Tompkins county is bordered by Cayuga, Seneca, Cortland, Schulyer, Tioga, and Chemung counties
County Formed: 1817
Parent County: Cayuga; Seneca
Daughter Counties: Schuyler
Major Land Transactions: New Military Tract 1782-1791; Boston Ten Towns, 1787; Watkins and Flint Purchase, 1794
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
Tompkins County was created in 1817, from Cayuga and Seneca counties. These former occupants of the county were driven from their land by General John Sullivan, in his 1779 campaign against the Iroquois. The county is named after Daniel Tompkins, then Vice-President and former Governor of New York, although he not known to have ever visited the area. The county seat is the city of Ithaca, and its sole daughter county is Schuyler County. Major land transactions include the New Military Tract of 1782–1791, the Boston Ten Towns Purchase of 1787, and the Watkins and Flint Purchase of 1794. Dominant industries in the county have varied over its history, but have included farming and the manufacture of salt (with the deepest salt mine in the county under Cayuga Lake), glass, and guns. It is also widely known for being the home of Cornell University, which employs nearly 10,000 people there.
Repositories, Resources, and Societies – County
Tompkins County Clerk
Website: Tompkins County Clerk
Address: 320 North Tioga Street, Ithaca, NY 14850
Phone: (607) 274-5431
Email: countyclerkmail@tompkins-co.org
Tompkins County – All 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. For contact information, see the website of the Association of Public Historians of New York State.
The History Center in Tompkins County Local History
Website: The History Center in Tompkins County Local History
Address: 401 East State/MLK Jr. Street, Ithaca, NY 14850
Phone: (607) 272-4557
Tompkins County – City, Town, and Village Clerks
Website: Tompkins County – City, Town, and Village Clerks
Birth, marriage, and death records are maintained by the clerk of the municipality in which the event occurred; see Introduction to County Guides for details of other records which may also be held by municipal clerks. For contact information, see municipal websites.
Tompkins County Surrogate’s Court
Address: Tompkins County Courthouse, 320 North Tioga Street, PO Box 70, Ithaca, NY 14850
Phone: (607) 277-0622
Tompkins County Public Libraries
Tompkins is part of the Finger Lakes Library System. Many hold genealogy and local history collections. For example, the collection of the Newfield Historical Society is held at the Newfield Public Library. Also see listings below for Southworth Library Association and Tompkins County Public Library.
Tompkins County Public Library: Local History
Website: Tompkins County Public Library: Local History
Address: 101 East Green Street, Ithaca, NY 14850
Phone: (607) 272-4557
Tompkins County Historian
Website: Tompkins County Historian
Address: 125 East Court Street, Ithaca, NY 14850
Repositories, Resources, and Societies – Regional
Central New York Genealogical Society
Website: Central New York Genealogical Society
Address: PO Box 404 – Colvin Station, Syracuse, NY 13205
Email: cnygs@yahoo.com
Repositories, Resources, and Societies – Local
Alphabetized by location
Dryden Town Historical Society
Website: Dryden Town Historical Society
Address: 36 West Main Street, PO Box 69, Dryden, NY 13053
Phone: (607) 844-9209
Email: historyhouse@odyssey.net
Southworth Library Association: Local History Resources
Website: Southworth Library Association: Local History Resources
Address: 24 West Main Street, PO Box 45
Phone: (607) 844-4782
Email: Southworth@twcny.rr.com
Willow Glen Cemetery Association
Website: Willow Glen Cemetery Association
Address: PO Box 397, Dryden, NY 13053
Groton Historical Society
Website: Groton Historical Society
Address: 168 Main Street (NYS Route 38), PO Box 142, Groton, NY 13073
Phone: (607) 898-5787 or 898-5725
Historic Ithaca
Website: Historic Ithaca
Address: 212 Canter Street, Ithaca, NY 14850
Phone: (607) 273-6633
Lansing Historical Association
Website: Lansing Historical Association
Address: PO Box 100, Lansing, NY 14850
Phone: (607) 533-4514
Newfield Historical Society
Website: Newfield Historical Society
Address: 262 Van Kirk Road, Newfield, NY 14876
Phone: (607) 564-7778
Email: newfieldarchives@gmail.com
Town of Caroline Historical Room
Website: Town of Caroline Historical Room
Address: Caroline Town Hall, 2670 Slaterville Road, PO Box 136, Slaterville Springs, NY 14881
Phone: (607) 539-6400
Email: Carolinehistorian@yahoo.com
The Ulysses Historical Society Museum
Website: The Ulysses Historical Society Museum
Address: 39 South Street, PO Box 445, Trumansburg, NY
Phone: (607) 387-6666
Email: uhs@fltg.net
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: 1790-1940 (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 Tompkins County Clerk’s Office: 1825, 1835, 1865, 1875, 1892, 1905, 1925 (1845, 1855 and 1915 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.
- For 1825 transcription, see Tompkins County Genealogical Society below
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.
Newspapers
Digitizing this college newspaper is an ongoing project of the Cornell University Library. Issues for September of 1880 through May of 1979 with some omissions are online and searchable. The years 1974–1989 are not yet fully digitized.
Other Records
- New York, Probate Records, 1629–1971; Includes wills, letters of administration, and guardianship papers.
Maps
- New York, Land Records, 1630–1975; Includes land and property records.
The Cornell Institute for Resource Information Sciences maintains a large collection (48 counties) of aerial photographs for New York. A portion of the collection for 6 counties, including Tompkins, is online.
Selected Bibliography
Abstracts, Indexes & Transcriptions
- Barber, Gertrude Audrey. “Abstracts of Wills of Tompkins County, New York, 1803–1838.” Typescript, 1941. New York State Library, Albany.
- County of Tompkins 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, 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.
- Greene-Young, Nancy E. Death and Marriage Notices, Tompkins County, New York, 1870–1890. Bowie, MD: Heritage Books, 1996.
- Haynes, Myrte R., Marjorie S. Dows, and Virginia Moscrip. “Abstracts of Intestate Estates, Tompkins County, New York, 1850–1875.” Typescript, 1966. NYPL, New York.
- Ireland, Harriet D. “Honor Roll of Tompkins County, New York: Being a List of Names of the Soldiers of the Revolution of Tompkins County.” Typescript, 1910. NYPL, New York.
- Jackson, Mary S., and Edward F. Marriage and Death Notices from Tompkins County, New York, Newspapers. Macedon, NY: The Authors, 1993.
- Kelly, Arthur C. M. Index to Tree Talks County Packet: Tompkins County. Rhinebeck, NY: Kinship, 2002.
- Martin, Catherine M. Records of Tompkins County, New York: Wills, Intestates, Bible, Church, and Family Records: Wills, 1817 mid-1839, Liber A through C, with Added Wills and Notes Concerning Tompkins County, New York, Early Families, as Taken from LDS Roll 085,070. Durand, MI: The Author, 1995.
- Sandwick, Charles M. The Old Cemetery of Dryden, Tompkins County, New York: Records of Inscriptions and Genealogical Notes. Ithaca, NY: Dewitt Historical Society, 1970.
- Sheldon, Nellie M. Name Index, History of Tioga, Chemung, Tompkins and Schuyler Counties, New York: Compiled by H. B. Peirce and D. Hamilton Hurd, Published by Everts and Ensign, 1879. N.p: The Author, 1965.
- Tompkins County Genealogical Society. The New York State Census 1825 for Tompkins County. Ithaca, NY: The Society, 1991.
- Worden, Dora P. “Tompkins County Gravestone Inscriptions.” NYG&B Record, vol. 52 (1921), no. 2: 130–150, no. 3: 268–285, no. 4: 350–372; vol. 53 (1922) no. 1: 75–88, no. 2: 181–195, no. 3: 288–300, no. 4: 393–401; vol. 54 (1923) no. 1: 73–85, no. 2: 167–176, no. 3: 285–291, no. 4: 358–392; vol. 55 (1924) no. 1: 15–16. [NYG&B eLibrary]
- 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.
- Worden, Jean D. Tompkins County, New York, Church Records. Franklin, OH: The Author, 1985.
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.