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Cross County, Arkansas Genealogy

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United States Gotoarrow.png Arkansas Gotoarrow.png Cross County
[[Image:Template:ARCrossParkinSite]]

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

County QuickStart:





Cross County, Arkansas
Map
Map of Arkansas highlighting Cross County
Location in the state of Arkansas, United States Genealogy
Map of the U.S. highlighting Arkansas
Location of Arkansas in the U.S.
Facts
Founded November 15, 1862
County Seat Wynne
Courthouse
ArkansasCrossCourthouse.jpg
Address Cross County Courthouse
705 Union Ave E #8;
Wynne, AR 72396
Phone: 870.238.5735



County Courthouse

Cross County Courthouse
705 Union Ave E #8;
Wynne, AR 72396
Phone: 870.238.5735

County Clerk has marriage and probate records from 1863, tax and county court records from 1865; Clerk Circuit Court has court and land records from 1865; Chancery Circuit Clerk has divorce records from 1866; County Historical Society has newspapers from 1935, cemetery records and family histories.[1]

Beginning years for Cross County, Arkansas Genealogy government records[2]
Birth Marriage Death Court Land Probate
1914* 1863 1914* 1865 1865 1863
*State birth and death records began in 1914. Limited compliance until 1920's

Government and Related Websites

County Government and other Local Websites
County-clerk.net (unofficial site) Clerks have jurisdiction over birth certificates, death certificates, marriage licenses, land use, land rights, real estate, and other court records. Site provides links to unofficial websites with online records
PublicRecords.com (unofficial site) Provides links to County officials and public records


History

Parent County

County seat: Wynne [3]

Boundary Changes

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

Record Loss

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

Places/Localities

Town/city records in the FamilySearch Catalog

Populated Places

Neighboring Counties

Crittenden • Jackson  • Poinsett • St. Francis • Woodruff

Template:ARCross County, Arkansas Clickable Neighbors


History Timeline

Emphasis for this timeline is on events that affected migration, records, or record-keeping. Unless otherwise mentioned, the events below were taken from the Cross County page on the website, The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture. [4]

  • 1803 - The sparse population of the area consisted of French hunters, Cherokee, and a few English frontiersmen.
  • 1830s - The Cherokee were removed via the Trail of Tear and settlers from Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, and Missouri moved in.
  • 1862 November 15 - The Arkansas General Assembly created Cross County.
  • 1882 - The first railroad was completed across Cross County.
  • 1900-1927 - The growth of Vanndale and Wynne along the railroad balanced the decline of river cities such as Wittsburg. This transfer of population was increased by flooding in the river valley when the St. Francis River broke through its levees in 1912 and 1913, and especially in the Flood of 1927.

Genealogy Resources

Research Guides

African Americans

Bible Records

Cemeteries

Online Cross County, Arkansas cemeteries
from state and national resources
Search for names of people
in Cross County
Get a list of cemeteries
(then click to names of people)
Find printed records
(Often more complete)
  • Find A Grave Click "Refine Last Search" on the left, enter a name, click "Search"
  • Billion Graves Enter a name and click "Search" (Statewide. Can search by county, but many with no results.)
  • Find A Grave Click Search for a Cemetery on the right, click All Countries - click United States, click State, click County and search.

More cemetery lists

Census

Church Records

Court

Guardianship

  • Probate Records 1857-1943 Cross County portion of the collection: Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979: Arkansas Probate Records, 1817-1979 FamilySearch Historical Collections (Free, browse images)
    • Includes Administration and guardian bonds and letters 1863-1921; Administration settlements 1866-1911; Dockets 1874-1922; Probate case files 1898-1930; Probate record index 1866-1878; Probate records 1857-1887; Wills 1863-1943.

Genealogy

Land and Property

Local Histories

  • Chowning, Robert W. History of Cross County, Arkansas, 1955 : a narrative historical edition preserving the record of the growth and development of Cross County, Arkansas, and chronicling the genealogical and memorial records of its prominent families and personages. Wynne, Arkansas : Wynne Progress, 1955.

Maps

Military

Naturalization

Newspapers

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


Occupations

Probate Records

Online Probate Records

Taxation

Vital Records

See also How to order Arkansas Vital Records

Birth
Marriage
Death
Vital Record Substitutes

Genealogy Societies and Libraries

Major catalogs for hard copy collections of Cross County, Arkansas Genealogy
Books, microfilm, or manuscripts of genealogical records
FamilySearch Catalog Select topics. For towns, click here.
WorldCat Click an item for libraries near you. For more information, see WorldCat Online Catalog.
Allen County Public Library Located in Indiana, they are heavily involved in digitizing much of their collection.
Arkansas History Commission Select the county Arkansas state agency involved in organizing, digitizing, and maintaining the records of state and local history.
Local libraries and Arkansas Archives and Libraries may suggest other catalogs

Family History Centers

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. See family history center for more information. Search the online FHC directory for a nearby family history center.

Websites

Tip
 Check back often with these websites. Internet offerings are growing at record rates.
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 Cross County, Arkansas Genealogy
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.com Free family history resources and government records


Social networking sites pertaining to Cross County, Arkansas Genealogy
genealogy.com Cross County, AR Genealogy Forum
ancestry.com Cross County Message Board

References

  1. ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists : United States of America, 10th ed., (Draper, UT: Everton Publishers, 2002), p. 67.
  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.
  3. ↑ The Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America,10th ed. (Draper, UT:Everton Publishers, 2002).
  4. ↑ Richard L. Hartness Sr., The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture, (http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=763&type=Category&item=Counties&parent=Counties%2c+Cities%2c+and+Towns&grandparent=+%3a+accessed+January+6%2c+2016)%2c : accessed January 12, 2016), “Cross County.”
  5. ↑ FamilySearch Wiki contributors, "Arkansas, County Marriages - FamilySearch Historical Records," in FamilySearch Wiki, accessed 18 April 2013.
  6. ↑ Genealogical Society of Utah, Parish and Vital Records List (July 1998). Microfiche. Digital version at https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/images/5/5c/Igiarkansasad.pdf.
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