Nevada Genealogy Search

Nevada family history begins with the 1859 Comstock Lode and the mining towns of Virginia City, Austin, Eureka and Tonopah, whose newspapers, digitized free, are often the best record of a transient mining population. County deed, mining and marriage books go back to the territory's founding in 1861, statewide vital registration began in 1911, and the Nevada State Archives in Carson City holds the state's records and county records on microfilm.

Nevada took a territorial census in 1861 and 1862 and a state census in 1875, and the federal censuses from 1860, when Nevada was still Utah Territory, cover the rest.

Official sources on this page were checked on September 25, 2026.

Nevada statewide genealogy links

• Nevada State Archives and Library
• Nevada Department of Cultural Affairs State Library and ArchivesState Archives
• Bureau of Land ManagementPublic Land Records
• Nevada State Genealogical Society
• Nevada GenWeb ProjectSearch Nevada GenWeb
• Nevada Adoption Registry

Nevada began statewide birth and death registration in 1911, with some counties keeping records from 1887, and the Nevada Office of Vital Records in Carson City holds the certificates. Nevada restricts birth and death certificates to family and those with a legal interest, but the state posts a free online Nevada birth and death index covering older years and the State Archives holds public copies. Marriage records are held by each county recorder from the county's founding, with the Clark County recorder's Las Vegas marriage index from 1909 the most searched, and divorce records sit with the district court clerk, including the Reno divorce files of the 1930s to 1960s.

• Nevada Office of Vital RecordsBirth and death certificates from 1911, checked September 25, 2026
• Nevada State Library, Archives and Public RecordsState and county records, territorial and state censuses, checked September 25, 2026
• Nevada Vital Records guideHow to order certificates and what is public

The State Archives holds the 1861 and 1862 territorial censuses, the 1875 state census, the Nevada State Prison registers from 1863, Nevada's Spanish-American War and World War I service records, county records on microfilm and the records of the state's mining and land offices. Federal land patents for Nevada are at the General Land Office site, and the National Archives at Riverside holds Nevada's federal court and Bureau of Indian Affairs records. The University of Nevada, Reno's Special Collections hold Comstock era manuscripts, and UNLV's Special Collections hold Las Vegas and southern Nevada records.

• Chronicling America, Nevada titlesFree digitized Nevada mining town newspapers, checked September 25, 2026
• Bureau of Land Management General Land Office recordsFederal land patents for Nevada, checked September 25, 2026
• National Archives at RiversideFederal court and Indian agency records for Nevada, checked September 25, 2026
• FamilySearch Nevada research guideFree indexed Nevada records and images, checked September 25, 2026

Nevada county recorders hold deeds, mortgages, mining claims and marriage records from each county's founding, and district court clerks hold probate, divorce, civil and naturalization files. Clark County's recorder and clerk post extensive online indexes, including the marriage records that made Las Vegas famous, and Washoe County's do the same for Reno. The State Archives has microfilmed the older books of the 17 counties and of the defunct counties of Ormsby, Roop and Bullfrog, whose records passed to their successors.

• Nevada County Public RecordsCounty recorders and district court clerks for all 17 counties
• Nevada Court RecordsDistrict court case and probate searches

These federal and national sources complement Nevada's state-level records. They are the authoritative sources you should cross-check when Nevada state records are incomplete or out-of-state activity matters.

NARA, National Archives The federal government's primary archive. Holds the U.S. census (1790, 1950), ship passenger lists, naturalization records, military service files, and land entry files.

FamilySearch Free online genealogy platform operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Digitized microfilm copies of many county and state records worldwide.

Library of Congress, Local History & Genealogy The LoC's research guides, city directories, newspapers, and Civil War records, most accessible free online through loc.gov.