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Crawford County History and Information
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Crawford County Facts


Click HERE to see full size D.O.T. County Map
Crawford County was created on 18 October 1820and was formed from Pulaski County. It was named after William Crawford, U.S. secretary of war in 1815. When Crawford County was created, it contained a large part of what is now the State of Oklahoma. The seat of government is at Van Buren. Crawford County is bordered by , Washington County (north), Madison County (northeast), Franklin County (east), Sebastian County (south), Le Flore County, OK (southwest), Sequoyah County, OK (west), Adair County, OK (northwest). Cities, Towns & Communities include , Alma, Cedarville, Chester, Dyer, Kibler, Mountainburg, Mulberry, Rudy, Van Buren

Parts of Crawford County was used to form the following counties: Franklin 1837, Lovely 1827, Pope County 1829, Scott County 1833, Sebastian 1851, Washington 1828. Other county boundry changes occured when Boundaries defined 24 October 1821 and 30 October 1823, part of Cherokee Country attached 22 October 1828, boundaries defined 18 December 1837, line with Scott County and Washington defined 24 November 1846, line with Franklin defined 4 March 1875, line with Washington changed 9 March 1881, line with Franklin changed 28 March 1895.

The Official County Website is located at http://www.crawford-county.org . See Extended History for More information. It was reported, "The records from 1818 to 1820 are on file at Little Rock. On March 23, 1877, the courthouse was destroyed by fire and all records were destroyed except those of the treasurer and a few deeds and mortgages. Since that date, however, the records are complete and are kept in fire-proof vaults."

 

There are free downloadable and printable forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms, U.K. Census Extraction Forms, Research Calendar, Ancestral Chart, Research Extract, Correspondence Record , Family Group Sheet , Source Summary Form.

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Crawford County Court Records
Arkansas Probate Records, Land Records, Marriage Records & Court Records

PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information. The records from 1818 to 1820 are on file at Little Rock. On March 23, 1877, the courthouse was destroyed by fire and all records were destroyed except those of the treasurer and a few deeds and mortgages. Since that date, however, the records are complete and are kept in fire-proof vaults.

   Crawford County Clerk of Circuit Court has Court Records from 1877 and Land Records from 1851 and is located at 300 Main Street, Van Buren, 72956; (479) 474-1821 .
   The circuit clerk is the clerk of the circuit, chancery court, and juvenile court and usually acts as the ex-officio recorder of the county.  The administrative duties of the clerk are to maintain a record of all proceedings of the circuit, chancery and juvenile courts and to prepare the dockets for these courts. They are also the ex-officio county recorder; and is responsible for recording deeds, mortgages, liens, and surety bonds, and many other orders and instruments which involve property within the county

   Crawford County Clerk has Marriage Records from 1877 and Probate Records from 1877 and is located at 300 Main Street, Van Buren, 72956; (479) 474-1312 .
   Although probate court is a court of equity and is presided over by the chancery judge, prior to 1937 it was a function of the county court, and under the amended procedure, the county clerk still operates ad the clerk of the probate court.
   As clerk to the probate court, the clerk files all instruments making them a matter of record in descendent estate cases, and swears in all witnesses in contested estates.  The clerk, also in this capacity, maintains all records relative to adoptions and guardianship cases within the county. 
   Although probate court is a court of equity and is presided over by the chancery judge, prior to 1937 it was a function of the county court, and under the amended procedure, the county clerk still operates ad the clerk of the probate court

There are a few online databases for Court, Land and Probate Records which include: Arkansas Marriages, 1779-1992, Arkansas Marriages, 1820-1949, Arkansas Marriages to 1850, Arkansas Marriages, 1851-1900 and Arkansas Divorce Index, 1923-1939. You may also search the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) which does not cover Arkansas but does cover surrounding states. Many pioneers and settelers bought land from the government instead of individuals.


Search Online Click Here to Search Arkansas Court, Land, Wills & Financial Records! - Researchers often overlook the importance of court records, probate records, and land records as a source of family history information.

Below is a list of online resources for Crawford County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Crawford County Court Records by clicking the link below:

  • Crawford County, Arkansas Court Books at Amazon.com
  • Arkansas Immigration & Emigration Records - Immigration records help the family historian to understand the movements of their ancestry as they relocated to different parts of the world.

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Crawford County Vital Records
Arkansas Vital Records

Search Online Click Here to Search Arkansas Birth, Marriage & Death Records! - Birth, marriage, and death records are connected with central life events. They are prime sources for genealogical information. Look also for baptism, christening, and burial records in this collection.

Some documents are just too important to wait six weeks for. With VitalChek Express Certificate Service you won’t have to. Birth, Marriage, Divorce & Death Certificates Signed. Sealed. Delivered. Often in as few as three business days!

   Vital Records, 4815 West Markham St Little Rock, AR 72205, Please allow up to approximately 4-6 weeks for processing of all type of certificates when ordered through the mail. They have the following records:

  • Birth Certificates: Birth records maintained by Arkansas Vital Records start with February 1, 1914 through the present. Vital Records does have a limited number of birth records prior to 1914. The birth records dated prior to 1914 were filed with Arkansas Vital Records after 1914. They have original copies of Little Rock and Fort Smith births dating from 1881.
    • Cost: The cost of a birth record is $12.00 for the first copy and $10.00 for each additional copy ordered of the same record at the same time. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep $12.00 for a searching fee. The customer may request a refund of any amount paid over the required $12.00 search fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
    • Processing Time: 4-6 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
  • Death Certificates: Death records maintained by Arkansas Vital Records start with February 1, 1914 through the present. Arkansas Vital Records does have a limited number of deaths occurring prior to 1914 for Little Rock and Fort Smith dating from 1881. The Arkansas History Commission has a death index of deaths occurring in Arkansas from 1914 through 1949. This is only an alphabetical listing of deaths occurring in Arkansas. The History Commission does not have copies of the death records. 
    • Cost: The cost of a certified death certificate is $10.00 for the first copy and $8.00 for each additional copy issued at the same time for the same certificate. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep $10.00 for a searching fee. The customer may request a refund of any amount paid over the required $10.00 search fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
    • Processing Time: 4-6 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
    • Click Here to Search the Social Security Death Index for FREE
  • Marriage & Divorce Certificates: Marriage records maintained in Arkansas Vital Records begin with January 1917. Arkansas Vital Records does not have any marriage records prior to 1917.
    Divorce records maintained in Arkansas Vital Records begin with January 1923. Arkansas Vital Records does not have any divorce records prior to 1923. Records of marriage & divorce proceedings are available from the Crawford County clerk of Probate Court that granted the decree.You can download an application online for Marriage Certificates or Divorce Certificates . You can also order Order Electronically and get the certificates much quicker by ordering HERE
    • Cost: Arkansas Vital Records maintains a file of marriage and divorce coupons. These coupons are acceptable with organizations that require a certified record. The cost of a marriage or divorce coupon is $10.00 for each copy. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep $10.00 for a searching fee. The customer may request a refund of any amount paid over the required $10.00 search fee.
    • Processing Time: 4-6 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY

Order In Person:  The certificates may be ordered by coming into this office.   If you want the copy the same day, our hours for same day service are 8:00 A.M. until 3:00 P.M. Monday – Friday. The office is located at 4815 West Markham St Little Rock, AR 72205. 
Directions to Vital Statistics Office 
Order By Mail:  Mail a check or money order (no cash) payable to the "Vital Records " along with the necessary information to the following address: Vital Records, PO Box 8184, Little Rock AR 72203-8184. Please include return address on envelope and application form.
Order On-Line:  To obtain a certified copy of a vital record by on-line purchase with a credit card, please link to VitalChek.

There are a few online marriage databases which include:Arkansas Marriages, 1779-1992, Arkansas Marriages, 1820-1949, Arkansas Marriages to 1850, Arkansas Marriages, 1851-1900 and Arkansas Divorce Index, 1923-1939

Below is a list of online resources for Crawford County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Crawford County Vital Records by clicking the link below:

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Crawford County Census Records
U.S. Census Records

Search Online Click Here to Search Arkansas Voter Lists & Census Records! - Few, if any, records reveal as many details about individuals and families as do government census records. Substitute records can be used when the official census is unavailable.

  Countywide Records: Federal Population Schedules that exist for Crawford County, Arkansas are 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1890 (fragment, see below), 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. Other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your family tree in Crawford County, Arkansas are Industry and Agriculture Schedules availible for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. Slave Schedules exist for 1850 & 1860. The Mortality Schedules for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880.There are free downloadable and printable Census forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms and U.K. Census Extraction Forms

See Also Statewide Records that exist for Arkansas

Below is a list of online resources for Crawford County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Crawford County Census Records by clicking the link below:

  • Crawford County, Arkansas Census Books at Amazon.com

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Crawford County Maps & Atlases

   Genealogy Atlas has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for Arkansas and other states.
   You can view rotating animated maps for Arkansas showing all the county boundaries for each census year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at Census Maps
   You can view rotating animated maps for Arkansas showing all the county boundary changes for each year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries . You can view a list of maps for other states and State Department of Transportation Maps at The Arkansas Department of Transportation has county maps the show the locations of churches, cemeteries, roads, ect... free for viewing or download here

Below is a list of online resources for Crawford County Maps. Email us with websites containing Crawford County Maps by clicking the link below:

  • Crawford County, Arkansas Map Books at Amazon.com

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Crawford County Military Records
Arkansas Military Records

Search Online Click Here to Search Arkansas Military Records! - Military and civil service records provide unique facts and insights into the lives of men and women who have served their country at home and abroad.

   The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design. A list of Wars fought on American.

The site U.S. Wars list conflicts dating from earliest to 1865. Wars covered that are availibele are: Pequot War(1637–1638), The Iroquois Wars(1642-1698), King William’s War(1689–1698), Pueblo Rebellion(1680), King Philip’s War(1675–1676), Queen Anne’s War (1702–1713), Tuscarora War(1711-1715), Dummer’s War (1723–1726), King George’s War (1744–1745), French and Indian War( 1754–1763), Pontiac's Rebellion (1763-1766), Lord Dunmore's War (1774), American Revolution(1775-1783), Tripolitan War (1801-1805), War of 1812(1812-1815), Creek Indian War (1813-1814), The First Seminole War (1818-1819), Texas Revolutionary War (1835-1836), Second Seminole War (1835-1842), Mexican American War (1846-1848) and The American Civil War (1861-1865)

Below is a list of online resources for Crawford County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Crawford County Military Records by clicking the link below:

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Crawford County Tax Records

   Tax records are available at the respective county courthouses and in the Arkansas History Commission. Nearly 600 tax books, original or microfilmed, for Arkansas counties are included in the collection at the Commission. Legislation was enacted in Arkansas which required that copies of early county tax records be sent to the state auditor in Little Rock. Where county records were lost, the state auditor's copies are especially valuable. 
  Personal property tax records have been published for a few counties. Tax lists, along with other sources, are being used to reconstruct the lost 1890 federal population census.

Below is a list of online resources for Crawford County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Crawford County Tax Records by clicking the link below:

  • Crawford County, Arkansas Tax Books at Amazon.com

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Crawford County Genealogical Addresses
Arkansas Genealogical Addresses

   The Repositories in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be more generalized and over look the smaller details that local societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy section and may have some resources that are not located at archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All these places are vitally important to the family genealogist and must not be passed over.

Below is a list of online resources for Crawford County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Crawford County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:

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Crawford County Church & Cemeteries
Arkansas Church & Cemetery Records

Search Online Click Here to Search Arkansas Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.

   There are many churches and cemeteries in Crawford County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Crawford County Tombstone Transcription Project.

Some church records for Arkansas churches are available at the Arkansas History Commission. These include published church histories, church records, newspapers, and manuscript collections.

Local county genealogical and historical organizations have copied, cataloged, and published records of local cemeteries. Most of these are in the collection at the Arkansas History Commission; many are in the DAR Library. Most of those in the DAR collection have been microfilmed by the FHL.

Below is a list of online resources for Crawford County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Crawford County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:

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Family Trees & Genealogy Tidbits

Search Online Click Here to Search Arkansas Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.

   When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Crawford County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information . Email us with websites containing Crawford County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:

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Extended History

   Crawford County was the largest county in Arkansas when it was established in 1820. Originally, Crawford County included part of eight counties as well as part of the Indian Territory. Crawford County is rugged terrain from the Ozark Mountains in the northern half and rolling farmlands, forested ridges and isolated mountains and lakes in the southern half. Van Buren is the county seat. The main economic base of the county is agriculture and affiliated industries, soybeans, fruit and vegetables, beef cattle and poultry. Tourism is growing steadily with the lakes, rivers, mountains, valleys and the scenic views. Crawford County's Courthouse is listed in the National Historic Register and thought to be the oldest active county courthouse west of the Mississippi River. The original portion of the courthouse was constructed in 1842. People are attracted to historic downtown Van Buren that has six blocks of restored architecture, including arts, crafts and antique shops. Several motion pictures have been filmed in Van Buren. Crawford County's 2000 census count was 53,247, a 25.3% increase since 1990.

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Genealogy Free Trials Offers

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