Raleigh, NC City Guide for Genealogists

Like the stately trees that earned it the nickname City of Oaks, Raleigh, NC, embodies history and vitality with a dash of Southern charm. Thriving business and shopping venues, combined with a lively arts scene and its status as state capital, have propelled Raleigh into one of the fast-growing cities in America. But like the oaks, Raleigh doesn’t take its roots for granted—which makes it a great place to search for yours.

Steeped in History

In 1792, when North Carolina sought a centrally located site for a capital, commissioners purchased 1,000 acres of land in Wake County from Joel Lane. They named the new city after Sir Walter Raleigh. Once the state house opened in 1794, businesses began to emerge on Fayetteville Street.

Unlike many older Southern cities and states capitals in the entire county, Raleigh was a planned capital from its beginnings. No previous city or town existed on the site of the planned city. Its original plan was based on Thomas Holme’s 1682 plan for Philadelphia.

Government activity quickly became central to the local economy, which attracted not just politicians, but also merchants, craftsmen and laborers. Businesses began to emerge on Fayetteville Street. By the early 1800s, Raleigh grew to an administrative and cultural center of the state and after the arrival of two railroads in the 1840s, population gained momentum.

After North Carolina seceded from the Union in 1861, Confederate soldiers gathered in Raleigh for training. During the Civil War, Raleigh served as an important Confederate city and was one of the last major Confederate capitals to fall to Union forces in April 1865. The city was spared destruction when Union Gen. John Logan held back his own troops at gunpoint after they received word of Lincoln’s assassination.

Steady growth in retail, publishing and education—hallmarks of Raleigh’s economy—followed the Civil War. Shaw University, a historically black university, was the first institution in the South dedicated to the education of African Americans, opening in Raleigh in 1865. The North Carolina College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts, which evolved into NC State University, commenced classes in 1889.

By the early 1900s, Raleigh was known as a retail and cultural hub. The Southeast’s first shopping center, Cameron Village, opened here in 1949. The creation of the Research Triangle Park near Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill in 1959 brought new technology and job opportunities. Today, 20 years after its bicentennial, Raleigh ranks as North Carolina’s second-largest city.

Raleigh Genealogy Records

Raleigh researchers benefit from easy access to both state and county repositories. Top resources include the State Archives of North Carolina, the Government & Heritage Library (GHL) at the State Library of North Carolina, the Wake County Register of Deeds (ROD) and the Wake County Clerk of Court. These records will play a major role in your search:

Birth and death records

North Carolina began keeping birth and death records in 1913. You can order records from the Wake County ROD. Although certified copies are restricted, anyone can get uncertified copies.

The city of Raleigh kept some pre-1913 vital records, including death records starting in 1885 and birth records starting in 1890. The Wake County Genealogical Society has published Raleigh 1887-to-1895 death registers in its newsletter, Wake Treasures. Copies can be found at the State Library and other area libraries, as well as the Allen County (Indiana) Public Library through PERSI.

Find indexes to records online from the Wake County Register of Deeds. The Wake County ROD has indexes for birth and death certificates available from 1913 to present. Images of death certificates from 1900 to 1909 are available at FamilySearch.org. Images of death certificates from 1909 to 1975, in addition to birth and death indexes, are available at Ancestry.com. For quick access, search the Card Catalog (find the link under the Search tab) for the keyword North Carolina and filter by “Birth, Marriage & Death.”

Marriage records

Prior to 1868, North Carolina couples were permitted to marry either by publishing marriage banns (notices) or posting a bond. Only bonds had to be recorded. The state archives has collected surviving marriage bonds from 1741 to 1868. Starting in 1868, county RODs began issuing marriage licenses with accompanying certificates. You can request copies from the Wake County ROD.

Both FamilySearch.org and Ancestry.com offer databases of North Carolina marriages, with some images. Ancestry.com has marriage bonds from 1778 to 1869, licenses from 1866 to 2006 and registers from 1832 to 1981 in its “North Carolina U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011” collection. In addition, North Carolina Vital Records has certificates from 1962 to the present. The Wake County Register of Deeds has a marriage index on its website from 1932 to present.

FamilySearch has records of divorces that took place in the Superior Court of Wake County going back to 1831, continuing to 1952.

Censuses

Extant federal census records from 1790 to 1940 are available online at Ancestry.com, findmypast.com, MyHeritage and other sites. The 1810, 1820 and 1890 US censuses for Wake County are lost. North Carolina experimented briefly with state censuses, but no records for Wake County survive.

City directories

Head to the state library for the most complete collection of Raleigh city directories. Researching from afar? A number of digitized, searchable directories as early as 1875 are available online at Internet Archive. Just enter Raleigh directories in the Search box to find them. Ancestry.com also has city directories for Raleigh, though most are from the twentieth century.

Deeds

Land in North Carolina is measured by metes and bounds under the state land system. Find original deed records from 1785-present, as well as indexes to grantors and grantees, at the Wake County ROD. You can order copies from its online databases. Note that an 1832 fire destroyed some early deed books.

FamilySearch has digitized deed records from 1785 to 1936, though some early volumes are missing. The index on FamilySearch goes up to 1959.

Probate records

North Carolina wills and estate settlements have been recorded at the county level since 1760. FamilySearch has digitized many Wake County records in its collection North Carolina Probate Records, 1735-1970. These include wills, inventories, administration bonds, dowers and sales. Most books, ranging from 1770 to the 1950s, contain an index, simplifying the browsing process. Find original records at the Wake County Clerk of Court, Estates Division. Microfilmed records are available at the State Archives, which also has a statewide collection of pre-1760 wills.

Newspapers

A variety of Raleigh papers are digitized at the Library of Congress’ free Chronicling America, and on subscription sites GenealogyBank and NewspaperArchive.

In Raleigh, see the collection of newspapers at the State Library, using the index on the GHL website as a guide.

Cemetery records

Raleigh’s oldest burial ground, City Cemetery, was established in 1798. Raleigh City Cemeteries Preservation offers interment databases for City Cemetery, Mt. Hope Cemetery and O’Rorke Cemetery. Transcribed gravestone inscriptions for many Raleigh-area cemeteries are on the Wake County NCGenWeb website. Cemetery buffs visiting the city may want to head to the scenic grounds of Historic Oakwood Cemetery.

North Carolina Genealogy Resources

Websites

Publications

Carolina Families: A Bibliography of Books about North and South Carolina Families by Donald M. Hehir (Heritage Books)
NGS Research in the States Series: North Carolina by Jeffrey L. Haines (National Genealogical Society)
North Carolina Research: Genealogy and Local History by Helen F. M. Leary (North Carolina Genealogical Society)
Raleigh: City of Oaks by James Vickers (American Historical Press)

Archives & Organizations

Fast Facts

Settled: 1792
Chartered: Jan. 21, 1795
Nickname: City of Oaks
State: North Carolina
County: Wake (1771)
County seat: Raleigh
Parent counties: None; original county
Area: 144 square miles
Primary historical ethnic groups: English, German, Irish, African-American, American Indian
Primary historical industries: Government, education, textiles, retail, publishing
Famous residents: Clay Aiken, John Ivey Jr., President Andrew Johnson, Emily Procter, David Sedaris, Webb Simpson, Evan Rachel Wood, Kristi Yamaguchi

Timeline

1771: Wake County created
1782: North Carolina becomes 12th US state
1792: General assembly selects site for capital city named Raleigh
1831: Fire destroys first statehouse
1840: Raleigh & Gaston Railroad begins operation with 86 miles of track
1861: Confederate troops drawn to Raleigh training grounds
1865: Shaw University, first coed college for African-Americans, opens
1880: The News & Observer consolidated as city’s daily newspaper
1889: North Carolina State University holds initial classes
1929: Curtiss-Wright Flying Field airport opens
1959: Research Triangle Park created
1988: A category F4 tornado causes $75 million in damages

A version of this article was published in the July/August 2013 issue of Family Tree Magazine. Last updated: May 2026

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Raleigh, NC City Guide for Genealogists

Steeped in History