Finding Your Washtenaw County Ancestors

  • The boundaries of Washtenaw County were established on 10 September 1822 from the parent counties of Wayne and Oakland. The first settlements were established in 1823-1824. Townships were created starting in 1827.
  • Ann Arbor was founded in 1824, incorporated as a village in 1833, and chartered as a city in 1851.
  • Washtenaw County, Territory of Michigan, was attached to Wayne County for governmental purposes until it completed the legal process of organization on 31 December 1826. The county was established on 1 January 1827 with the county seat in Ann Arbor. Some record-keeping began in 1827.
  • Michigan became the 26th state on 26 January 1837.

Archives and Libraries

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Atlases and Maps

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Bible Records

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Cemetery Records

  • "Washtenaw County MI Cemetery Records," LDS Genealogy
    • Links to cemetery records listed at major websites by location: Ancestry, Archive Grid, Billion Graves, Family History Library, Find a Grave, Genealogy Trails, Interment.net, JewishGen Online Worldwide Burial Registry (JOWBR), MyHeritage, National Cemery Administration, USGenWeb Archives, WorldCat
  • FamilySearch: Washtenaw County Cemeteries in the FamilySearch Catalog
  • Billion Graves: Washtenaw County cemeteries with over 20 images (FamilySearch index)
  • Find A Grave: Washtenaw County cemetery memorials (FamilySearch index)
  • Interment.net: Washtenaw County cemetery transcriptions

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Census Records

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Church Records

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City and County Directories

  • "Washtenaw County, Michigan, Online Historical Directories" (1860s-1940s), Miriam J. Robbins, Online Historical Directories
  • "Your Guide to Finding Ancestors in City Directories," Barbara Snow, Genealogy Research Guides
    • Follow the "City and County Directories" link in "Locality, Records, Research Advice," Barbara Snow, Genealogy Research Guides
  • Washtenaw County Directories: 1965/66-1973, 1975-1989/90, 1991/92, 1993/94. [L/M JS3.M52 W3z]
    • Ann Arbor city and Washtenaw County directory for 1886-7: containing an alphabetically arranged list of business firms, farmers and private citizens, a classified list of all trades, professions and pursuits, a miscellaneous directory of city and county officers, public and private schools, banks, churches, incorporated institutions, secret and benevolent societies, etc.,  1886. [L/M MICROFICHE LH5296]
  • "Washtenaw County MI City Directories" (1868-1960), LDS Genealogy

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Courthouse Records

  • Wills and estates beginning in 1827 (1837 per FamilySearch Wiki) are at the Probate Court office. See sections on Land Records. and Vital Records below.

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Families of Washtenaw County

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Genealogical and Historical Societies

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Land Records

  • Washtenaw County deeds and mortgages begin in 1827 (1835 per FamilySearch Wiki) and are at the Register of Deeds office. The GSWC Library has microfilm copies of the grantor/grantee indexes, 1827-1905.

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Local History

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Military Records

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Newspapers and Obituaries

  • A History of the Newspapers of Ann Arbor, 1829-1920, Louis W. Doll. Detroit, Wayne State University Press, 1959, 184 pgs. [download pdf]
  • Digital Michigan Newspaper Portal: 66 listings for Washtenaw County, Clarke Historical Library
  • Newspapers at the Library of Michigan:
    • Ann Arbor News, 1937-2009
    • Chelsea Standard, 1908-2013
    • Dexter Leader, 1869-1970
    • Manchester Enterprise, 1867-1991
    • Ypsilanti Sentinel, 1844-1880
    • The One Hundred-Fifty Years of History: The Ann Arbor News, 1835-1985. ed. Adaline Adams. Ann Arbor, Mich.: Ann Arbor News, 1985. (facimiles) [Oversize AP2.A5 A55 1985]
  • Newspapers at Ann Arbor District Library:
    • Ann Arbor News, 11 June 2003 - 23 July 2009; 1 Jan 2016 - present
    • AADL Archives : Research Tips: How to Search AADL's Archives
      • Agenda, 1986-1998
      • Ann Arbor Argus, 1888-1898
      • Ann Arbor Argus-Democrat, 1898-1899
      • Ann Arbor Courier, 1880-1888
      • Ann Arbor Democrat, 1880-1898
      • Ann Arbor News, 1927-2009
      • Ann Arbor Register, 1880-1899
      • Ann Arbor Sun, 1967-1976
      • Michigan Argus, 1860-1879
      • Signal of Liberty, 1841-1848, and Michigan Liberty Press, 1848
    • Search for: "Community Collections," 1,883 clipped articles and photos; "Photographs," 5,190 items; "Old News," 10,000 items; About Old News (transcribed articles)
  • Newspapers at Chelsea District Library:
    • Search Newspapers with links to browse by Year and by Publication; Tutorial
      • Chelsea Standard, 1890-1893
      • The Chelsea Herald, 1873-1909
      • The Chelsea Standard, 1895-2019
      • The Chelsea Standard-Herald, 1906-1908
      • The Chelsea Tribune, 1917-1923
      • The Dexter Leader, 1988
      • The Sun Times News, 2010-2019
      • Washtenaw Now, 2010-2019
    • "Family History Index Online" (obituaries, etc.)
      • Click on the surname link to get details for that person.
  • Newspapers at Milan Public Library:
    • Ethnic Newpapers and Periodicals in Michigan: A Checklist. Richard J. Hathaway, ed. Michigan Archival Association, 1978. [LH&G 070.03 ETHNIC]
    • Milan Newspapers: Index to Microfilm and Microfiche. comp. Millard Frank Phillips. 1995. [LH&G 070.1 MILAN]
  • Newspapers at Manchester District Library:
    • Index to the Manchester Enterprise, vol. 1-50, Oct 1867-Sept 1916, comp. Alan Frank Dyer. [REF 071.7435 DYE V.1] [REF 071.7435 DYE V.2]
  • Newspapers at Northfield Township Area Library:
    • Celebrating Our History: 160 Years of the Ann Arbor News. Marceline, Mo.: Heritage House, 1995. [MICH 977.435 Cel] (photographs submitted readers)
  • Newspapers at Saline District Library:
    • Newspaper Genealogical Column Directory, 4th edition. Anita Cheek Milner. Bowie, Md.: Heritage Books, 1989. [LH 929.302 Mil]
    • Ann Arbor News (formerly Ann Arbor.com), twice weekly. [News AAN]
    • Ann Arbor Observer. Ann Arbor, Mich.: Ann Arbor Observer Co. [News Obs]
    • Saline Review. [LH Microfilm SRe] (digital version online)
    • Washtenaw Now, 10 April 2014 - 25 June 2015, Heritage Papers, Saline, Mich., weekly. [LH 977.4 Was]. PDF files on 3 CDs, searchable. "Merger of Chelsea Standard, Dexter Leader, Manchester Enterprise, Milan News-Leader, Saline Reporter, Ypsilanti Courier." Back issues on microfilm since 1995. [News Wash]
  • Newspapers at Ypsilanti District Library:
    • Ethnic Newpapers and Periodicals in Michigan: A Checklist. Richard J. Hathaway, ed. Michigan Archival Association, 1978. [RMC 070.172 Mic]
    • Historical Perspective: A Selective Look at the Past Through Ypsilanti Newspapers, Ann Smith, 1983. [REF MICHIGAN 977.435 Yps no. 8]
  • Newspapers at Chronicling America:
  • Michigan Online Historical Newspapers (MOHN), Miriam Robbins Midkiff
    • GenealogyBank listings ($):
      • Ann Arbor Daily Argus, 1898-1907
      • Ann Arbor Daily Times, 1903-1908
      • Ann Arbor Democrat, 1878-1898
      • Ann Arbor Local News, 1857-1860
      • Ann Arbor News, 1906-1922; obituaries 2003-current; obituaries on the web 2009-current
      • Ann Arbor News Argus, 1907-1908
      • Michigan Argus, 1835-1907
      • Signal of Liberty, 1841-1847
      • True Democrat, 1845-1849
    • Other MOHN listings are similar to those in "Ann Arbor Newspapers at Google News" and "Chronicling America" above.
  • "Washtenaw County MI Newspapers and Obituaries," LDS Genealogy

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Queries and Lookups

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Research Assistance and Where to Write

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Vital Records

ABOUT VITAL RECORDS
 
The Clerk's Office has birth/death records starting 1867 and marriage records starting 1833.
 
[1] Records Search for Marriage/Death from County Clerk
  • Marriage Record Search (after January 1959)
  • Death Certificate Search (after January 1959)
  • For earlier birth and death records, contact Vital Records (734-222-6720).
[2] Vital Records: Certified Copies from County Clerk
  • Request a certified copy of birth or death record, 1867 to present.
  • Request a certified copy of marriage record, 1833 to present.
  • How Do I... request land records and genealogy records (birth, marriage, death)
  • Form: Request for Certified Copies (birth, marriage, death), Washtenaw County Clerk's Office
[3] Death Records: Uncertified Copies from Michiganology
  • For free uncertified copies of death records, 1897-1952, search Michiganology death records. Records may be online but not visible if the record date is less than 75 years ago, e.g., 1948 in 2023, 1949 in 2024.

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Washtenaw County Bibliography and Publications

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Washtenaw County Cities, Villages, and Townships

Michigan has cities and villages, but not towns. Whenever the word "town" is used here, such as in census records, it means "township". Townships comprise 96% of Michigan lands outside of cities. See "Townships in Michigan" with a state map from the Michigan Townships Association.
 

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Washtenaw County Web Pages

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Updated 6/12/22 SLB; 1/30/23 SLB; 2/16/24 SLB; 2/25/24 JHT