St. Joseph County, Michigan Genealogy
Guide to St. Joseph County, Michigan ancestry, family history, and genealogy birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
| St. Joseph County, Michigan | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of Michigan | |
 Location of Michigan in the U.S. | |
| Facts | |
| Founded | October 29, 1829 |
|---|---|
| County Seat | Centreville |
| Courthouse | |
 | |
| Address | St. Joseph County Courthouse 125 W Main St. Centreville, MI 49032-0189 Phone: 616-467-5602 St. Joseph County Website |
Contents
- 1 County Information
- 2 County Courthouse
- 3 History
- 4 Places/Localities
- 5 Resources
- 6 Websites
- 7 References
County Information[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
The County was named for St. Joseph. The County is located in the east area of the state.[1]
St. Joseph County, Michigan Record Dates[edit | edit source]
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1867 | 1832 | 1867 | 1900 | 1830 | 1832 | 1820 |
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
County Clerk has birth and death records from 1867, marriage records from 1832, divorce and court records from 1900 and naturalization records.
Probate Court has probate records.
Register of Deeds has land records. [3]
History[edit | edit source]
Parent County[edit | edit source]
1829--St. Joseph County was created 29 October 1829 from unorganized territory. County seat: Centreville [4]
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
For animated maps illustrating Michigan county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Michigan County Boundary Maps" (1790-1897) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.
Places/Localities[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:[5]
| Cities | ||
| Villages | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Townships | ||
Neighboring Counties[edit | edit source]
Branch • Calhoun • Cass • Elkhart County, Indiana • Kalamazoo • Lagrange County, Indiana • Van Buren
Resources[edit | edit source]
Biographies[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
| Tombstone Transcriptions Online | Tombstone Transcriptions in Print | List of Cemeteries in the county |
| Findagrave.com | Family History Library | Findagrave.com |
| USGenWeb | WorldCat | Billion Graves |
| MIGenWeb Archives | ||
| Tombstone Project | ||
| MIInterment | ||
| MIGravestones | ||
| EPodunk | ||
| Billion Graves | ||
| See Michigan Cemeteries for more information. | ||
Mottville Township:
- Mennonite Cemetery
- Mottville Township Cemetery
Park Township:
- Center Park Cemetery
- Moorepark Road North Park or Mint Cemetery
- Moorepark Cemetery
- Parkville Cemetery
- South Park Cemetery
Census[edit | edit source]
Federal Census
- 1830 Census - 1830 Census of Michigan: St. Joseph County. MiGenWeb Project
- 1845 Census - 1845 St. Joseph County Census/ MiGenWeb Project
- 1850 Census - 1850 Census St. Joseph County. MiGenWeb Project
- 1850 Census - 1850 Burr Oak Township Census. MiGenWeb Project
State Census
- 1894 - Michigan State Census, 1894 at FamilySearch — index
- 1894 - 1894 State Census Index, St. Joseph County. MiGenWeb Project
Church[edit | edit source]
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 general information about Michigan denominations, view the Michigan Church Records wiki page.
- 1819-1991 - Michigan, Church Records, 1819-1991 at FamilySearch — index
- St. Joseph County Churches. MiGenWeb Project
Court[edit | edit source]
Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]
- 1929 - 1966 Michigan, Crew Lists for various ports, 1929-1966 at FamilySearch — index and images
Land[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 Michigan Land and Property for additional information about early Michigan land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and where records are currently housed.
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
Local histories are available for St. Joseph County, Michigan 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 Michigan Local Histories.
- The Portrait and biographical album of St. Joseph County, Michigan is a 606 page history of St. Joseph County that was published by Chapman brothers in 1889. The book was digitized February 11, 2008 and made available on Google Books.
Maps[edit | edit source]
for more resources
- Family Maps of St. Joseph County, Michigan Genealogy (land patent maps) at HistoryGeo.com ($). Free surname search.
- Maps of Michigan (1790-1897)
Military[edit | edit source]
- Veteran Index WWII to 2001. MiGenWeb Project Read explanation at top.
Civil War[edit | edit source]
Civil War service men from St. Joseph County served in various regiments. Men often joined a regiment or a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are the military units that were formed in or had many men from St. Joseph County.
- - 17th Regiment, Michigan Infantry, Company C
Online Records
- Michigan, Civil War Centennial Observance Commission, Committee on Civil War Grave Registration, Burial Records at FamilySearch — index
- Civil War Vets. MiGenWeb Project
- Civil War Veterans' Biographies. MiGenWeb Project
World War I[edit | edit source]
- 1917-1919 - Michigan, Census of World War I Veterans with Card Index, 1917-1919 at FamilySearch — index
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
- St Joseph County Newspapers. MiGenWeb Project
Finding More Michigan Newspapers[edit source]
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as St. Joseph County, Michigan Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:
- WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
- The Saginaw News
- Do a St. Joseph County, Michigan Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the Family History Library Catalog (For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search).
Obituaries[edit | edit source]
- 1820-2006 - Michigan Obituaries, 1820-2006 at FamilySearch — index and images
Probate[edit | edit source]
In most counties in Michigan, probate records have been kept by the county judge. They include wills, fee books, claim registers, legacy records, inheritance records, probate packets, 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 Michigan, St. Joseph and search for Probate records in the list.
- Note: Not every county in Michigan will have Probate Records in the FamilySearch Catalog.
Online Probate Records
- 1784 – 1980 Michigan Wills and Probate Records 1784-1980 at Ancestry.com — index and images $
- 1797 – 1973 Michigan Probate Records 1797-1973 at FamilySearch — images
Taxation[edit | edit source]
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 as shown below:
- Birth Records and Death Records from the Michigan Department of Community Health (from 1867) or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred.
- Marriage Records (from 1867) and Divorce Records (from 1897) from the County Clerk.
- Marriage Records (from 1867) and Divorce Records (from 1897) from the County Clerk.
Birth[edit | edit source]
- 1867-1917 - Michigan, County Births, 1867-1917 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1867-1902 - Michigan Birth Registrations, 1867-1902 at FamilySearch — index and images
Marriage[edit | edit source]
- 1585-1945 - Michigan, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
- 1820-1937 - Michigan, County Marriages Index, 1820-1937 at FamilySearch — index
- 1820-1940 - Michigan, County Marriages, 1820-1940 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1868-1925 - Michigan Marriage Registrations, 1868-1925 at FamilySearch — index and images
Death[edit | edit source]
- 1850-1880 - Michigan Mortality Schedules, 1850-1880 at FamilySearch — index and images
- 1867-1897 - Michigan Death Registrations, 1867-1897 at FamilySearch — index and images
- Michigan Death Record Search for periods 1867-2008, and 1993-current. A free index to deaths that occurred in St. Joseph county, Michigan is available at the County Clerk's death records web site.
- St. Joseph County Death Indexes. MiGenWeb Project
Societies and Libraries[edit | edit source]
Colon Historical Society
Blackstone Ave.
Colon 49040
Website
Governor Barry Historical Society
340 Florence
Constantine 49042
Tri-state Genealogical Society
c/o Sturgis Public
130 N. Nottawa St.
Sturgis MI 49091
Telephone Number: 616-651-3597
St. Joseph County Genealogical Society
PO Box 486
White Pigeon, MI 49099-9734
Website
Committee will provide one hour of local research for $10.00. Please include a pedigree chart, a stamped self-addressed envelope, along with your check or money order made out to SJCGS
St. Joseph County Historical Society
PO Box 492
Centreville, MI 49093
Telephone Number:616-496-5695
Libraries:
|
Burr Oak Public Library 220 S 2nd Burr Oak, MI 49030 |
255 North St Sturgis MI 49091 |
|
Colon Library 128 S Blackstone Ave Colon MI 49040 |
Three Rivers Public Library 920 W Michigan Ave Three Rivers MI 49093 |
|
Constantine Library 165 Canaris Constantine MI 49042 |
White Pigeon Library 105 N Kalamazoo St White Pigeon MI 49099 |
|
Mendon Library 314 W Main Mendon MI 49072 |
Glen Oaks Community College Library 62249 Shimmel Road Centreville MI 49032 |
|
Nottawa Public Library 112 S Clark St Centreville MI 49032 |
Family History Centers:[edit | edit source]
Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance and free access to premium genealogical websites. In addition, many centers have free how-to genealogy classes.
- For current information about a center near you, go to the Family History Center Map
- Sturgis Michigan Family History Center 1111 Galyn St, Sturgis, MI 49091 United States
Societies
- St. Joseph County Genealogical Society
- Tri-State Genealogical Society
Websites[edit | edit source]
- Michigan Genealogy Network Community on Google+
- Michigan Genealogy Network Group on Facebook
- USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county.
- FamilySearch Catalog
- St Joseph County MI Genealogy (ldsgenealogy.com)
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "St. Joseph County, Michigan" in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Joseph_County,_Michigan."
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), St. Joseph County, Michigan . Page 343-351 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), 346-349.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), St Joseph County, Michigan page 351, At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "St. Joseph County, Michigan," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Joseph_County%2C_Michigan, accessed 14 November 2019.
