Calhoun County Genealogy Records

Calhoun County genealogy records date back to 1854 when the county was carved from parts of Baker and Early counties. The Probate Court in Morgan holds marriage records, wills, and estate files from 1854 to the present. The Superior Court Clerk keeps land deeds, divorce files, and civil case records. Calhoun County sits in southwest Georgia and has played a quiet but steady role in the state's rural history. If your family lived in this part of Georgia, these courthouse records are likely the best starting point for any research you do.

Calhoun County Probate Court Records

The Calhoun County Probate Court in Morgan is the main source for marriage and estate records used in genealogy. This office has held marriage licenses since 1854. It also stores wills, letters of administration, guardianship files, and estate inventories. These are often the first records genealogy researchers look at when tracing family lines in Calhoun County.

Under O.C.G.A. § 15-9-30, the Probate Court has jurisdiction over wills, estates, guardianships, conservatorships, and marriage licenses. You can visit the courthouse in Morgan to request copies in person. Staff can help pull the right records if you know the name and approximate date range. Mail requests are also an option. Send a written request with the name you are searching for and any known dates. Include a check or money order for the search fee, typically $10. Copy fees are usually $1 per page for plain copies and more for certified ones.

Note: Some early Calhoun County records may also be found on microfilm at the Georgia Archives in Morrow, especially those from before 1900.

Calhoun County GAGenWeb Genealogy

The Calhoun County GAGenWeb page is a free volunteer-run resource for genealogy. It has cemetery transcriptions, census data, family histories, and other records shared by researchers working on Calhoun County family lines.

This site connects you with others who are searching Calhoun County family trees. Volunteers post records from courthouses, cemeteries, and old newspapers that may help fill gaps in your own research.

Other free resources include FamilySearch, which has Georgia marriages from 1754 to 1960, probate records from 1742 to 1990, and death records from 1914 to 1943. The Georgia Historic Newspapers archive has over one million pages of old Georgia newspapers with obituaries, legal notices, and family news that can help with Calhoun County genealogy.

Calhoun County Superior Court Genealogy

The Calhoun County Superior Court Clerk holds land records, divorce files, and civil and criminal case records going back to 1854. These records are valuable for genealogy because they show property transfers, family disputes, and legal matters that other records might miss entirely.

Deed books are especially useful. They list who sold land, who bought it, and often the relationships between parties. If your ancestor owned property in Calhoun County, the deed records can place them in a specific location at a specific time. Divorce records sometimes name children, list ages, and describe property. Under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70, most court records in Georgia are open to the public for inspection.

Note: The Georgia Open Records Act under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-71 caps standard copy fees at 10 cents per page for letter or legal size documents from public agencies. Court records may have different fee structures, so check with the clerk first.

Vital Records for Calhoun County Genealogy

Georgia began statewide vital records registration in 1919 under O.C.G.A. § 31-10-9. Before that date, most births and deaths in Calhoun County went unrecorded at the state level. The county health department can issue birth and death certificates from 1919 to the present.

For older records, check the Georgia Archives. Death certificates from 1919 to 1943 are available online through the Virtual Vault at no cost. FamilySearch.org also has Georgia death records from 1914 to 1943 indexed and free to search. Marriage records at the state level cover 1952 to 1996 only. Before and after those years, you need to contact the Calhoun County Probate Court for marriage records.

Under O.C.G.A. § 31-10-26, certified birth certificates are restricted. Only the person named, parents, grandparents, adult siblings, adult children, spouses, or legal guardians can get a certified copy. Death certificates are more open and available for genealogy research.

Research Tips for Calhoun County

Start with what you know. Write down every name, date, and place you have for your Calhoun County family. Then work backward one generation at a time. Census records are a good next step. Federal census data is available from 1860 to 1940 for Calhoun County since the county was formed in 1854.

Keep in mind that the 1890 federal census for Georgia was destroyed. For that gap, use Calhoun County tax digests to find where your ancestors lived. The 1850 census was the first to list every person in a household by name and age, but Calhoun County did not exist yet in 1850. Look for ancestors in Baker County or Early County records for that period.

Pre-1900 Calhoun County records are on microfilm at the Georgia Archives in Morrow. The Archives is at 5800 Jonesboro Road, Morrow, GA 30260. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Free access to Ancestry.com, FamilySearch.org, and Fold3 is available in the search room. For post-1900 records, contact the Calhoun County courthouse in Morgan directly.

• Check cemetery records and tombstone inscriptions when vital records are missing
• Search church records for baptisms, marriages, and burials
• Look at Family Bible records (45 volumes on microfilm at Georgia Archives)
• Review estate records when birth or death dates are unknown
• Use the Vanishing Georgia collection for historical photos from Calhoun County

Calhoun County boundary changes matter for genealogy. Georgia has 159 counties, and borders shifted often in the 1800s. The Virtual Vault has a free resource called "Georgia Counties: Their Changing Boundaries" that shows which county your ancestors were counted in for any given year.

Cities in Calhoun County

Calhoun County has a small population. Morgan is the county seat. Arlington is the other main town. All genealogy records for these communities are held at the Calhoun County Probate Court and Superior Court Clerk in Morgan. No cities in Calhoun County meet the population threshold for a separate city page.

Nearby Counties

These counties border Calhoun County. If your ancestors moved within this area, check neighboring county records too. County lines changed often in Georgia, so an ancestor in Calhoun County one decade might show up in a different county the next.