Douglas County, Nebraska Genealogy

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

County Facts
County seat: Omaha
Organized: November 23, 1854
Parent County(s): Original county[1]
Neighboring Counties
Dodge  • Pottawattamie (IA)  • Sarpy  • Saunders  • Washington
See County Maps
Courthouse
Douglas County Nebraska Courthouse.jpg
Location Map
200px-Map of Nebraska highlighting Douglas County svg.bmp
Adoption


County Information[edit | edit source]

Description[edit | edit source]

Douglas County was named after Stephen A. Douglas (1813-1861), U.S. Senator from Illinois. The County is located in the east central area of the state.[2]

County Courthouse[edit | edit source]

Douglas County Courthouse
Hall of Justice
1701 Farnam Street, #300
Omaha, NE 68102
Phone: 402.444.7018
Douglas County Website

County Judge has marriage and probate records.
Clerk District Court has divorce records.
County Clerk has military discharge records. [1]

Douglas County, Nebraska Record Dates[edit | edit source]

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 Major Records[3]
Birth* Marriage Death* Court Land Probate Census
1869 1856 1873 1855 1854 1855 1854
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in late 1904. General compliance by 1920.

Record Loss[edit | edit source]

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

Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]

Populated Places[edit | edit source]

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:[4]

Cities
Villages
Unincorporated communities
Census-designated places


History Timeline[edit | edit source]

Resources[edit | edit source]

Bible Records[edit | edit source]

Biographies[edit | edit source]

Business, Commerce, and Occupations[edit | edit source]

Cemeteries[edit | edit source]

Cemeteries of Douglas County, Nebraska online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)
List of Cemeteries in the County
See Nebraska Cemeteries for more information

 

Census Records[edit | edit source]

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1860 4,328 —
1870 19,982 361.7%
1880 37,645 88.4%
1890 158,008 319.7%
1900 140,590 −11.0%
1910 168,546 19.9%
1920 204,524 21.3%
1930 232,982 13.9%
1940 247,562 6.3%
1950 281,020 13.5%
1960 343,490 22.2%
1970 389,455 13.4%
1980 397,038 1.9%
1990 416,444 4.9%
2000 463,585 11.3%
2010 517,110 11.5%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

Federal Censuses were taken for Nebraska starting in 1860. For links to Federal census indexes, see Nebraska Census.

For tips on accessing Douglas County, Nebraska Genealogy census records online, see: Nebraska Census.

State Census Records

Church Records[edit | edit source]

Church records 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 Nebraska denominations, view the Nebraska Church Records wiki page.
List of Churches and Church Parishes

Online Church Records

Google maps shows many Douglas County churches

Lutheran

  • Records of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Millard, in Evangelical Lutheran Church in America database at Archives.com ($).

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Ward and Branch Records

  • Omaha Branch Record of Members 1929-1942 at  Family History Library
  • Omaha South Branch Record of Members 1941 at Family History Library
  • Winter QuartersBishops Accounts 1840-1859 for Bishop Edward Hunter. Also includes Nauvoo, Illinois 5th Ward and Salt Lake City, Utah 13th Ward,

Court Records[edit | edit source]

Directories[edit | edit source]

Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups[edit | edit source]

  • Italians of Omaha Online version of book written and compiled by workers of the Writers' Program Work Projects Administration in the State of Nebraska; sponsored by Order of Sons of Italy. Published: Omaha : Independent Printing Company, 1941.

Funeral Homes[edit | edit source]

Genealogies[edit | edit source]

Guardianship[edit | edit source]

Land and Property Records[edit | edit source]

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 Nebraska Land and Property for additional information about early Nebraska land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse, where records are currently housed.

For more information see Nebraska Land and Property

Local Histories[edit | edit source]

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


Local histories are available for Douglas County, Nebraska Genealogy. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the wiki page section Nebraska Local Histories. It is also noted as part of the local history that there are "Mormon Cemetery" in this area. Burials here are largely from the late 1840s, when the Latter-day Saints began their trek west, this general area very close to this spot is where they stopped for the winter of 1846 and subsequent groups heading for what is now known as Utah staged from this general area. This area is also known as "Winter Quarters" due to the fact that the first group stopped for the winter around this location. There may be a very few later than that here as well.

Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]

Harrison CountyPottawattamie CountyWashington CountySarpy CountySaunders CountyDodge CountyNE DOUGLAS.PNG
Click a neighboring county
for more resources

Migration[edit | edit source]

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


Early migration routes to and from Douglas County for European and African American settlers included:

Railroads

In December 1863 the First Transcontinental Railroad started from Omaha, Nebraska.

Military Records[edit | edit source]

Revolutionary War[edit | edit source]


Civil War[edit | edit source]

  1. History of Nebraska GAR
  2. GAR information is available through the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War
  • Original Post
  1. Post # 1 OMAHA Chartered Dec. 13, 1866 by National Headquarters 15 members
  • Later Posts
  1. Post #2 FT. OMAHA Phil Kearny Jan. 1, 1876-1896 Post moved to South Omaha Membership: Total-136+
  2. Post #2-A South Omaha Phil Kearny Oct 5, 1896-1924 Charter surrendered April 30, 1924 Membership: Total-304+
  3. Post # 7 Omaha  George Custer June 5, 1876-1946 Changed Jan 9, 1922 when last 3 Omaha posts were combined to Old Guard (A reference to their being the last of their kind) Membership: Total-477+
  4. Post #110 Omaha Aug. 18, 1882-1921 Combined with Post #7 Omaha, changed on July (23), 1888 to U.S.Grant, Membership: Charter-18 Total-344+
  5. Post # 262 Omaha April 6, 1888-1921, Combined with Post 7  Gate City , (Post originally requested name of Thomas J. Potter) changed January 30, 1889 to Phil Sheridan, changed March 21, 1890 to George Crook, Membership: Total-400+
  6. Post # 282 South Omaha R.R. Livingston May 7, 1889-1896 Combined with Post 2-A 1827-1888 Membership: Charter-N/A Total-66+
  7. Post # 300 Florence James Isom March 29, 1890-1890 Charter surrendered 1/29/189,1Membership: Total-12
  8. Post # 337 South Omaha Samuel Dennis April 16, 1895-1896 Combined with Post 2-A Membership: Charter-27 Total-34

World War I[edit | edit source]

World War II[edit | edit source]

Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]

Newspapers[edit | edit source]

For information on Nebraska newspapers, see Nebraska Newspapers.


  • Library of Congress Chronicling America newspaper project contains digital copies of newspapers for Douglas County, Nebraska. Some are foreign language newspaprs. Years of publication vary.

Obituaries[edit | edit source]

  • Omaha Obits - site with obituary listings that includes the Omaha Bee, the Omaha Star (African-American paper) and the Jewish Press; provided by the Greater Omaha Genealogical Society. Nearly 19,000 listings  from Omaha newspapers.

Other Records[edit | edit source]

Periodicals[edit | edit source]

Probate Records[edit | edit source]

In most counties in Nebraska, probate records have been kept by the county judge. They include wills, fee books, claim registers, legacy records, inheritance records, probate ticklers, and dockets. The records are available at the county courthouse.

The FamilySearch Catalog lists films of probate records. To find the records for this county, use the Place Search for Nebraska - Douglas - Probate records.

Online Probate Records

School Records[edit | edit source]

Social Security Records[edit | edit source]

Tax Records[edit | edit source]

Nebraska tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses before 1820 or to supplement the years between censuses. There may be gaps of several years in the records.

Vital Records[edit | edit source]

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 Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred.

Birth[edit | edit source]

  • Douglas County births from early Omaha newspapers at the W. Dale Clark Library in Omaha. These birth announcements were extracted by those looking for obituaries in the same papers.

Marriage[edit | edit source]

Death[edit | edit source]


Divorce[edit | edit source]

Research Facilities[edit | edit source]

Archives[edit | edit source]

Listed below are archives in Douglas County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Nebraska Archives and Libraries.

Family History Centers[edit | edit source]

Family History 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 family history center.

Local Centers and Libraries

Libraries[edit | edit source]

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

Museums[edit | edit source]

Societies[edit | edit source]

Listed below are societies in Douglas County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Nebraska Societies.

Websites[edit | edit source]

  • NEGenWeb
  • USGenWeb
  • Linkpendium links for Douglas County, Nebraska
  • Linkforum for Douglas County, Nebraska
  • Cyndi's List For Nebraska then scroll to Douglas County. Links to websites for multiple subjects
  • 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

Research Guides[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Nebraska.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
  2. ↑ http://genealogytrails.com/neb/douglas/ accessed 09/29/2016
  3. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Douglas County, Nebraska. Page 428-435 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002; Alice Eichholz, ed. Ancestry’s Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources, Third ed. (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2004), 417-420.
  4. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Douglas County, Nebraska," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_County,_Nebraska, accessed 24 January 2019.
  5. ↑ Jim Tompkins, Oregon Trail Landmarks, The Oregon Trail 1841-1848 Map I (accessed 18 July 2011).
  6. ↑ "Oregon California Trails Association" at http://octatrails.micromaps.com/ (accessed 18 July 2011).
  7. ↑ "The Pioneer Story: The Mormon Pioneer Trail" in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/pioneer-trek (accessed 18 July 2011).
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