Woodford County, Kentucky Genealogy

United States

Kentucky

Woodford County

Guide to Woodford County, Kentucky ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Kentucky Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Versailles Organized: November 12, 1788 Parent County(s): Fayette Neighboring Counties Anderson  • Fayette  • Franklin  • Jessamine  • Mercer  • Scott See County Maps Courthouse Location Map Adoption Adopt-a-wiki page This page adopted by: KYGenWeb Project who welcome you to contribute. Adopt a page today

County Information

Description

Woodford County was named for William Woodford. The county is located in the northeast-central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Woodford County Courthouse
103 S Main Street
Versailles, KY 40383
Phone: 859.873.3421
Woodford County Website

Woodford County, Kentucky Record Dates

Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.

Known Beginning Dates for Major County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1852	1789	1852	1789	1789	1789	1810
*Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1911. General compliance by 1917.

Record Loss

1965--A disaster destroyed most of the records. For suggestions about research in places that suffered historic record losses, see: Burned Counties. By Michael John Neill at 24-7 Family History Circle. When the Records are Gone. By Arlene Eakle at Arlene Eakle's Tennessee Blog. Burned Counties Research in the FamilySearch Research Wiki.

Boundary Changes

1788--Woodford County was created 12 November 1788 from Fayette County. County seat: Versailles For animated maps illustrating Kentucky county boundary changes, "Rotating Formation Kentucky County Boundary Maps" (1776-1939) may be viewed for free at the MapofUS.org website.

Populated Places

For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit Hometown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

Cities
Midway	Versailles (county seat)
Unincorporated communities
Big Poplar Tree Bonita Clifton Davistown Duckers Faywood Firmantown Gaybourn Harmony	Hunter Town Jacksontown (hist.) McKees Crossroads Millville Milner Mortonsville Mundy's Landing Nonesuch	Nugent Crossroads Pinckard Pisgah Shetland Spring Station Troy Wallace Woodford Village
Ghost towns
Sodom

Resources

Biographies

• KY Biographies, Jeff Murphy's Kentucky Biographies Project

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Woodford, Kentucky online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Findagrave.com KYGenWeb KYGenWeb Archives Tombstone Project Billion Graves
TombstoneTranscriptions in Print (Often more complete)	Family History Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Findagrave.com Billion Graves Kentucky Cemeteries FamilySearch Places
See Kentucky Cemeteries for more information

The following web sites have additional information on Woodford county cemeteries.

• Interment.net, Kentucky cemetery records by county.
• Cemetery Junction, Links to cemetery transcriptions
• Naming the Forgotten, The Eastern State Hospital Project

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1790	9,210	—
1800	6,624	−28.1%
1810	9,659	45.8%
1820	12,207	26.4%
1830	12,273	0.5%
1840	11,740	−4.3%
1850	12,423	5.8%
1860	11,219	−9.7%
1870	8,240	−26.6%
1880	11,800	43.2%
1890	12,380	4.9%
1900	13,134	6.1%
1910	12,571	−4.3%
1920	11,784	−6.3%
1930	10,981	−6.8%
1940	11,847	7.9%
1950	11,212	−5.4%
1960	11,913	6.3%
1970	14,434	21.2%
1980	17,778	23.2%
1990	19,955	12.2%
2000	23,208	16.3%
2010	24,939	7.5%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

1810, 1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930 federal population schedules of Woodford County are available online. For tips on accessing census records online, see Kentucky Census. If you're having trouble finding your ancestors in online indexes, try checking printed indexes. Created by local experts familiar with the area's families, these indexes are often transcribed more accurately than online nationwide indexes.

See Kentucky Population Schedule Indexes: Fiche, Film, or Book for more information about statewide printed indexes.

• 1790 - Lost, but a substitute is available, see Taxation.
• Kentucky Census Transcriptions 1850-1930, USGenWeb
• Census Images, USGenWeb
• KY Census Online, Links to online census records

Church Records

Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. For general information about Kentucky denominations, view the Kentucky Church Records wiki page.

• Kentucky Christian Church Directory, ChurchAngel
• Catholic Parishes in the Diocese of Lexington
• Catholic Parishes in the Archdiocese of Louisville

Baptist

• Glen's Creek. Church minutes (1801-1868) exist.

List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places

Court Records

• Abstracts of Early Kentucky Supreme Court Cases, KYGenWeb
• Kentucky Court of Justice Research & Reference

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

African Americans

More information about African American resources in Kentucky can be found on the African American Resources for Kentucky and the United States African Americans Wiki pages.

• African American Genealogy (US) has more information about the kinds of records available
• The KY African American Griots Project
• Kentucky Cultural Groups has information specific to Kentucky African Americans.
• Sandi Gorin's Tips, Hangings in Kentucky 1792-1900

Genealogies

• [Ashby] Crozier, William Armstrong. The Buckners of Virginia and the Allied Families of Strother and Ashby. New York: The Genealogical Association, 1907. Digital version at Google Books - free.
• [Blackburn] Buford, Marcus Bainbridge. A Genealogy of the Buford Family in America, With Records of a Number of Allied Families. San Francisco, Calif., 1903. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.
• [Blanton] Peters, Norman R. "Benjamin Robinson of Caroline County, VA. But Not the Clerk!" The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 48, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 2004):57-75; Vol. 48, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 2004):120-139. Digital version at American Ancestors ($).
• [Buford] Buford, Marcus Bainbridge. A Genealogy of the Buford Family in America, With Records of a Number of Allied Families. San Francisco, Calif., 1903. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.
• [Dale] Daniels, Almon E. A Workbook on the Dale Families of Virginia: With Particular Reference to the Branch Which Moved from the Northern Neck of Virginia to Woodford County, Kentucky and with Notes on the Related Families of Dodson, Goad, Hanks, Phillips, Sydnor, etc. Arlington, Va.: A. E. Daniels, 1958. FHL Book 929.273 D152dae
• [Dawkins] Prewitt, Lela Wolfe. The Dawkins and Stewart Families of Virginia and Kentucky. [Fairfield, Iowa: Prewitt], 1968. FHL Book 929.273 D322p.
• [Flournoy] Rivers, Flournoy. "The Flournoy Family," The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 2, No. 1 (Jul. 1894):81-90; Vol. 2, No. 2 (Oct. 1894):190-213; Vol. 2, No. 3 (Jan. 1895):318-327; Vol. 2, No. 4 (Apr. 1895):437-447; Vol. 3, No. 1 (Jul. 1895):67-79; Vol. 3, No. 4 (Apr. 1896):414-416; Vol. 4, No. 1 (Jul. 1896):97-101. Digitized by JSTOR - free.
• [Holman] Utermohlen, William J. The Holman Family of Kent County, Maryland and Woodford County, Kentucky: A Preliminary Study. Alexandria, Va.: W.J. Utermohlen, 1993. FHL Book 929.273 H731u
• [Hughes] Miller, Margaret Hardwick and Fredna Tweedt Irvine. Rowland Hughes (1756-1809); Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Woodford and Logan counties, Kentucky. Typescript, Mendocino County Historical Society, Ukiah, Calif. Microfilmed 1990: FHL Film 1710474 Item 11.
• [Lee] Hall, Newman Arnold. "Allerton of Virginia," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 32, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1988):83-92; Vol. 32, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1988):171-178; Vol. 32, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1988):287-296; Vol. 33, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1989):13-18; Vol. 33, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1989):94-102; Vol. 33, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1989):175-180. Digital version at American Ancestors ($). FHL Book 975.5 B2vg v. 32 (1988)-v. 33 (1989).
• [McCord] McCord Collection of Family Papers (Woodford Co., Ky Families) McCord & Related Families. MSS., Woodford County Historical Society, Versailles, Ky. Microfilmed 1990: FHL Film 1731045
• [Minter] Harper, Lillie DuPuy VanCulin. Colonial Men and Times: Containing the Journal of Col. Daniel Trabue, Some Account of His Ancestry, Life and Travels in Virginia and the Present State of Kentucky During the Revolutionary Period; the Huguenots, Genealogy, with Brief Sketches of the Allied Families. Philadelphia, Pa.: Innes & Sons, 1916. Digital version at Internet Archive; FHL Film 1421709 Item 2.
• [Pittman] Harper, Lillie DuPuy VanCulin. Colonial Men and Times: Containing the Journal of Col. Daniel Trabue, Some Account of His Ancestry, Life and Travels in Virginia and the Present State of Kentucky During the Revolutionary Period; the Huguenots, Genealogy, with Brief Sketches of the Allied Families. Philadelphia, Pa.: Innes & Sons, 1916. Digital version at Internet Archive; FHL Film 1421709 Item 2.
• [Robinson] Peters, Norman R. "Benjamin Robinson of Caroline County, VA. But Not the Clerk!" The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 48, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 2004):57-75; Vol. 48, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 2004):120-139. Digital version at American Ancestors ($).
• [Shipp] Sanders, Walter R. The Shipp Genealogy from Essex, Caroline, Fa[u]quier Counties, Virginia, to Green, Taylor, Woodford, Jefferson, Fayette, Christian, Bourbon, Scott, Owen, Counties, Kentucky, and Johnson Counties, Indiana. 1946. FHL Book 929.273 Sh64s
• [Stevenson] Stevenson, Margaretta. Stevenson Family History: From the Eastern Shore of Maryland (Old Somerset, Renamed Worcester County) to Woodford County, Kentucky to Putnam County, Indiana with Allied Families. New York: Margaretta Stevenson, 1985. FHL Book 929.273 St48sm
• [Strother] Owen, Thomas McAdory, "William Strother of Virginia and His Descendants," Publications of the Southern History Association, Vol. 2, No. 1 (Apr. 1898):149-173. Digitized by Internet Archive.
• [Strother] Roberts, Gary Boyd. Ancestors of American Presidents. Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2009. FHL Book 973 D2r 2009; online bookstore.
• [Sublett] Harper, Lillie DuPuy VanCulin. Colonial Men and Times: Containing the Journal of Col. Daniel Trabue, Some Account of His Ancestry, Life and Travels in Virginia and the Present State of Kentucky During the Revolutionary Period; the Huguenots, Genealogy, with Brief Sketches of the Allied Families. Philadelphia, Pa.: Innes & Sons, 1916. Digital version at Internet Archive; FHL Film 1421709 Item 2.
• [Taylor] Hall, Newman Arnold. "Allerton of Virginia," The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 32, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1988):83-92; Vol. 32, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1988):171-178; Vol. 32, No. 4 (Oct.-Dec. 1988):287-296; Vol. 33, No. 1 (Jan.-Mar. 1989):13-18; Vol. 33, No. 2 (Apr.-Jun. 1989):94-102; Vol. 33, No. 3 (Jul.-Sep. 1989):175-180. Digital version at American Ancestors ($). FHL Book 975.5 B2vg v. 32 (1988)-v. 33 (1989).
• [Taylor] Roberts, Gary Boyd. Ancestors of American Presidents. Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2009. FHL Book 973 D2r 2009; online bookstore.
• [Trabue] Buford, Marcus Bainbridge. A Genealogy of the Buford Family in America, With Records of a Number of Allied Families. San Francisco, Calif., 1903. Digital version at Internet Archive - free.
• [Violett] Dean, H. Clark. "Thornton Violett: Two Men or One?" National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 91 (March 2003):31-39. FHL Book 973 B2ng v. 91 (2003)
• [Wilson] McCrary, Patti Sue. Wilson Families in Cumberland County, Virginia, and Woodford County, Kentucky: With Correspondence and Other Papers, 1785-1849. Westminster, Md.: Willow Bend Books, 2005. FHL Book 929.273 W691mp
• [Witherspoon] Witherspoon, Martinette Viley. My Ancestors: A Brief Account of the Ancestry of Lister Witherspoon and His Wife Martinette Viley of Woodford County, Kentucky. Washington, D.C.: C.H. Potter, 1922. FHL Film 1454554 Item 1

Land and Property Records

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents.

See Kentucky Land and Property for additional information about early Kentucky land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and where records are currently housed.

• The KY Land Office

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Woodford County, Kentucky Genealogy. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories see the wiki page section Kentucky Local Histories.

• History of Woodford County. 1928. By William Edward Railey. Frankfort, Kentucky : Roberts Printing Co. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Ancestry ($); At various libraries (WorldCat).

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of Kentucky (1776-1939)
• KYGenWeb compiled list of maps
• Click on the county to go to the KYGenWeb site
• FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

Military Records

• Military Resources, Revolutionary War through Civil War

Civil War

Online Records

• 1861-1865 - Kentucky Civil War Service Records of Confederate Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
• 1861-1865 - Kentucky Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1861-1865 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
• 1861-1865 - U.S., Confederate Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry — index (free)
• 1861-1865 - U.S., Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865 at Ancestry— index (free)
• 1912-1950 - Kentucky Confederate Pension Applications 1912-1950 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images

World War I

• Fallen Soldiers in WWI from KY

Korean War

• Korean War Memorial for Soldiers from KY, KYGenWeb

Newspapers

• USNPL, Kentucky, Kentucky newspaper index with links
• World-Newspapers, Kentucky, Kentucky newspaper index with links
• Kentucky Newspapers on Microfilm

Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Woodford County, Kentucky Genealogy newspapers in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Do a Woodford County, Kentucky Genealogy Place-name search for these and other records in the FamilySearch Catalog (For instructions see FamilySearch Catalog Places Search).

Obituaries

• Kentucky Footsteps Archives, KYGenWeb
• Kentucky Obituary Sources, KYGenWeb
• Links to research and locate obituaries
• Browning Genealogy Database, Compiled by Charles Browning.
• Kentucky Obituaries, USGenWeb
• Afrigeneas, African American death notices, obituaries and funeral programs compiled by users from current newspapers and historical sources
• Obituary Depot, Kentucky Newspaper Citations
• Obituary Daily Times, Citations to over 15,000,000 obituaries including interactive search function
• Nashville Christian Advocate Death Abstracts

Other Records

• Kentucky Postcards, USGenWeb

Probate Records

Probate records are held by the Woodford County, Kentucky Genealogy Clerk of Court and are housed at the Woodford County, Kentucky Genealogy Courthouse. Microfilmed records can be found online at Kentucky, Probate Records, 1792-1977 for Caldwell, Henry, Hickman, Russell and Trimble counties. See the wiki page Kentucky Probate Records for information about how to use probate records.

Content: Probate Records may give the decedent's date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their place of residence.

Record types: Wills, estates, guardianships, naturalizations, and adoptions.

Online Probate Records

• 1774–1999 Kentucky Wills and Probate Records 1774-1999 at Ancestry ($) — index and images
• 1798-1943 - Will Books 1 to 8 (1798-1943) at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1789-1815 Kentucky Pioneers ($) Images of Wills, Estates, Distributions, Inventories, Guardianships, Bk A
• 1796-1807 Kentucky Pioneers ($) Images of Wills, Estates, Distributions, Inventories, Guardianships, Bk B
• 1806-1812 Kentucky Pioneers ($) Images of Wills, Estates, Distributions, Inventories, Guardianships, Bk C
• 1812-1815 Kentucky Pioneers ($) Images of Wills, Estates, Distributions, Inventories, Guardianships, Bk D
• Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records at Ancestry ($)

Social Security Records

• 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index at FamilySearch - How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
• 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records

Taxes were levied on free white males over 21 and slaves aged 21 to 60. These persons are referred to as "polls." Tax listings, or digests, of a county generally list the taxable landowners and other polls and the amount of tax. The records for each county are divided by militia district. For more background information and state-wide resources see the wiki page Kentucky Taxation.

• 1790 - Heinemann, Charles B. "First Census" of Kentucky 1790. Washington, D.C.: n.p., 1940. 1981 reprint: FHL US/CAN 976.9 X2ph 1981; digital version at Kentucky Kinfolks. ["2 volumes of 1790 were used." (p. 2)]
• 1800 - 1800 Tax List of Woodford County, Kentucky Genealogy is included in Clift's Second Census of Kentucky 1800, digitized by Ancestry ($).
• Search Tax, Criminal, Land and Wills Records at Ancestry ($)

Vital Records

Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Although Kentucky enacted a statute in 1852-1862 requiring registration of births and deaths,many counties did not comply. A second law was written in 1874-1879, and 1892-1910 but, again, was not always followed. By 1911, the law was more clearly defined and kept by 1920. Any existing births 1852-1960 and death records 1852-1953 can be accessed online. See How to Find Kentucky Birth Records and How to Find Kentucky Death Records for links to indexes and images.

Original marriage records are held at the office of the Woodford County Clerk, with divorce records 1849-1958 located with the Woodford County Circuit Court. For more information see How to Find Kentucky Marriage Records. For Kentucky divorce records see the wiki page Kentucky Vital Records.

Birth

• 1839-1960 - Kentucky Births and Christenings, 1839-1960 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1852-1861 - Woodford County Birth Index 1852-1861. Batch C518091at FamilySearch
• 1874 - Woodford County Birth Index 1874. Batch C518092 at FamilySearch
• 1875-1876 - Woodford County Birth Index 1875-1876. Batch C518093 at FamilySearch
• 1911-1912 - Searchable KY Birth Index
• 1911-1999 Kentucky Births, 1911-1999 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Marriage

• 1609-2016 - Kentucky, United States Marriages at FindMyPast — index $
• 1785-1979 - Kentucky Marriages, 1785-1979 at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection
• 1788-1851 - Record of Marriages, Woodford County, Kentucky for the Period of Years 1788 to 1851 Inclusive. Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library.
• 1797-1954 - Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index and images
• 1852-1862 - Woodford County Marriage Index 1852-1862. Batch M518091 at FamilySearch
• 1874-1876 - Woodford County Marriage Index 1874-1876. Batch M518094 at FamilySearch
• 1876-1877 - Woodford County Marriage Index 1876-1877. Batch M518095 at FamilySearch
• 1973-2000 - Searchable KY Marriage Records
• 1973-2000 - Kentucky Marriage Records 1973-2000
• 1960-1993 Kentucky Marriages, 1960-1993 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Death

• 1843-1970 - Kentucky Deaths and Burials, 1843-1970 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection- index
• 1900-1999 Kentucky Deaths, 1900-1999 at MyHeritage ($) — index
• 1911-1965 - Kentucky Death Records, 1911-1965 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; index
• 1911-2000 - Searchable KY Death Index
• The Social Security Death Index - How to Use this Collection
• The Kentucky Vital Records Project, Transcriptions and Images of Kentucky Death Certificates

Divorce

• 1973-1993 - Kentucky Divorces 1973-1993, University of Kentucky Vital Records Databases

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Woodford County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Kentucky Archives and Libraries.

• Archives of Appalachia
  East Tennessee State University
  Website

Family History Centers

Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a family history center.

• Family History Center and Affiliate Library Locator

Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries

Libraries

Listed below are libraries in Woodford County. For state-wide library facilities, see Kentucky Archives and Libraries.

Societies

Listed below are societies in Woodford County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Kentucky Societies.

• Woodford County Historical Society
  121 Rose Hill Ave
  Versailles, KY 400383
  Telephone: 589-873-6786
  Email: woodford@qx.net
  Website
• Links and addresses to Kentucky genealogical and historical societies

Websites

• KYGenWeb project. Has maps, name indexes, history or other information for each county. Select the county.
• State of Kentucky Website
• USGenWeb Kentucky Archives
• Linkpendium
• Woodford County KY Genealogy (Kentucky Genealogy)
• Woodford County, KY History, Records, Facts and Genealogy
• FamilySearch Catalog . Free - The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records

This website requires a paid subscription for full access.