Research Center - People Entries in black text are physical resources found in our Research Library. Hyperlinks (blue/underline) are online resources, some of which are only available to members. Online PDF resources are generally searchable by hitting "CTRL-F" and entering the term you would like to search for.
Birth/Baptismal Records
Family History Files
Research records relating to specific families. There are 1,135 folders of individual family names contained in 19 file drawers. View List of Family File Names
Marriage Records:
St. Mary's County marriage records began in 1794 and are available and are extant to date.
Death Records
Deaths occurring in Maryland counties were not officially registered before 1898. As with births, extant church records and other sources must be used. Deaths from all known sources up to 1900 are included in the book cited under Marriage Records, above.
Probate Records
Probate records include wills, estate inventories, accounts and other documents. From 1634 to 1777, records were kept at the provincial (colonial) level and at the county level. After 1777, records were kept at the county level. The Maryland State Archives Probate Guide is a helpful aid.
Obituaries
A thru F Select Last Name A BA BEA - BEN BER - BL BOA - BOV BOW - BOZ BRA - BROT BROU - BUP BUR - BUS BUT - BY CAB - CAR CAS - CI CL - COL COM - COR COS - SUL CUM - CZ DA DE DI DO - DR DU E FA - FE FI - FO FR - FU
G thru N Select Last Name GA - GI GL - GO GRA - GRE GRI - GRY GU - GW HAA - HAN HAR - HAW HAY - HEP HER - HEW HI - HOK HOL - HOW HOY - HY I - JI JOH - JON JOR - JUS KA - KL KN - KY LA - LED LEE - LOK LOM - LY MAC - MAR MAS - MAZ MC - MEN MER - MON MOO - MOR MOS - NEW NEW - NUT
O thru Z Select Last Name O PA - PH PI - PO PR - Q RA - REE REG - ROB ROC - RY SA - SC SE - SH SI - SMI SM - STA STC - SU SV - SZ TA - THOMA THOMP - TI TO - TY U - V WA - WEI WEL - WILK WILL - WI WO - YOR YOS - ZY
Wills
The first step in finding a will is to locate the deceased’s name in the St. Mary’s County Will Index (below). It will show the date of will’s recording, and the liber (book) and folio (page) where that will can be found. Will books were named by the initials of the Register of Wills. Shown is a list of the St. Mary’s County Will Books.
After finding the liber and folio, you will need to locate a copy of that liber (book). They can be found at the St. Mary’s County Courthouse, or on microfilm at the Maryland State Archives (visit the MSA Probate Guide Page below) or in our Research Library. Wills prior to 1778 are online at the Maryland State Archives. A few Will Books are available online in PDF below.
Administration Bonds
These were posted by the administrators of wills during the probate process. They provide an invaluable look into family members and relatives of the deceased.
Inventories
Inventories are lists of the personal property in a deceased person’s estate. They provide invaluable insight into the lifestyle and standard of living. Besides listing tangible personal property, they also listed slaves, often including names and ages. Inventories from 1795-1859 are available on the Research Library computer in PDF [huge – 3.56 GB]
Guardianships
Guardianships were established when a parent died leaving minor children. A guardian would be appointed to take legal custody of the children. An account would be established from the deceased person's estate for the benefit of the minor children. Guardianship records are useful for genealogy in establishing parent/child relationships. They also provide the identity of the guardian which may be a surviving spouse, a relative, a friend or a neighbor. They may also establish a date of death for an individual who cannot be located elsewhere.
Orphan's Court Proceedings
Orphan's Court Proceedings are valuable records for study as they provide records of the handling of minor children, enslaved persons, and property left by the deceased. Names of children and enslaved persons are found here that are often found no where else.
Cemetery Records
Graven in Stone and Buried under the Shield: A Guide to Gravestones of Maryland’s Civil War Veterans
African-American Records
Slavery was an accepted practice in Maryland from it's inception until the adoption of a new State Constitution on November 1, 1864
Colonial Settlers
Census Records
Federal census records exist for St. Mary's county for the years listed below. Census Enumeration District Maps SMCHS publication identifying election district areas by census year.
Churches and Parishes