Alpharetta Genealogy Records
Alpharetta genealogy records are kept at the Fulton County Probate Court and Superior Court Clerk in Atlanta. Alpharetta was first settled in the 1830s after the Cherokee removal, and it became one of the early towns in what is now north Fulton County. Marriage licenses, wills, estate files, land deeds, and court records for Alpharetta families are all filed at the Fulton County courthouse. County records start in 1853 and cover generations of family data.
Alpharetta Quick Facts
Fulton County Probate Court
The Fulton County Probate Court is the primary source for Alpharetta genealogy records. The court has marriage licenses from 1853 to the present. Wills, estate inventories, guardianship records, and letters of administration are also here. Under O.C.G.A. § 15-9-30, the Probate Court handles all estate and marriage matters for Fulton County.
Visit the Records Division at 136 Pryor Street SW, 2nd Floor C230, Atlanta, GA 30303. Call (404) 612-4640 for questions. You can send mail requests with a completed Estates Record Request Form and a $10 search fee. Copies are $1 per page. Certified copies cost $11 each. Pay by money order or attorney's check only. The Fulton County Probate Court website has downloadable forms.
| Address | 136 Pryor Street SW, 2nd Floor C230, Atlanta, GA 30303 |
|---|---|
| Phone | (404) 612-4640 |
| Website | fultonprobatega.org |
Land Records and Superior Court
Land deeds, divorce records, and civil cases for Alpharetta are at the Fulton County Superior Court Clerk. The office is at 136 Pryor Street SW in Atlanta. Call (404) 612-5107.
Alpharetta has a long land record trail. The area was opened to settlement in the 1830s through the Georgia land lottery system. Early land grants and lottery records can show who first claimed land here. Later deed books track sales and transfers from one generation to the next. Plat maps show property lines and neighbor names. These records help piece together where families lived and how they were connected.
Divorce records at the Superior Court are another resource. They often list children by name, divide property, and give ages or birth dates. Under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70, court records in Georgia are open to the public.
Vital Records
Birth and death certificates for Alpharetta are at the Fulton County Vital Records Office, 141 Pryor Street SW, Suite 1029A, Atlanta, GA 30303. Call (404) 613-1260. Birth certificates cost $25 for the first copy. Extra copies are $5. Death certificates cost the same.
Under O.C.G.A. § 31-10-26, certified birth certificates are only available to close family members. Death certificates are more broadly available and useful for genealogy. They list the person's name, death date, parents' names, and burial site. Georgia started statewide vital records in 1919 under O.C.G.A. § 31-10-9.
The Virtual Vault has free death certificates from 1919 to 1943 online. FamilySearch also has Georgia death records from 1914 to 1943 indexed at no cost. For earlier records, check the Georgia Archives for microfilmed Fulton County records.
Online Genealogy Research
Search Alpharetta genealogy records from home. The E-Access to Court Records system lets you look up Fulton County probate cases online. Registration is free. Basic data costs nothing. Documents are $2.50 for the first page and $1.00 per page after that.
FamilySearch has free indexed Georgia records. Marriages from 1754 to 1960. Probate records from 1742 to 1990. Death records from 1914 to 1943. The Georgia Historic Newspapers archive is another free tool. Old newspapers from north Georgia have obituaries, legal notices, and family news that can help with Alpharetta genealogy.
The Georgia Probate Courts directory shows contact details for all 159 counties including Fulton County, which handles Alpharetta records.
Georgia Archives
The Georgia Archives is at 5800 Jonesboro Road, Morrow, GA 30260. Call (678) 364-3710. The archives hold microfilmed county records, vital records, military files, and land grants. Free access to Ancestry.com, FamilySearch, and Fold3 is in the search room. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
Census records from 1820 to 1950 are available for the Alpharetta area through Ancestry.com at the archives. The 1850 census was the first to list all household members by name and age. Tax digests help track families between census years. The 1890 census was mostly destroyed in a fire, so use other sources for that decade.
The archives also have Family Bible records on microfilm, Confederate pension files, and the Vanishing Georgia photo collection. These add personal details that court documents often lack. North Fulton County had a rural character until recent decades, so church and cemetery records can be especially useful for older Alpharetta families.
Tips for Alpharetta Research
Start with what you know. Write down all names, dates, and places for your family. Work backward one generation at a time.
The land lottery records for Georgia are a unique resource. Georgia gave away land by lottery in the 1800s. If your ancestors got land in the Alpharetta area through the lottery, those records are at the Georgia Archives and indexed on FamilySearch. They show the person's name, county of residence, and lot number.
Alpharetta sits near the Forsyth County line. Some families moved between Fulton and Forsyth over the years. Check both counties if you can't find what you need in Fulton alone. Under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-71, public records across the state are open for inspection.
Fulton County Genealogy Records
Alpharetta is in Fulton County. Marriage licenses, probate records, land deeds, and court cases are at the Fulton County courthouse in Atlanta. County records go back to 1853 when Fulton was formed.
Nearby Georgia Cities
These cities are near Alpharetta and share access to many of the same genealogy resources.