Garfield County Genealogy Records

Garfield County genealogy research takes you to Pomeroy in southeast Washington, where the county courthouse holds records going back to 1882. The Garfield County Auditor holds birth and death records from 1891 to 1907, marriage records from 1892, and land records from 1892, while the County Clerk has court records from 1882 and probate records from 1883. The Washington State Digital Archives has digitized Garfield County marriage records from 1882 to 1979, making that collection free to search online. This guide covers all the main sources for finding Garfield County ancestors.

Garfield County Courthouse Records

The Garfield County Courthouse is in Pomeroy, Washington. The Garfield County Auditor holds birth and death records from 1891 to 1907, marriage records from 1892, and land records from 1892. The County Clerk is the administrator of the Superior Court Clerk's Office and keeps permanent records for all cases filed in Superior Court. Court records begin in 1882 and probate records start in 1883. The Clerk's office does not do research, but staff will generally help people find materials once they are there. The actual research is up to you.

Many of the county's land, probate, and court records have been transferred from Pomeroy to the state archive's Eastern Regional Branch. Before you plan a trip to the courthouse, it is worth calling ahead to confirm that the specific records you need are still held locally and not already at the branch. No courthouse disasters are recorded for Garfield County, so the historical record set is intact.

The Garfield County Health District can issue birth, marriage, and death certificates while you wait. This is useful if you need a certified copy quickly and do not want to wait for a mail request to the state.

Garfield County Marriage Records Online

The Garfield County Auditor Marriage Records, 1882-1979 at the Washington State Digital Archives is the main online collection for Garfield County genealogy. It contains 3,821 records and includes both indexes and images for marriage certificates (1882-1979) and marriage returns (1907-1939). After digitization and indexing at the Eastern Region Branch, the original records were returned to the auditor's office. Images are viewable unless they contain restricted information.

The database is searchable by groom or Person A (last name, first name, middle name) and bride or Person B, with a marriage year range filter and Soundex options. The records were indexed and imaged by Washington State Archives Eastern Regional Branch staff and Eastern Washington Genealogy Society volunteers, including Barbara Brazington, Kay Hale, Kathy Lamphere, Karen Struve, and Duane Beck. For more information or related records, contact the Eastern Region Branch at (509) 235-7508 or eabrancharchives@sos.wa.gov.

Lead-in: The Garfield County Auditor's office in Pomeroy manages vital records and recorded documents for the county.

The auditor's office is the local starting point for Garfield County marriage records and can direct you to the right source for other record types.

Birth and Death Records in Garfield County

The Garfield County Auditor held birth and death records from 1891 to 1907. Statewide registration began on July 1, 1907, when the state took over vital records. Many births and deaths went unrecorded during the county registration period, especially in rural areas of Garfield County. The Washington State Library death records guide lists both the Garfield County Auditor Death Records from 1891 to 1907 and a Register of Deaths for Garfield County covering December 5, 1891 through October 15, 1913. The State Library holds these early birth and death registers in its NW Microfilm collection, which can be accessed via interlibrary loan from any public library in Washington State.

For birth or death records after June 30, 1907, contact the Washington State Department of Health. As noted above, the Garfield County Health District can also issue certified copies of birth and death certificates for more recent events.

Note: The completeness of pre-1907 birth and death records varies. If you cannot find a record for a known birth or death, it may simply not have been reported to the county auditor at the time.

Probate, Court, and Land Records

Probate records in Garfield County start in 1883 and are held by the County Clerk. These files can be valuable for genealogy because they name heirs, list assets, and establish family relationships in ways that vital records do not. If a Garfield County ancestor died with property or debts, there is likely a probate file worth checking. Court records begin in 1882 and include all cases filed in Superior Court, including civil lawsuits, family law matters, and probate proceedings.

The County Clerk holds the permanent records for all Superior Court cases. These include felony criminal cases, civil lawsuits, petitions for protection from domestic violence, family law matters, probates, guardianships, last wills and testaments, paternities, adoptions, and mental commitments. Land records begin in 1892. The County Auditor recorded deeds and other property documents. Land records help confirm when a family arrived in Garfield County and where they settled.

The Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness guide for Garfield County provides a useful summary of which offices hold which record types and what the known starting dates are. This is a good resource for orienting yourself before contacting the courthouse or the Eastern Regional Branch.

FamilySearch and Research Tools

The FamilySearch wiki for Garfield County lists specific record sets, date ranges, and links to online databases. Garfield County was created from Columbia County, and the wiki helps clarify the boundary between records held locally versus what has been transferred to the state archives. FamilySearch also holds microfilmed records for Garfield County at its main library in Salt Lake City and through affiliate FamilySearch Centers, which provide free access to subscription databases.

For Garfield County death records in particular, the FamilySearch wiki and the Washington State Library guide are the most detailed sources on what exists and where it is held. The two sources together give you a clear picture of the record landscape before you start contacting offices. When searching the Digital Archives marriage collection, try Soundex for variant spellings of surnames, which is common in smaller eastern Washington communities where names were often anglicized or written phonetically by clerks.

The Eastern Regional Branch in Cheney is the key archival repository for Garfield County records that have been transferred from the courthouse. Contact them at (509) 235-7508 before visiting to confirm which records are held there and whether an appointment is needed for in-person research.

Cities in Garfield County

Garfield County is a small rural county with Pomeroy as its only incorporated city. No cities in Garfield County meet the population threshold for a dedicated genealogy page. All community records are held at the courthouse in Pomeroy or at the Eastern Regional Branch in Cheney.

Nearby Counties

These counties border Garfield County in southeast Washington. Ancestors living near county lines may appear in records from more than one jurisdiction.