgages) are recorded in the county clerks' offices or in the New York City Register's Office. Recording of deeds became mandatory statewide in 1840. Before that many deeds were not recorded.
Marriages Prior to 1784 couples intending to marry were required to obtain licenses from and file bonds with the provincial secretary, if the impending marriage was not announced in a church. These Marriage Bonds were mostly destroyed in the 1911 Capitol fire. Published abstracts are available in Names of persons for whom marriage licenses were issued by the secretary of the province of New York, previous to 1784. (Albany: 1860; repr. with supplements 1984); and in New York Marriage Bonds, 1753-1783, comp. Kenneth Scott (New York: 1972).
Naturalization records are created by the Federal and State courts. State court naturalization records generally remain in custody of the county clerks. Older Federal court naturalization records have been transferred to the National Archives. Photocopies of naturalization documents and indexes for New York City for the period 1792-1906 (both Federal and State courts) are held by the National Archives--Northeast Region, 201 Varick Street, New York, NY 10014.

Erie County Surrogate Court Clerk has Probate Records from 1800 and is located at County Hall, 92 Franklin Street, Buffalo, New York 14202; 716-854-7867, fax 716-853-3741 .
The Surrogate's Court in each county generally has records dating back to the establishment of the county or 1787, whichever was later. Record keeping was systematized by an 1830 statute. Surrogate's Courts maintain records of wills, letters testamentary, letters of administration, orders and decrees, and appointments of guardians; and filed papers, including original wills, petitions for probate (gives date of death and lists next of kin), performance bonds, property inventories (seldom found after ca. 1900), administrator's or executor's accountings, etc. Surrogate's Courts create comprehensive indexes to records and files.

In recent decades many courts have ceased recording documents in books and substituted microfilm recording. Some courts have disposed of old property inventories, which have no continuing legal value. Most Surrogate's Court records are retained permanently because they may document title to real property or the legal status of individuals. Surrogate's Court records statewide occupy over 200,000 cubic feet, with over half a million record retrievals yearly. The court is authorized to charge substantial fees for records searches conducted by court staff. Prior to that time most estates were handled in New York City, the capital until 1797. Before 1787, some wills were recorded in the counties and occasionally in town records.

Click Here to Search New York Court, Land, Wills & Financial Records! - Researchers often overlook the importance of court records, probate records, and land records as a source of family history information.

Erie County Historian is located at 264 Middlesex, Buffalo, NY 14216.In New York State, every municipality (town, city, village, county) must have an appointed historian. Most of the towns have their own historians as well and each can be contacted. A county historian may be appointed for each county, check for availability.

Below is a list of online resources for Erie County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Erie County Court Records by clicking the link below:

New York Wills, 1626-1836: This database is a collection of New York citizens' wills from 1626 to 1836 that were recorded in the office of the clerk of the court of appeals, of the county clerk of Albany and of the secretary of state.
Soundex Index to Petitions for Naturalizations Filed in Federal, State, and Local Courts in New York City, 1792-1906: NARA M1674. The Soundex index to naturalization petitions filed in federal, state, and local courts in New York City, including New York, Kings, Queens and Richmond counties, 1792-1906.
Index to the Naturalization Petitions of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, Jul 1865-Sep 1906: NARA M1164. A card index to naturalization petitions filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York from July 1865 through September 1906
Index to the Naturalization Petitions of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, 1906-Nov 1925: NARA M1164. A card index to naturalization petitions filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York from October 1907 through November 1925.
Index to the Naturalization Petitions of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, 1865-1957: NARA M1164. A card index to naturalization petitions filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York from November 1925 through December 1957.
Alphabetical Index to Declarations of Intention of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, 1917-1950: NARA M1675. Alphabetical Index to Declarations of Intention of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, 1917-1950
Alphabetical Index to Petitions for Naturalization of the US District Court [and Circuit Court] for the Southern District of New York, 1824-1941: NARA M1676. Alphabetical Index to Petitions for Naturalization of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, 1824-1941.
Alphabetical Index to Petitions for Naturalizations of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, 1907-1966: NARA M1677. Alphabetical Index to Petitions for Naturalizations of the US District Court for the Western District of New York, 1907-1966
Erie County, New York Court Books at Amazon.com
New York Immigration & Emigration Records - Immigration records help the family historian to understand the movements of their ancestry as they relocated to different parts of the world.

Erie County Vital Records

See Also Research In Tax Records

Scattered town and precinct tax records for a few years in the 1770s and 1780s and nearly complete lists for the whole state, 1799-1804, are at the New York State Archives, although for the latter period the surviving 1804 rolls cover only delinquent taxes of nonresidents. New York City tax records are at the Municipal Archives. Some early assessment rolls have been published in The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, such as those for New York City, 1730, in volume 95; New Rochelle, 1767, in volume 107; and Ulster County, 1709-21, in volume 62. See also volumes 43-44 of the New-York Historical Society's Collections for New York City assessments 1695-99. A few counties such as Ontario have retained their early tax records, but most do not have them until about 1850 or even later. Many old tax lists are to be found in manuscript collections. Dutchess County is fortunate to have a long series of eighteenth century tax records. Some of the 1798 U.S. Direct Tax records survive for New York.

Below is a list of online resources for Erie County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Erie County Tax Records by clicking the link below:

Erie County, New York Tax Books at Amazon.com

Erie County Genealogical Addresses

See Also Other New York Genealogical Addresses

The Repositories in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be more generalized and over look the smaller details that local societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy section and may have some resources that are not located at archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All these places are vitally important to the family genealogist and must not be passed over.

Below is a list of online resources for Erie County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Erie County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:

Erie County,New York Town Historians, Historical Societies and Historical Museums
Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, 25 Nottingham Court, Buffalo, New York 14216
Local New York Researchers, Find a local researcher or become a local researcher.
New York State Archives and Records Administration, The State Education Department, Cultural Education Center, 11th Floor; Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY 12230; (518) 474-8955, [EMAIL]
Referred to here as the New York State Archives for brevity, it was the last such archives to be established in the United States. It houses land and court records, military and tax records, New York state vital records indexes, pre-settlement survey maps, and legislative records.
New York State Library, Cultural Education Center, 7th Floor, Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY 12230; The state library has a large collection of published and manuscript material on New York, including genealogies and local histories, federal and state censuses, city directories, and periodicals. It is also one of the two depositories for the State of New York DAR collection.
The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, 122 East 58^th Street, New York, New York 10022-1939; 212-755-8532, Fax: 212-754-4218; A private society, the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society publishes the NYG&B Newsletter and a quarterly, The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record. Its library holds much New York State and related material, both for New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. For New York there are censuses, federal and state; a large manuscript collection of church, cemetery, Bible, and other records; and an extensive amount of published family and local histories. Nonmembers can use the library for a small fee, but only members have access to the stacks, manuscripts, and microforms. The library provides a list of area researchers.
New York State Historical Association, West Lake Road, P.O. Box 800, Cooperstown, New York, 13326-0800
National Archives--Northeast Region, 201 Varick Street, New York, NY 10014.
New York Newspapers & Periodicals Records - Newspapers and periodicals are the diaries of local communities. They are excellent sources of family history details - often recorded nowhere else. Look for obituaries, marriages, legal notices, and more found in our Historical Newspaper Archives.
New York Genealogical Society Books at Amazon.com

Erie County Church & Cemeteries

Click Here to Search New York Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.

There are many churches and cemeteries in Erie County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Erie County Tombstone Transcription Project.

Many church records, mostly early and particularly for Long Island, New York City, and the Hudson River Valley, have been published in The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record with a large collection of unpublished records maintained by the New York. Particularly useful as vital records substitutes among the surviving New York church records are those of the Dutch Reformed, Lutheran, Anglican, and Quaker groups.

The largest number of New York cemetery records (the bulk of which are actually transcriptions of cemetery marker inscriptions) is found in the multivolume collection of the Daughters of the American Revolution in the State of New York, Church, and Town Records, located at the New York State Library, the New York Public Library, and the DAR Library in Washington, D.C. Scattered volumes are found in other libraries including many local libraries in the area in which a particular cemetery is located.

Below is a list of online resources for Erie County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Erie County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:

Family Trees & Genealogy Tidbits

Click Here to Search New York Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.

When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Erie County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Erie County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:

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Erie County, New York Family Books at Amazon.com

County History

The genealogy of Erie County is this: Albany, one of the original divisions of the State, 1683, gave territory to erect Montgomery County in 1772; from Montgomery was taken Ontario in 1789, embracing all the western part of the State; from Ontario came Genesee in 1802; from Genesee was taken Niagara March 22, 1808; and separating from Niagara, Erie County was erected April 2, 1821. It lies on Lake Erie and the Niagara River in the extreme western part of New York. The land area is 1,071 square miles, and the Lake Erie area 160 square miles.

Topographically, the features of the country are varied. While in general the surface is level, particularly in the north, the central part is rolling, and the southern section hilly. There are few minerals of commercial value in the County, and agriculture has become dominant and as diversified as the soils. The waters of Lake Erie modify the climate, particularly of those towns which border on it, giving them the advantage in fruit growing. The presence of Buffalo and other cities has made vegetable gardening profitable. So the farming processes of Erie are today very different from the time when the grains, particularly wheat, were the main crops of the whole area. The Niagara River, with its falls, has been the means of developing industries varied and great, not even dreamed of when the timber of the County was the main, almost only, natural resource, and the small streams entering the river or the lake, were the water powers used to drive their simple mills.

Although this region was known by the French about the time first settlements were being made on Manhattan Island, Virginia and Plymouth, and although they were the first settlers, they had little influence on the region. And after a short period under English dominion, the area came to be a part of the new American State. The lands never had the mixed titles of most districts. With the exception of the Indian Reservation and the "One Mile Strip" along the Niagara River, all the County was included in the Holland Purchase. The Indian lands were gradually bought through a period of years. The first settlements in the section were on the site of the present city of Buffalo about 1794-95 and scatteringly all over the County within a few years. The Holland company was very liberal in the funds spent to build roads, bridges, mills, taverns, which led to the rapid settlement of the region. But there were to be set-backs to the progress. War was declared against Britain in 1812 and the lake sections were those most open to invasion. On December 30, 1813, the British came from Canada and captured Black Rock and Buffalo, in the face of superior, but untrained American forces. The thriving village of Buffalo was burned, and Erie County was in great distress and poverty that winter. It is well to recall that at this time there were in the whole County not 4,000 people.

Immigration is a tide which has its ebb and flow, and after the end of the war an unrestrained flood of settlers entered this part of New York. In 1821 the district was too large to handle politically, even though the County seat of Niagara was at the rebuilt Buffalo, and all the southern part became the County of Erie. The great demand was for means of transportation all over the State. The roads were unsurfaced, mere cleared ways through new country. There was little intercommunication and no outlet for produce. But the Erie Canal was under way and, completed in 1825, it probably had more to do with the determination of Erie's destiny than any other one thing. Meanwhile, on the waters on which had been launched, by La Salle I39 years before, the first white man's vessel, a steamboat plowed the waves (August 23, 1818). This was the celebrated "Walk-in-the-Water." Meanwhile steam was being applied to railroads, and the first steam road in the County being the Buffalo and Niagara built in 1836. There was a railroad from Black Rock to Buffalo used in 1834, but it had the horse as its motive power. The 1850'S were a railroad building period which supplied the County with rail systems, somewhat in advance of other parts of the State, which leadership had never been lost.

By 1850 the population of the County was just over 100,000, with Buffalo a city of 42,261 and already a great grain and lumber port. Nearly three and three quarter millions of bushels of wheat were received in this year by lake; in ten years the amount had reached eighteen and a half million, and corn came in to the amount of eleven and a third million bushels. Both Buffalo and the County were extremely prosperous. The breaking out of the Civil War checked much of this; even the high years following the war not preparing it for the panic of 1873. But the natural advantages of the location of Erie County told in the end, and the despondency of 1875 left, never to return. Railroad extension kept pace with other material growth, and coal became one of the commodities passing through the County. To care for the lake traffic, the great breakwater at Buffalo was projected in 1895. Buffalo, which had not been to any large extent an industrial city, became the home of hundreds of manufacturers. When the World War was thrust upon an unprepared nation, there were few sections in the State which so promptly switched its industries to those needed by the United States, and few sections, if we include Niagara County, did more to supply the essentials of warfare.

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