County Formed: 1791
Parent County: Montgomery
Daughter Counties: Schoharie 1795; Delaware 1797
Table of Contents
- History
- Cities, Towns, and Villages
- Repositories, Resources, and Societies - County
- Repositories, Resources, and Societies - Regional
- Repositories, Resources, and Societies - Local
- Civil, Public, and Vital Records
- Federal Census Records
- State Census Records
- Online Resources
- Selected Bibliography
History
Although artifacts found in the Town of Milford hint at a Native American presence in Otsego County 11000-12000 years ago, the area was mostly uninhabited when European colonists arrived in the 17th century. However, because of its relative remoteness, the land remained mostly unoccupied until the late 1700s.On February 16, 1791; Otsego County became an independent county after splitting from Montgomery County. The county seat is Cooperstown. Major land acquisitions include the Lindesay Patent of 1738 and the Otego Patent of 1774. After the initial settlement of Otsego County, the region’s economy was supported by small family farms. Although agricultural production remained the center of Otsego County’s economy, by 1800, Otsego County experienced small-scale industrialization. During the 19th century, foundries, sawmills, and gristmills all played a subsidiary role in supporting the economy.
Repositories, Resources, and Societies – County
Otsego County Clerk
Website: Otsego County Clerk
Address: 197 Main Street, PO Box 710, Cooperstown, NY 13326
Phone: (607) 547-4200
Otsego County - City, Town, and Village Clerks
Website: Otsego County – City, Town, and Village Clerks
Birth, marriage, and deaths records are maintained by the clerk of the municipality in which the event occurred.
Otsego County Surrogate's Court
Website: Otsego County Surrogate’s Court
Address: 197 Main Street, Cooperstown, NY 133260
Phone: (607) 322-3150
Otsego County Public Libraries
Website: Otsego County Public Libraries
Otsego is part of the Four County Library System. Many libraries hold genealogy and local history collections, including maps and newspapers.
Otsego County Historian
Website: Otsego County Historian
Address: 197 Main Street, Cooperstown, NY 13326
Phone: (607) 547-4202
Otsego County - All Municipal Historians
Website: Municipal Historians
While not authorized to answer genealogical inquiries, city, town, and village historians can provide valuable historical information and research advice; some maintain collections and webpages which may include transcribed records, local histories, and other genealogical material.
Repositories, Resources, and Societies – Regional
Huntington Memorial Library: Genealogical Resources
Website: Huntington Memorial Library: Genealogical Resources
Address: 62 Chestnut Street, Oneonta, NY 13820
Phone: (607) 432-1980
Fenimore Art Museum (Formerly the New York State Historical Association)
Website: Fenimore Research Collections
Address: 5798 State Highway, 80 Cooperstown, NY 13326
Phone: 607-547-1400
Repositories, Resources, and Societies – Local
Alphabetized by location
Burlington Historical Society
Website: Burlington Historical Society
Address: 6011 State Highway, 51 Burlington Flats, NY 13315
Phone: 607-965-8649
Email: burlingtonnyhistory@yahoo.com
Town of Middlefield Historical Association
Website: Town of Middlefield Historical Association
Address: PO Box 348, Cooperstown, NY 13326
Email: tmhawebmail@gmail.com
Edmeston Free Library and Museum
Website: Edmeston Free Library and Museum
Address: 6 West Street, PO Box 167, Edmeston, NY 13335-0167
Phone: (607) 965-8208
Fly Creek Area Historical Society
Website: Fly Creek Area Historical Society
Street Address: 208 Cemetery Road, Fly Creek, NY 13337-0087
Mailing Address: The Fly Creek Area Historical Society, PO Box 87, Fly Creek, NY 13337-0087
Phone: (607) 547-2501
The Gilbertsville Free Library: Local History Collection
Website: The Gilbertsville Free Library: Local History Collection
Address: 17 Commercial Street, PO Box 332, Gillbertsville ,NY 13776
Phone: (607) 783-2832
Email: archivist@gilbertsvillefreelibrary.org
Hartwick Historical Society
Website: Hartwick Historical Society
Address: 3140 County Highway 11, PO Box 1, Hartwick, NY 13348
Phone: (607) 293-6600
Greater Milford Historical Association
Website: Greater Milford Historical Association
Cultural Center Address: 77 North Main Street, Milford, NY 13807
David Sayer House: 81 North Main Street, Milford, NY 13807
Phone: (607) 286-7038
Greater Oneonta Historical Society
Website: Greater Oneonta Historical Society
Address: 183 Main Street, PO Box 814, Oneonta, NY 13820
Phone: 607-432-0960 or 607-431-9509
Email: info@oneontahistory.org
Hartwick College: The Paul F. Cooper, Jr. Archives
Website: Hartwick College: The Paul F. Cooper Jr. Archives
Address: Stevens-German Library, Yager Hall, Hartwick College, Oneonta, NY 13820
Phone: 607-431-4450
Email: wallaces@hartwick.edu
Otego Historical Association
Website: Otego Historical Association
Address: 6 River Street, PO Box 27, Otego, NY 13825
Phone: (607) 988-2255
Email: otegohistorical@gmail.com
Richfield Springs Historical Association
Website: Richfield Springs Historical Association
Address: 134 West Main Street, PO Box 374, Richfield Springs, NY 13439
Phone: (315) 858-0027
Town of Exeter Historical Society
Website: Town of Exeter Historical Society
Address: PO Box 231, Schuyler Lake, NY 13457
Westford Historical Society
Address: Town Hall, PO Box 184, Westford, NY 13488
Phone: (607) 638-9250
Civil, Public, and Vital Records
Civil Records are those created, recorded and/or maintained by a governmental body and include births, marriages, deaths, censuses, property, and probate. NB: The New York State government began collecting vital record data in 1880. Birth, marriage, and death records from New York State (excluding the five boroughs of New York City) after 1880 on can be obtained from the New York State Department of Health. For vital records previous to 1880, consult the municipality in which the event took place. Learn more about New York's vital records in our online guide.
Federal Census Records
Population schedules: 1800-1940 (except 1890).
Online at Ancestry.com, FamilySearch.org, and Findmypast.com (free to NYG&B members).
Access on Findmypast:
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State Census Records
- County originals at Otsego County Office Building: 1825, 1855, 1865, 1874, 1892, 1905, 1915, 1925 (1835 and 1845 are lost)
- State originals at the NYSA: 1915, 1925
- Microfilm at the FHL, NYPL, NYSHA, and NYSL
- Many years are online at FamilySearch.org and Ancestry.com.
Online Resources
General Resources
There are vast numbers of records on Ancestry.com that pertain to people who have lived in New York State. A search of the online card catalog by county may reveal lesser known resources that pertain to a locality, such as town records, abstracts, transcriptions, city directories, and local histories.
FamilySearch has extensive collections of New York records, including religious records, which are searchable by name and location, but not by county. The following collections include record images (browsable, but not searchable) that are organized by county.
NYGenWeb Project: Otsego County
Part of the national, USGenWeb volunteer initiative, the website provides information and resources for county research.
Maps
- New York, Land Records, 1630-1975 - Includes land and property records
Newspapers
- Old Fulton New York Postcards - A vast collection of digitized New York newspapers, including six titles for Otsego County.
Other Records
- New York, Probate Records, 1629-1971 - Includes wills, letters of administration, and guardianship papers
Selected Bibliography
Abstracts, Indexes & Transcriptions
- American Agriculturalist Farm Directory and Reference Book of Otsego and Herkimer Counties. New York: Orange Judd Co., 1917.
- Aspinwall, Alice, and Lelah Smith. “Tombstone Records of Small Cemeteries in Otsego County.” Typescript, n.d. New York State Historical Association Library, Cooperstown, NY.
- Barber, Gertrude Audrey. “Abstracts of Wills of Otsego County, New York, 1794–1850, v. 1–5.” Typescript, 1941. NYPL, New York. [Ancestry.com]
- Barber, Gertrude Audrey. A Collection of Abstracts from Otsego County, New York, Newspaper Obituaries, 1808–1875. Westminster, MD: Willow Bend Books, 2002. Originally published: Waipahu, Hawaii: M. & W. Reamy, 1993.
- Barber, Gertrude Audrey. “Deaths Taken from the Otsego Herald & Western Advertiser and Freeman’s Journal.” Typescript, 1939. NYPL, New York. [Ancestry.com]
- Barber, Gertrude Audrey. “Index of Wills of Otsego County, New York: Filed in the Probate Office of the Surrogate at Cooperstown, NY.” Typescript, 1934. NYPL, New York. [Ancestry.com]
- Barber, Gertrude Audrey. “Lake View Cemetery at Richfield Springs, Otsego County, NY.” Typescript. NYPL, New York. [NYG&B eLibrary]
- Barber, Gertrude Audrey. “Marriages Taken from the Otsego Herald & Western Advertiser, and Freeman’s Journal: Newspaper Kept at the Cooperstown Library, Cooperstown, Otsego County, NY.” Typescript, 1932. NYPL, New York. [Ancestry.com]
- Barber, Gertrude Audrey. “Tombstone Inscriptions in the Catholic Cemetery at Richfield Springs, N.Y. and also in the Exeter Cemetery at Exeter, N.Y.: Both Located in Otsego County, N.Y.” Typescript, 1931. NYPL, New York [Ancestry.com]
- Barnello, Kathleen. Abstract of the 1825 New York State Census of Otsego County, New York. Syracuse: Central New York Genealogical Society, 1995. Originally published in Tree Talks, vol. 35, no. 4 (1995): 1–17. Introduction and map: iii-vii, index: 18–22.
- Butterfield, Roy L. The Land Patents of Otsego County. Cooperstown, NY: The Freeman’s Journal, 1953.
- County of Otsego Abstracts. Syracuse: Central New York Genealogical Society, 2000. Abstracts for a range of genealogical records originally published in the quarterly Tree Talks.
- Daughters of the American Revolution. “Inscriptions Copied from Old Cemeteries in the Town of Springfield, Otsego County, NY.” Typescript. NYPL, New York. [NYG&B eLibrary]
- Daughters of the American Revolution, comps. New York DAR Genealogical Records Committee Report. Since 1913 DAR volunteers have transcribed many thousands of unpublished cemetery, church, and town records throughout New York. The reports are at the DAR Library; copies are at the NYSL and the NYPL. The DAR has a searchable name index to all the GRC reports at http://services.dar.org/Public/DAR_Research/search/?Tab_ID=6. See Jean Worden’s index below for a listing by county of the New York record sets that were transcribed by the DAR before 1998.
- Gage, Edith. “Cemetery Records of Otsego County.” Typescript, 1962–1967. New York State Historical Association, New York. Also contains Bible records and cemetery records from other counties.
- Haviland, Frank. Friends’ Records of Butternuts (formerly Duanesburgh) Otsego County, New York: Births, 1788–1861: Deaths, 1809–1869. Brooklyn, NY: Long Island Historical Society, 1905.
- Hawkins, Ethelyn E. Morse. “Deaths in the Year 1847.” Typescript, 1967. New York State Historical Association, New York. As reported by all town clerks in Otsego County except Milford.
- Hawkins, Ethelyn E. Morse. “Guardianship Records, 1803–1830, of Otsego County, New York State.” Typescript, 1970. New York State Historical Association, New York.
- Hawkins, Ethelyn E. Morse. “Otsego County Marriages of 1847 as Reported to the County Clerk by the Town Clerks.” Typescript, 1970. New York State Historical Association, New York.
- Kelly, Arthur C. M. Index to Tree Talks County Packet: Otsego County. Rhinebeck, NY: Kinship, 2002.
- Otsego County, NYG&B Church Surveys Collection. NYG&B, New York. [NYG&B eLibrary]
- The Roll of Honor for Otsego County: A Complete List of Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and Red Cross Workers . . . During the World War. Oneonta, NY: Oneonta Daily Star, 1919.
- Vosburgh, Royden Woodward, ed. “Records of the First Baptist Church of Springfield in Springfield Center, Otsego County, NY.” Typescript, 1920. NYPL, New York. [NYG&B eLibrary]
- Vosburgh, Royden Woodward, ed. “Records of the Presbyterian Church of Cooperstown in Otsego County, NY.” Typescript, 1920. NYPL, New York. [NYG&B elibrary]
- Wikoff, Helen L. “Gravestone Inscriptions from Cemeteries in Montgomery and Otsego Counties, New York.” Typescript, 1931. NYPL, New York.
- Worden, Jean D. “Book 1, Subject Index.” In Revised Master Index to the New York State Daughters of the American Revolution Genealogical Records Volumes. Zephyrhills, FL: J. D. Worden, 1998. The Subject Index includes a listing by county of the cemeteries, churches, towns, and other sources of records transcribed by the DAR.
Other Resources
- Bacon, Edwin F. Otsego County, New York: Geographical and Historical: From the Earliest Settlement to the Present Time, with County and Township Maps from Original Drawings. Oneonta, NY: The Oneonta Herald, 1902.
- Beardsley, Levi. Reminiscences: Personal and Other Incidents; Early Settlement of Otsego County; Notices and Anecdotes of Public Men; Judicial, Legal, and Legislative Matters; Field Sports; Dissertations and Discussions. New York, 1852.
- Beers. F. W. Atlas of Otsego Co., New York: From Actual Surveys and Under the Direction of F. W. Beers, Assisted by F. S. Fulmer and Others. New York, 1868. [NYPL Digital Gallery]
- Biographical Review: This Volume Contains Biographical Sketches of the Leading Citizens of Otsego County, New York. Bowie, MD: Heritage Books, 1995. Originally published: Boston, 1893.
- Butterfield, Roy L. In Old Otsego: A New York County Views its Past. Cooperstown, NY: Reprinted by The Freeman’s Journal Co. for the Otsego County Board of Supervisors, 1959.
- Card, Gene A. Families of Otsego Co., NY, & Surrounding Areas: Bennett, Bentley, Boardman, Brown, Cass, Gardner, Potter, Seaver, Southern, Thurber. Otsego County, NY: The Author, 2009.
- Child, Hamilton. Gazetteer and Business Directory of Otsego County, NY, for 1872–3. Syracuse, 1872.
- Compass System Map of Otsego County, New York: 1940 Special Classified Rural Register. Ithaca, NY: Rural Surveys, Inc., 1940.
- Cooper, James F. The Legends and Traditions of a Northern County. Cooperstown: The Freeman’s Journal Co., 1936.
- Cutter, William R. Genealogical and Family History of Central New York: A Record of the Achievements of Her People in the Making of a Commonwealth and the Building of a Nation. New York: Lewis Historical Pub. Co., 1912.
- Ellis, D. A. Grand Army of the Republic: History of the Order in the U.S. by Counties: Otsego County Posts, Department of New York, Including a Complete Record of Soldiers Surviving and Buried in the County, with Company and Regiment . . . . Otsego, NY, 1892.
- Fay, Loren V. Otsego County, New York, Genealogical Research Secrets. Albany: The Author, 1981.
- Fielder, Dorothy S. Otsego County Postal History. Walton, NY: Printed by the Reporter Co., 1994
- Foley, Janet W. Early Settlers of New York State: Their Ancestors and Descendants. 9 vols. Akron, NY: 1934–1942. Reprint, 2 vols. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1993.
- Frontier Days: Otsego County, 1776–1976. New York: Otsego County Bicentennial, Frontier Days Committee, 1976.
- Gates, C. Map of Otsego County, New York. Philadelphia, 1856.
- Hall, John. School House John’s Pictorial Collection of One Room Schools of Otsego County, NY. Edited by Anita Harrison. Hartwick, NY: Hartwick Historical Society, 1997.
- Hurd, D. Hamilton. History of Otsego County, New York: With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers. Philadelphia, 1878.
- Matthews, Harry B. The Abolitionist Movement and Reconstruction: Family Legacies in Cooperstown Village and Towns in Otsego County, New York. A Case Study in Historiographic Genealogy. Oneonta, NY: The Author, 1995.
- Matthews, Harry B. A Guide to Local Abolitionists and Resource Materials Identifying African American Soldiers of the Civil War from New York and Other States: A Tribute to the United States Colored Troops Commemorative Symposium of Delaware and Otsego Counties, New York, 1997–1998. Oneonta, NY: n.p., 1997.
- New Century Atlas of Otsego County, New York: With Farm Records. Philadelphia: Century Map Co., 1903.
- New York Historical Resources Center. Guide to Historical Resources in Otsego County, New York, Repositories. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University, 1982. [books.FamilySearch.org]
- Reamy, Martha. Early Families of Otsego County, New York. Mount Airy, MD: Pipe Creek, 1995.
- Reynolds, Paul E. Geographical Names in Otsego County, New York. Cooperstown, NY: Prepared for the New York State Historical Association, 1957–1959.
- Roback, Henry. The Veteran Volunteers of Herkimer and Otsego Counties in the War of the Rebellion: Being a History of the 152nd N. Y. V. with Scenes . . . of the 34th N. Y., 97th N. Y., 121st N. Y. Heavy Artillery and 1st and 2nd N. Y. Mounted Rifles . . . the 152nd N. Y. V. . . . . Utica, NY, 1888.
- Otsego County Planning Department. Cemeteries of Otsego County: A Comprehensive Map of Active and Inactive Cemeteries in Otsego County, New York. Cooperstown, NY: The Department, 2002.
- Schull, Diantha D. Landmarks of Otsego County. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 1980.
- Smith, Lelah. Early Families of Otsego Co., NY. 1955. Copied by John Potter. Mohawk, NY, 1982.
The materials above are a compilation of resources available, with an emphasis on online resources, which might be useful to someone doing research within this county. The inclusion of a link does not constitute an endorsement of its content or accuracy. Please send any additions or corrections to webmaster@nygbs.org.