Guilford County, North Carolina Genealogy

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Guide to Guilford County, North Carolina ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

County Facts
County seat: Greensboro
Organized: December 5, 1770
Parent County(s): Orange and Rowan[1]
Neighboring Counties
Alamance  • Davidson  • Forsyth  • Randolph  • Rockingham  • Stokes
See County Maps
Courthouse
Guilford County Courthouse (Greensboro, North Carolina).jpg
Location Map
Nc-guilford.png
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County Information[edit | edit source]

Description[edit | edit source]

Guilford County is located in the central portion of North Carolina and was named for Francis North, First Earl of Guilford and father of the prime minister of Great Britain at the time.[2]

County Courthouse[edit | edit source]

Guilford County Courthouse
201 S Eugene Street
PO Box 3427
Greensboro, NC 27402
Phone: 336-641-7556
Guilford County Website

Register of Deeds has birth and death records from 1913, and a limited list of slave deeds.
Clerk of the Superior Court has divorce records.

Guilford County, North Carolina 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 County Records[3]
Birth* Marriage Death* Court Land Probate Census
1913 1865 1913 1774 1771 1774 1784
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1913. General compliance by 1920.

Record Loss[edit | edit source]

1781 Fire burned courthouse
1872 Courthouse fire resulted in some loss of records. Many older records are still available.[4]

For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see:

Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]

  • 1770 Guilford County was created 5 December 1770 from Orange and Rowan Counties, but it did not start administration of its territory until 1 April 1771, so no Guilford records exist before that date.
  • County seat: Greensboro[5]

The law creating Guilford County was passed in 1770, and the county started administration of its territory on April 1, 1771. Any land records prior to that time will be in the records of other counties. Approximately, the western two-thirds of the county came from Rowan County, and the eastern one-third came from Orange County. Rowan was created in 1753 from Anson County, and Orange was created in 1752 from parts of Johnston, Bladen, and Granville counties.

Old Guilford County was three times larger than present-day Guilford County, since Randolph County was created from the southern third of Guilford in 1779, and Rockingham County was created from the northern third of Old Guilford in 1785.

For animated maps illustrating North Carolina county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation North Carolina County Boundary Maps" (1664-1965) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

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:[6]

Cities
Towns
Unincorporated communities
Census-designated places
Townships
  • Bruce
  • Center Grove
  • Clay
  • Deep River
  • Fentress
  • Friendship
  • Gilmer
  • Greene
  • High Point
  • Jamestown
  • Jefferson
  • Madison
  • Monroe
  • Morehead
  • Oak Ridge
  • Rock Creek
  • Sumner
  • Washington


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

 

Census Records[edit | edit source]

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1790 7,300 —
1800 9,442 29.3%
1810 11,420 20.9%
1820 14,511 27.1%
1830 18,737 29.1%
1840 19,175 2.3%
1850 19,754 3.0%
1860 20,056 1.5%
1870 21,736 8.4%
1880 23,585 8.5%
1890 28,052 18.9%
1900 39,074 39.3%
1910 60,497 54.8%
1920 79,272 31.0%
1930 133,010 67.8%
1940 153,916 15.7%
1950 191,057 24.1%
1960 246,520 29.0%
1970 288,590 17.1%
1980 317,154 9.9%
1990 347,420 9.5%
2000 421,048 21.2%
2010 488,406 16.0%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".


Church Records[edit | edit source]

Baptist

  • Caraway Creek. Founded before 1773.[7]
  • Cross Roads. Constituted 1786.[7]
  • Matrimony Creek. Founded by 1778. Later located in Rockingham County. Church membership lists and minutes (1776-1814) are available online, with an index at the end: online.
  • Sandy Creek. Founded 1755.[7][8] Later located in Randolph.

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

  • Greensboro

German Reformed

  • Old Brick Church, near Whitsett, N.C. Organized late 1700s.[9]

Lutheran

  • Friedens Church, near Gibsonville, N.C. Organized before 1791.[10]
  • Low's Lutheran Church, near Kimesville, N.C. Organized about 1771.[11]

Presbyterian

  • Alamance Church, near Greensboro, N.C. Organized about 1764.[12]
  • Buffalo Church, Greensboro, N.C. Organized about 1764.[13] Session minutes 1777-1788 online at FamilySearch. Index in History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church and her people, Greensboro, N.C., pp. 93-94; online at FamilySearch


List of Churches and Church Parishes

Court Records[edit | edit source]

Directories[edit | edit source]

Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]

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

African Americans

Funeral Homes[edit | edit source]

Genealogies[edit | edit source]

Guardianship[edit | edit source]

Land and Property Records[edit | edit source]

Local Histories[edit | edit source]

  • Arnett, Ethel Stephens, Greensboro, North Carolina: The County Seat of Guilford, Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press, 1955, 1983 (excerpt) (Google Books link)
  • Arnett, Ethel Stephens, The Saura and Keyauwee in the Land that Became Guilfod, Randolph, and Rockingham, Greensboro, North Carolina: Media, 1975.
  • Batchelor, John, The Guilford County Schools: A History, Winston-Salem, North Carolina: John F. Blair, 1991.
  • Bowles, David, Spring House (Book 1 in the Westward Sagas), Plum Creek Press, 2006.
  • Greensboro Business Directory, 1886 (GenWeb Archives)
  • Guilford County Bicentennial Commission, Guilford County, a Brief History, Greensboro, North Carolina: Guilford County Bicentennial Commission, 1971.
  • Guilford County, NC GenWeb Local History (includes links to book excerpts)
  • Hatch, Charles E., Jr., The Battle of Guilford Courthouse, Washington, D.C.: National Park Service, 1971.
  • Haworth, Cecil E., Deep River Friends: A Valiant People, Greensboro, North Carolina: North Carolina Friends Historical Society, 1985.
  • Haworth, Sara A., Springfield, 1773-1940: A History of the Establishment and Growth of the Springfield Monthly Meeting of Friends, High Point, North Carolina: Barber-Hall Printing Company, 1940.
  • High Point Business Directory, 1886 (GenWeb Archives)
  • Hill, Jane Smith, An Annotated Digest of Will Book A, Guilford County, North Carolina, 1771-May Court 1816, Heritage Books, 2007. (Google Books link)
  • Hughes, Fred, Guilford County: A Map Supplement, The Custom House, 1988. (excerpt)
  • Jordan, Pauls Stahls, Women of Guilford County, North Carolina: A Study of Women's Contributions, 1740-1979, Greensboro, North Carolina: Women of Guilford, 1979. (Google Books link)
  • Kars, Marjoleine, Breaking Loose Together: The Regulator Rebellion in Pre-Revolutionary North Carolina.
  • Pegg, William Wesley, Sr., Something of the Story of Deep River, Greensboro, North Carolina: Self-published, 1980.
  • Robinson, Blackwell P., and Alexander R. Stoesen, ed. by Sydney M. Cone, Jr., The History of Guilford County, North Carolina, U.S.A. to 1980, A.D., 1981.
  • Salsi, Lynn, and Burke Salsi, Guilford County: Heart of the Piedmont (The Making of America series), Arcadia Publishing, 2002. (Google Books link)
  • Scarlette, Gladys, Summerfield, North Carolina: A Pictorial History, Greensboro, North Carolina: Younts, 1995.
  • Sharpe, Stella Gentry, Tobe, Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press, 1939.
  • Sloan, John Alexander, Reminiscences of the Guilford Grays, Co. B, 27th N.C. Regiment, Washington, D.C.: R.C. Polkinhorn, 1883.
  • Stockard, Sallie Walker, The History of Guilford County, North Carolina, 1902 (complete text in Google Books) (complete text in Internet Archive)
  • Stoesen, Alexander R., Guilford County: A Brief History, 2000 (Google Books link) (NC Office of Archives & History Publications Shop)
  • Teague, Bobbie T., Cane Creek: Mother of Meetings, North Carolina Friends Historical Society, 1995.
  • Weatherly, Andrew Earl, The First Hundred Years of Historic Guilford, 1771-1871, Greensboro, North Carolina: Greensboro Print Company, 1972.
  • Zopf, Paul E., The People of Guilford: Growth and Changes in the Population of Guilford County, Greensboro, North Carolina: Chamber of Commerce, 1972.

Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]

Stokes CountyRockingham CountyCaswell CountyAlamance CountyChatham CountyRandolph CountyDavidson CountyForsyth CountyNC GUILFORD.PNG
Click a neighboring county
for more resources

Migration[edit | edit source]

Military Records[edit | edit source]

Revolutionary War

Civil War

  • Moore, Carol. Greensboro's Confederate Soldiers (Images of America series). Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2008. | Google Books page (limited preview)

Regiments. Men in Guilford 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 Guilford County:

- 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry
- 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Cavalry, Company F
- 2nd Regiment, North Carolina Infantry, 2nd Company E
- 4th Battalion, North Carolina Junior Reserves, Company A
- 5th Regiment, North Carolina Cavalry (63rd Regiment Volunteers), Company I
- 5th Regiment, North Carolina Cavalry (63rd Regiment Volunteers), Company K
- 7th Regiment, North Carolina Senior Reserves, Captain George F Fisher's Company
- 7th Regiment, North Carolina Senior Reserves, Company C
- 7th Regiment, North Carolina Senior Reserves, Company D

World War I

World War II

Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]

Newspapers[edit | edit source]

Obituaries[edit | edit source]

Other Records[edit | edit source]

County Records

Postcards

Voter Registration

Periodicals[edit | edit source]

Probate Records[edit | edit source]

Online Probate Records

School Records[edit | edit source]

Yearbooks

Social Security Records[edit | edit source]

Tax Records[edit | edit source]

Vital Records[edit | edit source]

Birth[edit | edit source]

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 Guilford County. For state-wide archival repositories, see North Carolina 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 Affiliate Libraries

Libraries[edit | edit source]

Listed below are libraries in Guilford County. For state-wide library facilities, see North Carolina Archives and Libraries.

  • Greensboro Library
    219 No. Church Street
    Website
  • High Point Library Public Library
    Website
  • University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Libraries
    Website

Museums[edit | edit source]

  • Friends Historical Collection at Guilford College
    Website

Societies[edit | edit source]

Listed below are societies in Guilford County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see North Carolina Societies.

  • Guilford County Genealogical Society
    PO Box 4713, Dept. W
    Greensboro, NC 27404-4713
    Facebook

Websites[edit | edit source]

Research Guides[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), North Carolina.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
  2. ↑ https://www.ncpedia.org/geography/guilford
  3. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Guilford County, North Carolina. Page 506-514 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), 505-509.
  4. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Guilford County, North Carolina. Page 509 At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
  5. ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), North Carolina.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
  6. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Guilford County, North Carolina," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guilford_County,_North_Carolina#Communities, accessed 15 February 2020.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 George Washington Paschal, History of North Carolina Baptists, 2 vols. (1930; reprint, Gallatin, Tenn.: Church History Research and Archives, 1990), 1:227-228, 230; 2:564. FHL Book 975.6 K2p 1990.
  8. ↑ "Sandy Creek Baptist Church," North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program, http://www.ncmarkers.com/, accessed 22 October 2012.
  9. ↑ "Old Brick Church," North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program, http://www.ncmarkers.com, accessed 22 October 2012.
  10. ↑ "Friedens Church," North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program, http://www.ncmarkers.com, accessed 22 October 2012.
  11. ↑ "Low's Lutheran Church," North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program, http://www.ncmarkers.com, accessed 22 October 2012.
  12. ↑ "Alamance Church," North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program, http://www.ncmarkers.com, accessed 22 October 2012.
  13. ↑ "Buffalo Church," North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program, http://www.ncmarkers.com, accessed 22 October 2012.
  14. ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at FamilySearch — index and images/wiki/en/images/9/91/Iginorthcarolinag.pdf]].
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