Lawrence County, Kentucky
Genealogy, History & Facts

County Vital Records ∣ County Census Records ∣ County Courthouse and Government Records ∣
County Societies, Family History Resources and County Genealogy Links

Lawrence County, Kentucky Facts

When was Lawrence County, KY Created?
Lawrence County was created on December 14, 1821 from Floyd County and Greenup County.

What is the County Seat of Lawrence County, KY?
The County Seat is located in Louisa additionally, the county government website is www.lawrencecounty.ky.gov

What counties are adjacent to Lawrence County, KY?
Bordering Counties are Carter County, Boyd County, Wayne County, West Virginia, Martin County, Johnson County, Morgan County, Elliott County.

Lawrence County, KY Vital Records

Where can find Lawrence County Birth, marriage, Divorce and Death Records?
Lawrence County vital records can be found at the Kentucky Department of Health (VDH) Office of Vital Records which has copies for of birth & deathe certificates (1911 – present), marriage licenses & divorce decrees (since June 1958). There is a fee for each copy requested. Please refer to the information to the Statewide Vital Records in Kentucky for current fees and application process.

You can search online for Lawrence County Birth, Marriage, Divorce or Death Records. You can also Order Electronically Online or you can download an application for Birth Certificate, Marriage / Divorce Certificate or Death Certificates to mail.

The Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives contains birth and death records for the cities of Louisville, Lexington, Covington and Newport, which introduced records laws before 1911. The Archives also offers birth and death records before to 1911 and 1911-1957 death records for the entire state.

•  U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
• Social Security Death Index
• Lawrence County, Kentucky Marriage Project
• Kentucky Vital Records Index – The vital records index data was obtained from the Kentucky Office of Vital Statistics in 1994 for a research project.
• Kentucky Social Security Death Index
• Kentucky Vital Records Project
• Kentucky, Births and Christenings, 1839-1960
• Kentucky Birth Records, 1852-1910
• Kentucky Birth Index, 1911-1999
• Kentucky Marriages, 1785-1979
• Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954
• Kentucky Marriage Index, 1973-1999
• Kentucky Marriage Records, 1852-1914
• Kentucky Marriages, 1851-1900
• Kentucky Marriages, 1802-1850
• Northern Kentucky Marriages, 1795-1850
• Kentucky Marriage Records
• Kentucky Marriages, 1797-1865
• Kentucky, Death Records, 1911-1955
• Kentucky Death Records, 1852-1953
• Kentucky Death Index, 1911-2000
• Kentucky Obituaries, 1787-1854
• Kentucky Deaths and Burials, 1843-1970

Lawrence County, KY Census Records

What Lawrence County, KY census records are available?
There are many types of census records for Lawrence County guide you in researching your family tree. Federal Population Schedules are available for 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880 (free index), 1890 (fragment), 1900, 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940.

Lawrence Co. Slave Schedules can be obtained for 1850 & 1860. Lawrence Co. Mortality Schedules can be acquired for 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. Lawrence Co. Industry and Agriculture Schedules can be acquired for 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. Lawrence Co. Union Veterans Schedules can be obtained for 1890. One can find free down loadable and also printable census forms to help you with your research. See Also Kentucky Census Records Research Guide

• Search The U.S. Federal Census Collection
• Lawrence County, KY Census Records Links
• Lawrence County, KY Census QuickFacts

Lawrence County, KY Courthouse and Government Records

Lawrence County Courthouse

What genealogical records can I find in the Lawrence County Courthouse?
Researchers frequently overlook the great importance of Lawrence County court, probate, and land records data as a useful resource of ancestry and genealogy information. Buried away in Kentucky courthouses and archives everywhere are the ambitions and frustrations of countless Kentucky residents.

The possibilities are excellent that your forefathers have left a comprehensive document of at least a number of facets of their lives in the Lawrence County court records. Even if your forebears is not referred to in a Court case, contemplate all of the other procedures that could have lead to him or her to appear in court records. See Also Kentucky Corthouse Records Research Guide.

• Lawrence County Clerk
  • Address: 122 South Main Cross Street., Louisa, KY, 41230
  • Phone: (606) 638-4108
  • Marriage Records: 1822
  • Land Records: 1822
  • Probate Records: 1821
• Lawrence County Clerk of the Circuit Court
  • Address: Lawrence County Courthouse Annex, 122 Main Cross St., P.O. Box 847, Louisa, KY 41230-0847
  • Phone: (606) 638-4215
  • Court Records: 1822
•  Kentucky, Wills and Probate Records, 1774-1989
• Lawrence County Elected Officials (ky.gov)
• Will/Probate Record Request Form
• BLM Land Records
• Lawrence County USGenWeb Archives Project

Lawrence County, KY Societies and Family History Resources

What genealogical and historical societies, archives, museums, associations and libraries are available for Lawrence County, KY?
A list of Lawrence County Historical  and Genealogical Societies, Libraries, Archives. See also list of Statewide Kentucky Archives, Historical & Genealogical Societies.

• Kentucky Department for Libraries & Archives, 300 Coffee Tree Road, Frankfort, Kentucky 40601; (502) 564-8300;
• University of Kentucky Libraries, William T. Young Library, Lexington, KY 40506-0456
• The Kentucky Historical Society, 100 W. Broadway, Frankfort, KY 40601; 877-444-7867
• The Kentucky Genealogical Society, PO Box 153, Frankfort, KY 40602-0153
• Lawrence County Historical Society, 100 Rodburn Road, Apt. 121, Morehead KY 40351

Where can I connect with other Lawrence County, KY Researchers through message boards and forums?

• Kentucky Genealogy Network Community (plus.google.com)
• Kentucky State Genealogy Network (facebook.com)
• Lawrence County, Kentucky Message Boards (boards.ancestry.com) read and post messages about your ancestors in Lawrence County
• Lawrence County, Kentucky Genealogy Forum (genforum.genealogy.com)
• KYLAWREN. A mailing list for anyone with a genealogical interest in Lawrence County, Kentucky. To subscribe send “subscribe” to [email protected] (mail mode) or [email protected] (digest mode).
• KYLAWRENCE-HISTORY. A mailing list for anyone with a genealogical or historical interest in Lawrence County, Kentucky. This list is strictly for genealogy/history discussions, chatting about other county-related topics is beyond the scope of the list. To subscribe send “subscribe” to [email protected] (mail mode) or [email protected] (digest mode).
• LawrenceCoKy. A mailing list for anyone with a genealogical interest in Lawrence County, Kentucky. You can subscribe from http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lawrencecoky/ or by sending the following to [email protected]: subscribe
• EASTERNKENTUCKY. A mailing list for all researchers who’s ancestors settled in or traveled through the state of Kentucky. Some of the counties covered are Bell, Boyd, Breathitt, Carter, Clay, Elliot, Estill, Floyd, Greenup, Harlan, Jackson, Johnson, Knott, Knox, Laurel, Lawrence, Lee, Leslie, Letcher, Lewis, Magoffin, Morgan, Owsley, Perry, Pike, Powell, Rowan, Whitley, Wolfe, and adjacent counties that represent the East Kentucky Coalfields. Additional information can be found on the East Kentucky Genealogy website. To subscribe send “subscribe” to [email protected] (mail mode) or [email protected] (digest mode).

What other genealogical resources are available in Lawrence County, KY?
The following are web links to Genealogy, Records and Resources pertaining to Lawrence County. These genealogy links fall into 3 categories: Professional Sites, Private Sites or Organization Sites. Some have free access some have to have a payment. This is basically a collection that has been gathered or submitted. I do not endorse or promote one genealogy site over another.

Lawrence Co. KY Books, Newspapers & Publications

• Kentucky Newspapers Books & Publications Research Guide
• Kentucky historical newspaper archives online (newspapers.com)
• Historical Newspapers from Kentucky (1794-1922) (genealogybank.com)
• Lawrence County, Kentucky Books (amazon.com)
• Search Kentucky Obituaries (1984 to current) (genealogybank.com)
• Lawrence County Genealogy Books (books.google.com)

Lawrence Co. KY Church / Bible Records & Cemeteries / Graveyards

• Lawrence Co., Kentucky Graves (findagrave.com)
• Lawrence County Tombstone Transcription Project (usgwtombstones.org)
• Lawrence Co., Kentucky Cemeteries (Internment.net)
• Lawrence Co., Kentucky Cemetery Books (amazon.com)
• Lawrence County, Kentucky Church Books (amazon.com)

Lawrence Co. KY General and History Websites

• Lawrence County Kentucky (genealogytrails.com)
• Lawrence County, KY History (kyenc.org) The Kentucky Encyclopedia
• Lawrence County, Kentucky Wikipedia (wikipedia.org)
• Lawrence County, Kentucky Wiki (familysearch.org)
• Lawrence Co. KY Genealogy (kindredtrails.com)
• Family History Library (familysearch.org)
• Lawrence County, Kentucky (linkpendium.com)
• Cyndi’s List – United States – Kentucky – Counties – Lawrence (cyndislist.com)
• Lawrence Co. KYGenweb (rootsweb.ancestry.com)
• Lawrence County Genealogy Queries (cousinconnect.com)
• Lawrence Co. Data Collections (search.ancestry.com)

Lawrence Co. KY Maps, Atlases & Gazetteers

• See Also Map of Kentucky Links and Information
• Lawrence Co. D.O.T. 2011 Highway Map (transportation.ky.gov)
• 1895 Lawrence County Map (livgenmi.com)

Lawrence Co. KY Military Records

• Kentucky Military Records Research Guide
• Kentucky Military Records (Fold3.com) delivers access to military records, stories, photos, and personal documents of the Pennsylvania individuals who served. Perfect for Lawrence County genealogists, researchers, historians and a lot more.