Resources for Local History and Genealogy by State

North Carolina (Change State) Research Centers | How to do North Carolina genealogy | Counties and geographic areas | Biographies Maps | Digital collections | History | Early settlers and Native communities | African Americans and Slavery | Civil War | North Carolina Records Online | City Directories | Blogs

Research Centers

• The Government & Heritage Library at the State Library of North Carolina. Has an extensive genealogy collection to trace families in North Carolina as well as the states from which many migrated. Services to Genealogists include North Carolina newspapers. Over 2,000 newspapers have been published in North Carolina since the North Carolina Gazette first appeared in New Bern in 1751. From January 1991 through March 1999, the North Carolina Division of Archives and History and the State Library of North Carolina coordinated the North Carolina Newspaper Project (NCNP), an extensive program to locate, catalog, and microfilm existing North Carolina newspapers.
• North Carolina State Archives collects, preserves, and makes available for public use historical and evidential materials relating to North Carolina. Its holdings consist of official records of state, county, and local governmental units, and copies of federal and foreign government materials. In addition to these official records are private collections, organization records, maps, pamphlets, sound recordings, photographs, motion picture film, and a small reference library. In all, the Archives houses over 50,000 linear feet of permanently valuable materials containing millions of individual items. Materials in the Archives collections constitute by far the most valuable assembly of manuscript records and North Caroliniana in existence. The State Archives is part of the Archives and Records Section of the Office of Archives and History and the Department of Cultural Resources.
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill North Carolina Collection has "the country's largest collection of printed materials on a single state." Collections in local history and genealogy. Articles about researching North Carolina local history and genealogy. Biographical index. Clipping Files provide information and often an alphabetical index of articles clipped by the North Carolina Collection primarily from newspapers and magazines. Topical bibliographies (eg. African American Newspapers in North Carolina, City Directories, Telephone Books, etc.). Bibliography of recently acquired materials.
• Duke University Library. Although there is no separate genealogical division, Perkins Library has many items of interest to the genealogist, including local histories and published family genealogies. Focus on Durham local history.
• Appalachian State University, Appalachian Collection at Belk Library. The William Leonard Eury Appalachian Collection is a repository with more than 37,000 volumes of books and over 200 periodical subscriptions related to the Southern uplands, with strengths in the social sciences, regional history, folklore, music, religion, genealogy, fiction, and African and Native Appalachia.
• Guilford College Hege Library, Friends Historical Collection. The collection has a special responsibility for comprehensiveness in preserving the spiritual, intellectual and cultural heritage of Quakerism in the southeastern United States. Includes a section for genealogy of North Carolina Quakers.
• Meredith College, Carlyle Campbell Library. Located in Raleigh, about 3 miles from the North Carolina State Archives. "If you have North Carolina Baptist ancestors, the library's holdings of the Biblical Recorder, the journal of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina, which began publication in 1834, will be essential to your research. A series of printed indices provide access to the contents that are available on microfilm. This resource is the only location in which I have been able to document the birth location and date for one of my husband's ancestors, Rhodes Barkley, a Missionary Baptist preacher in North Carolina. His published obituary, as well as reports of his preaching and conference activities, have enhanced the emerging story of his life" (Source ).
• Moravian Archives, Winston-Salem. The Moravian Archives is the repository of the records of the Moravian Church, Southern Province, and its members. As such, the Moravian Archives' primary function is to serve the Church in the collecting, cataloging, and safekeeping of its records. The records extend back to 1753, the beginning of the Moravian Church in North Carolina, and give a detailed account of life in earlier times as well as family histories of church members.
• North Carolina Genealogical Society. Members of the Society can read the complete North Carolina Genealogical Society Journal (1979- ) of more than 11,000 pages, available online. For a list of all the articles published in the history of the Journal, download the PDF document, "North Carolina Genealogical Society Journal: A Listing of Articles." (Free). NGS Newsletter (2003- ), including queries, available for free and NCGS Member Publications. As a benefit of the NCGS, members may publish research, transcriptions, and other documents of genealogical interest on the website to share with other members of the Society. North Carolina Estate Records is database of extracted data on the loose estates records folders that are located in the North Carolina Archives. The results are being shared with members on the NCGS website. The table below includes the county, name, date of probate, notes, record type (usually CR, that is, county records), one or more Family History Library film and item numbers, and limitations, in cases where the file exists either only at the North Carolina Archives or could only be found on microfilm. Societies/Libraries/Archives. North Carolina and Regional Genealogical Societies, Heritage & Hereditary Societies, Libraries, Archives & Museums and Historical Societies (with links).
• North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Societies. Historical societies are a great resource when you are unable to visit the town of your ancestors. Many societies keep local records, photos and even information about cemeteries.
• Federation of North Carolina Historical Societies. List of Member societies, and links to their websites.
• Family History Centers in North Carolina. Family History Centers are branch facilities of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. Centers provide access to most of the microfilms and microfiche in the Family History Library to help patrons identify their ancestors. Everyone is welcome to come to the centers and use Family History Center resources.

How to do North Carolina genealogy

• FamilySearch North Carolina Research Outline. Guide to North Carolina Genealogical Research outline describes major sources of information for and about research in genealogy and family history in the state of North Carolina. Information about various records (census, immigration, county, etc.), bibliographies such as for county histories of North Carolina, history of the state.
  
• North Carolina Genealogical Research Perkins Library, Duke University has many items of interest to the genealogist, including local histories and published family genealogies. Although there is no separate genealogical division in the library, a subject search in the online catalog can be used to find items relating to genealogy. Includes a bibliography of published handbooks and guides, and list of nearby libraries for genealogical research.
• Research Guide for Genealogy in North Carolina Bibliography of Published Sources compiled by Western Carolina University. Tabs across the top of the page guide to the following research categories: Bibliographies and Guides, Biographical Sources; Vital Records, Census Records, Genealogies, Handbooks and Manuals, Indexes, Land Records, Military Records, Other Public Records, Subjects in the Library Catalog, and Websites.
• North Carolina Genealogy & Family Trees. A guide to websites with research strategies that explore North Carolina genealogy and family history resources, including free online North Carolina genealogy databases.
• Genealogical Research in the North Carolina State Archives. Topics include: Introduction , County Records and Genealogical Research, Genealogical Research Using State, Federal and Military Records, Doing Your Homework Before You Arrive, MARS (online catalog) and Online Finding Aids, and Quick Links and Frequently Asked Questions.
• Genealogy and Family History Research at UNC-Chapel Hill Libraries. In addition to generic background sources relevant to all genealogical and family history research, UNC-Chapel Hill libraries may provide access to some genealogy sources, including "actual" information, e.g., birth, marriage, and death data on specific individuals and families. This more specific type of information tends, however, to be limited to that associated with southern states, with a particular emphasis on North Carolina. Mentions the North Carolina Collection in Wilson Library, which offers a wealth of North Carolina-focused materials, and also the sizable collection of papers housed in the Southern Historical Collection of the Manuscripts Department.
• Newberry Library Guide to North Carolina Genealogy. Bibliography of North Carolina sources.

Counties and Geographic Areas

• North Carolina Links. Links to information about counties, arranged by county.
• U. S. Genweb North Carolina. Thousands of records have been contributed to North Carolina, and can be accessed by clicking on any of the county links.
• The NCGenWeb Project. A part of the national USGenWeb Project, the home of a network of volunteers working to provide genealogical & historical content for each of North Carolina's 100 counties.
• Western NC Genealogy Resource Center. This site has been developed to aide the Western North Carolina researcher. This site is not affiliated with any group or organization. Pull down menu of counties: Buncombe, Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Madison, Swain, Transylvania, Yancey.
• Ashville and Buncombe Counties. Blog. Began February, 2010. This website is dedicated to Foster Alexander Sondley (1857-1931), who did much to preserve the history of the area and whose extensive library became the nucleus of the Pack Memorial Library's North Carolina Collection. The name of this website was taken from the title of his 1922 book, Asheville and Buncombe County.

Biographies

• North Carolina Biography. Family Search Wiki. A research strategy for finding North Carolina biographies.
• North Carolina Biographies. A list of famous people from North Carolina, with short annotations.
• North Carolina Biographies from GeneaSearch. Biographies from various printed sources reproduced here.
• Dictionary of North Carolina Biography Index This index lists in alphabetical order the individuals in the entire six-volume set of the Dictionary of North Carolina Biography (find in a library). According to American Reference Books Annual, there is no other state with a biographical dictionary of comparable scope and quality. This index gives the name of the person, place of birth, places of residence, and vital dates.
• NCPedia Biographies. NCpedia, an online encyclopedia, highlights North Carolina's unique resources, people and culture. There is an A-Z browse, as well as categorization under the following topics: African Americans, Cherokee Indians, Governors, Highland Scots, Lumbee Indians, Poets Laureate, Sports, US Presidents, and Women.

Maps

• North Carolina History and Geography Bibliography. A bibliography of books about history, geography and maps.
• North Carolina Maps. North Carolina Maps is a comprehensive, online collection of historic maps of the Tar Heel State. Featuring maps from three of the state's largest map collections -- the North Carolina State Archives, the North Carolina Collection at UNC-Chapel Hill, and the Outer Banks History Center -- North Carolina Maps provides an unprecedented level of access to these materials. North Carolina Maps contains more than 3,000 maps, ranging in date from the late 1500s to 2000, and including detailed maps for each of North Carolina's one hundred counties.
• Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection North Carolina maps.

Digital collections

• North Carolina State Archives Digital Collection and Library. Materials in the Archives collections constitute by far the most valuable assembly of manuscript records and North Caroliniana in existence. The State Archives is part of the Archives and Records Section of the Office of Archives and History and the Department of Cultural Resources. The North Carolina State Archives collects, preserves, and makes available for public use historical and evidential materials relating to North Carolina. Its holdings consist of official records of state, county, and local governmental units, and copies of federal and foreign government materials. In addition to these official records are private collections, organization records, maps, pamphlets, sound recordings, photographs, motion picture film, and a small reference library.
  
• North Carolina GenWeb Digital Bookshelf. A directory for NC-related e-texts/documents that may be useful for family history & genealogical research. Electronic books available online; especially at the Internet Archive & Google Books. This site is useful for browsing and locating texts at either the state level and/or the individual county levels.
• North Carolina Yearbook Index. North Carolina yearbooks being added to the Internet Archive by the North Carolina Digital Heritage Center. To date, hundreds of yearbooks from the 1800-present have been added. There is an index of students (mostly seniors at this point) listed in these yearbooks. Phase I's focus of this project are on the 1930 and earlier yearbooks. To date, more than 16,000 names are in the searchable database. Phase II will include the integration of 1931-1940 yearbooks. Look for county-specific links to be added to various NCGenWeb project pages during the upcoming weeks.
• State Library of North Carolina Digital Repository. Digitized books and collections of various formats: maps, photos, archetectural drawings, etc. for the history of the state of North Carolina. Also, over 2000 family bibles have been digitized.
• Eastern North Carolina Digital Library.
• North Carolina Historic Sites. A group of 27 unique state historic sites in North Carolina.
• Documenting the American South. A digital publishing initiative sponsored by The University Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, that provides Internet access to texts, images, and audio files related to southern history, literature, and culture.
• North Carolina Genealogy Book Links. Digitized books about North Carolina including indexes, abstracts, annual reports, histories and local histories, biographical dictionaries, selected business and city directories. Links to more than 10,000 freely available digitized American biographies, genealogies and history books.

History

• The Way We Lived in North Carolina. A narrative overview of the state's history and historic places. Illustrated by maps and images. Excellent bibliography.
• American Local History Network (ALHN) North Carolina.
• North Carolina Timeline.
• North Carolina Museum of History Timeline.

Early settlers and Native communities

• Highland Scots in North Carolina North Carolina History Project. Encyclopedia entry.
• Melungeon Genealogy.
• Moravian Settlers in North Carolina. Includes list of first settlers, from Pennsylvania, of the Wachovia Settlement in North Carolina, 1753, as well as later settlers to Bethabara and Salem, North Carolina.
• A Guide to Researching the History of Religion in North Carolina. Various denominations significant in North Carolina, including: African Methodist Episcopal Church; Baptist Church; Catholic Church; Church of God; Episcopal Church; Judaism; Lutheran Church; Methodist Church; Moravian Church; Presbyterian Church; Quaker/Society of Friends; and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
• Quaker Genealogy.
• NC Cherokee Reservation Genealogy.
• Scots to Colonial North Carolina Before 1775.

African Americans and Slavery

• North Carolina African American Cemeteries Online. Transcriptions.
• Guide to African American Documentary Resources in North Carolina. Digital Book includes descriptions of many libraries which have documentary evidence.
• Free African Americans in North Carolina Before the Civil War. Website contains document transcriptions regarding free African Americans in antebellum N.C. as well as links to a corresponding blog. Contains a cross-reference index of people mentioned in documents (including non-African Americans). Also included are 2 charts showing the population of free African Americans in NC as well as the whole US during the antebellum period.

Civil War

• Directory of Civil War Rosters/Muster Rolls for North Carolina. Listing of Internet sites. Since only 50-60% of all rosters are on the internet, some units will not be listed.
• U.S. Civil War Regimental Histories in the Library of Congress. Confederate Troops: North Carolina
• Civil War Soldier Records of North Carolina. "A" Database contains thousands of North Carolina Civil War soldier records. Includes company and regiment information. Names are actively added to this military database of Civil War soldiers so check periodically for your soldiers and ancestors.
• North Carolina Map of American Civil War Battles North Carolina battle map of American Civil War battles by state. Includes battle flags.
• US Colored Troops formed in North Carolina. Five US Colored Troop regiments formed in North Carolina. Names of soldiers transcribed company by company
• Union Regimental Histories. North Carolina
• North Carolina in the Civil War and Reconstruction

North Carolina Records Online

• North Carolina Cemeteries. Cemeteries by County, with inscriptons
• North Carolina Cemeteries. Many of the cemeteries in this directory are linked to transcriptions published elsewhere on the Internet.
• North Carolina Death Certificates. Record Search.
• North Carolina Newspaper Obituary Collection This is a collection of obituaries archived from Newspapers. Search engine gives access to all of the online databases containing North Carolina obituaries, North Carolina death notices, and other North Carolina obituary records.
• North Carolina GenWeb Archives. The USGenWeb Archives was developed to help genealogists and family historians share information found in their research. Thousands of records have been contributed to North Carolina, and can be accessed by clicking on any of the county links.
• Types of County Records Available at the North Carolina State Archives (Definitions)
• Guide To Research Materials In the North Carolina State Archives
• Wake County Register of Deeds All County records back to the first recorded document in 1785 are now online: the digitization and online provision of every real property document ever recorded in North Carolina's capital county, predating even the capital city of Raleigh itself.
• North Carolina Newspaper Digitization Project In 2009, the North Carolina State Archives completed a project to digitize newspapers from its collection that were, up until that time, only available on microfilm. These materials include papers dating from 1752-1890s from cities like Edenton (1787-1801), Fayetteville (1789-1795), Hillsboro (1786), New Bern (1751-1804), Salisbury (1799-1898), and Wilmington (1765-1816) - a total of 23,483 digital images that are keyword searchable.
• North Carolina Bible Records. This digital online collection currently contains a selection of over 200 Bible Records (lists of birth, marriage, and death information written in North Carolina family bibles) from the 2000+ copies of various donated family Bibles held by the North Carolina State Archives.
• North Carolina Birth Records. Enter a first and/or last name to search North Carolina birth records. This website was created to provide genealogists with access to the North Carolina birth records from a single place.
• Online North Carolina Death Records & Indexes A Genealogy Records Guide with Websites
• North Carolina Residents Casualties during the Korean Conflict.
• North Carolina Residents who died as a result of the Vietnam War.

City Directories

• Charlotte, North Carolina 1921 City Directory. The original city directory for Charlotte, North Carolina for 1921, scanned and indexed.
• Raleigh, North Carolina 1930 City Directory. The city directory for Raleigh, North Carolina for 1930, scanned and indexed.

Blogs

• North Carolina GenWeb News.
• Lost Colony Research Blog.
• Government and Heritage Library Blog, from the State Library of North Carolina. The Government and Heritage Library Blog is an informative online news source focusing on the collections, resources, and expert services of the Government and Heritage Library. The blog's goal is to connect users to the valuable resources in the library's print and digital collections that provide information about North Carolina's past and present and support genealogical research. Includes individual blogs on genealogy, family history month, and African American research.