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Offline Divorce Records

October 31, 2025

Too many genealogists restrict their genealogical research to online records. The idea seems to be “if it’s not online, it doesn’t exist.” Nothing could be further from the truth. The number of records offline far exceeds those online. This is especially true of divorce records.

 

Although divorces were rare in earlier eras, they were surprisingly common in the mid to late 19th century. By the 20th century, divorces were easy to obtain in most parts of the United States. If you are researching more recent periods, the chances are good there will be divorces in your family.

 

Divorce records are usually considered public records which means that they are open to researchers. Divorces were filed at the county level. Most of the records can be obtained from the county clerk’s office. Earlier records may have been sent to the state archives. Check the Family Search Wiki for information about where a county’s divorce records are held.

 

Although they are usually open to the public, most divorce records have not been digitized. This means that you will need to make a visit to the county courthouse or the state archives. Another option is to write or call the courthouse or archives and request the divorce papers. A fee is usually charged, but it is seldom more than a few dollars.

 

Some repositories will conduct a multi-year search for a divorce record, but many require the names of the parties involved and the date of the divorce. One good way to find this information is the local newspaper. Earlier newspapers often published courthouse news including articles listing recent divorces.

 

The effort and expense of finding divorce records are worthwhile since they can provide information not available elsewhere. An example from my own family concerns my great grandparents. I had never been able to find where and when the couple had been married. Through a newspaper article entitled “Unhappy Couples Divorced” in a local newspaper, I learned my ancestors were divorced in 1908. Using that information, it was a simple matter to order the papers from the state archives where they were stored.

 

The moment I looked at the divorce papers, I knew I’d broken down a long-standing brick wall. The divorce papers included the date and place of my great grandparents’ marriage: March 3,1871 in Pickering, Yorkshire, England. This was a long way from Norfolk, where the couple had lived previously. I would never have thought of looking there since neither had any ties to that area.

 

Since then, I’ve found other divorce records which included the names of children and explained who would be granted custody of them and why. Almost all divorce papers also detail

detail the reasons the divorce was granted. It can make for a riveting read and help you to understand your ancestors better.

 

Divorce records are worth the extra steps it takes to obtain them. They also emphasize the fact that not all genealogical records are online.

 

Carol Stetser

Researcher

Larimer County Genealogical Society

 

 

 

 

 

History of Passenger Lists

October 24, 2025

Finding an ancestor’s passenger list is a research goal for many genealogists. Before beginning work on that goal, it’s important to understand what kind of passenger lists have been kept over the years.

 

Before 1820, there were few requirements to enter America. No official lists were kept at entry ports during that period. The lists that were kept were generally made at the point of embarkation and were not filed with anyone at the ship’s destination.

 

Most surviving passenger lists from before 1820 have been published. The largest index to surviving lists was published in Passenger and Immigration Lists Index edited by P. William Filby. Many libraries have copies of these indexes, and they can also be found on Ancestry.

 

Beginning in 1820, the United States required all ships arriving at U.S. ports to file passenger lists with the U.S. Customs Bureau. Nearly all Customs lists still survive. They were originally microfilmed by the National Archives and have been digitized. Researchers can access the lists at websites such as Family Search, Ancestry and others.

 

Customs lists usually list passengers by first and last names, although first names are often shortened to a first and middle initial. In addition, they list age, gender, occupation and nationality.

 

Because so little information was collected, it is often difficult to determine whether an individual listed is the person being searched for. It can be helpful to gather additional information from other sources such as emigration lists in the emigrant’s native country or the name of the ship an emigrant sailed on from a journal or diary. This can help narrow the search.

 

The U.S. Immigration Act of 1891 created the Immigration Bureau. The Bureau was tasked with keeping passenger lists for everyone entering the United States. Like the earlier Customs Lists, Immigration Lists were microfilmed by the National Archives. Immigration lists have been digitized and are available at Ancestry and other genealogy websites.

 

Immigration lists contain a lot of information about passengers. This makes it easier to identify ancestors on them. In addition to name and age, the lists include last residence of immigrant, marital status, amount of money, condition of health, physical description and the name, address and relationship of any person the immigrant is joining.

 

Both Customs Lists and Immigration Passenger Lists were kept for all U.S. ports. The major ports were Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and New Orleans. As the country grew westward, ports on the West Coast such as Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles were added. New York City was always the busiest port in the United States, and researchers should check there first for ancestor arrivals unless they are certain an ancestor landed elsewhere.

 

Knowing the history of passenger lists can help researchers to set realistic goals for finding the lists. For example, pre 1820 lists are the scarcest while post 1891 lists are the easiest to find ancestors on.

 

Happy Hunting,

 

Carol Stetser

Researcher

Larimer County Genealogical Society

 

 

 

 

 

Adding Context to Passenger Lists

October 10, 2025

Passenger lists are some of my favorite genealogy resources. Seeing my ancestor’s name on a list that was made when he/she left their old life for a new life in America is a meaningful experience for me.

 

However, sometimes it’s frustrating how little information the lists provide. Arrivals after about 1892 usually provide information such as the home country and town of an immigrant. In addition, you will find a specific date and place of birth. Earlier records often only include a name and approximate age plus a country of origin.

 

None of the passenger lists provides information about the journey itself. As someone who wants to know more details about an ancestor’s experience, this is frustrating. Fortunately, there are a few ways to add these contextual details to our ancestor’s story.

 

If you’re lucky, your ancestor may have left a biographical sketch of his life. Since immigration was such an important milestone in their lives, most immigrants describe their trip. For example, my great grandfather Charles Fernelius wrote his autobiography sixty years after his arrival. He recalled the ship brushing by some drift ice in a storm which tore off a deck railing. The passengers weren’t allowed up on deck for a day or two, and many were seasick. As a sturdy teenager when he sailed, my grandfather bragged that he was never sick at all. These kinds of details can help an ancestor’s journey come alive.

 

If your ancestor didn’t leave a journal, someone else who was on board the same ship may have. These are worth seeking out since they may include details that will apply to your own ancestor. I found that my great grandmother Jane Ann Burnett traveled as a child from New Zealand to San Francisco. On board the same ship was a Mormon missionary named Frederick Hurst who kept journals during his missions abroad. He described the trip from New Zealand and even mentioned Jane Ann’s family in his writings.

 

Newspapers may also give you additional insight into the voyage an ancestor took. Most immigrants arrived at one of the major ports in the United States. These cities published daily newspapers which included columns called “Marine Intelligence” or “Shipping News.” These columns gave a brief description of the trips of every ship that docked. Thanks to one of these columns, I learned that my grandmother Thea Rustad’s ship passed several German U boats as they crossed the Atlantic. World War I was only beginning in October of 1914 when she sailed, but it was already impacting sea travel.

 

Finding journals and diaries may require some research. A good place to start is the website Norway Heritage at https://www.norwayheritage.com/ . This website contains a lot of information about passenger lists and immigration and applies to all aspects of immigration from Europe – not just Norway.

 

Newspapers from the 19th century can be found on many different websites. Some are free such as Chronicling America at   https://www.loc.gov/collections/chronicling-america/about-this-collection/ . Others such as Newspapers.com at https://www.newspapers.com/  will require a subscription.

 

Don’t overlook journals and newspapers when you are researching an ancestor’s journey to America. They can add context and color to the bare bones of a passenger list.

 

Carol Stetser

Researcher

Larimer County Genealogical Society