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State of Arizona
Your Guide for Arizona Genealogy
Arizona may be earning a reputation as a place where a lot of people opt to retire or to visit during a vacation, but it also a very historic place with connections to Native American culture, westward expansion, and more. This is probably why there are so many resources available to people who are looking for Arizona genealogy. This brief article is going to provide you with complete details about the sources available to anyone doing research for Arizona genealogy, and how they are found in many different places and ways.
Good Tactics for Arizona Genealogy
When you conduct any investigation for Arizona genealogy, regardless of where you are living or doing the research, you have to realize that resources are available in both the online and "offline" worlds. Though it seems like everything is now electronic, there are still a lot of smaller town collections or local archives that have not yet been converted into online formats. This means that your first step in research for Arizona genealogy is to identify the records that you can actually obtain.
This is why it is essential to become familiar with the "basic list" that all researchers for Arizona genealogy will use. They include:
- Local Records – in addition to a visit to your county clerk's office or website, you will want to visit local genealogical societies, historical societies, small local libraries, and school or college libraries which will provide you with important information for Arizona genealogy. These are things that are usually offline and viewable by appointment or special arrangement.
- Vital Records – these are the birth, marriage, divorce and death records available from county, state, and national archives. These are also documents in which you will find cemetery or obituary information, census records, newspaper items, military records, immigration and naturalization details, passenger lists and records, and more. These are available as online and offline resources for Arizona genealogy.
- State Records – these may have everything from probate information to birth certificates, deeds, death records, estate information, marriage details, military or veterans information, land records, state census information, surname lists, genealogical folders, maps, private manuscripts, newspapers, cemetery information, and so much more. These are available as online and offline resources for Arizona genealogy.
The Best Resources for Arizona Genealogy
You will be impressed with the number of resources that are available for Arizona genealogy enthusiasts. The following records for Arizona genealogy can be found in person or online at:
- Office of Vital Records, Arizona Department of Health Services, P.O. Box 3887, Phoenix, AZ 85030-3887; Website: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/w2w/arizona.htm . This is the site through which you can order birth, death, marriage and divorce records.
Additionally, vital records along with many state and local records can be found at the following:
- Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records, Genealogy Collection, Law and Research Library, Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records , 1700 W. Washington Street, Suite 300, Phoenix, AZ 85007-2812; Phone: (602) 926-3938; Website: http://www.azlibrary.gov/is/genealogy/index.aspx . This genealogy page provides an abundance of information and resources that includes lessons in genealogy, well organized collections of relevant information, premium databases, and a wealth of state information and publications.
Lastly, the following websites will provide state-specific details that can give a huge amount of valuable information to those in search of facts for their Arizona genealogy projects.
- The USGenWeb Project - http://azgenweb.org/;
- State census records at Genealogy Research Guides - http://www.researchguides.net/census/state.htm, and
- Genealogy Today - http://www.genealogytoday.com/genealogy/states/arizona.html
List of Arizona Counties
Select a Arizona county below to view genealogical information & records pertaining to each county.
In some cases, cities other than the current county seat served as county seats, although the cities have no record collections. Historically they should be considered for migration reasons. Dates given for land, probate, and court holdings are those reported by the counties themselves. Occasionally there may be earlier records mixed in with with later ones. Earlier dates for some of these materials are catalogued by the Arizona State Archives. The county recorder's office at the county seat's address should be contacted for land records. Marriages, divorces, probate, and court records are at the county superior court clerk's office.
Arizona State Historical & Genealogical Societies, Archives, Museums and Libraries
Submit a website link, report broken links for Arizona Archives Websites.
Arizona Archives
Arizona Museums
Arizona Libraries
Arizona Historical & Genealogical Societies
