Clackamas County, Oregon
This Site is part of

The ORGenWeb and The USGenWeb®

My name is Martha and I will be your guide to all things "Clackamas County".
I do not live in Oregon,
but have family that lived in various parts of the State for many years.
l will do my best to answer questions and perhaps assist in locating that
 missing piece of your 'Ancestral Pie'.
I can be contacted by email. Please use this link
Maps ~ Biographies ~ Books ~ Oregon Pioneers ~ What's New ~ Miscellaneous

Clackamas County Neighbors
Hood River ~ Marion
Multnomah ~ Wasco Washington ~ Yamhill

History of Clackamas County

Oregon City became the county seat for Clackamas County. The city was built on a portion of Dr. John McLoughlin's land claim. In 1844 Oregon City was incorporated by the Provisional Legislature, making it the first incorporated city west of the Rocky Mountains. This area was the terminus for water transportation on the Willamette River and had been a meeting place for Indians, hunters, trappers, and Hudson's Bay Company voyagers for years.

The first major overland immigration to Oregon City occurred in 1842. Three years later Samuel Barlow established an immigrant route that ran from The Dalles, around the south side of Mt. Hood, and into Oregon City. The Barlow Road funneled thousands of immigrants into Oregon City and Clackamas County during the 1840s. Oregon City rapidly became the primary urban center in Clackamas County and dominated social and political life in Oregon during the provisional government period. The removal of the territorial capital from Oregon City to Salem in 1852 shifted most of the political activity to Salem. The creation of Multnomah County in 1854, at the request of Portland residents, removed Oregon's principal commercial city from Clackamas County as well as the county's access to the Columbia River.

  Prior to construction of a courthouse, county records were housed in several locations in Oregon City, including the former provisional state house. Two of the locations burned but the county records were saved. In 1884 a frame and concrete structure was built at a cost of $145,000. In 1935 the county records were moved temporarily to rented quarters while a new courthouse was built. Using construction grants available through the Works Progress Administration the current courthouse was completed in 1937.

Clackamas County elected government is composed of five commissioners, a district attorney, assessor, clerk, sheriff, surveyor, and treasurer.

Heavily timbered, the county's geoimagesal features include Mt. Hood and numerous rivers - the Willamette, Clackamas, Sandy, Pudding, Molalla, and Salmon. Since its creation, agriculture, timber, manufacturing, and commerce have been the county's principal activities. The population of Clackamas County has steadily increased from 1850. The 2011 population of 378,480 represented a significant increase over the 2000 population of 338,391 . And from the Wiki

(((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Search Clackamas County

(((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Maps
Oregon Base Map Oregon Territory Map 1852
David Rumsey ~ Historic Map & Atlas Collection
Perry-Castaneda ~ Map Collection
"Oregon - Geo Hazards Viewer"
American Georgaphical Society Library - Digital Map Collection
Humboldt State University Map Collection
Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps for Oregon Railroad Maps
"Map Goose - Interactive"
And, of course, Google Earth

More Map Resources I have access to the Library Edition of
'Historic Map Works'
Metsker's Maps, 1928 - Index ~ Metsker's Maps, 1937 - Index
Metsker Maps, 1951 - Index ~ Metsker Maps, 1966 - Index
All the files can be found in this directory you might want to download them for further study.]
The indexes are for Plat Maps, which give the owner's names as well as Business locations
I am happy to do lookups and send pages of interest. 
Contact: Martha
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Trails West & Mining History
Overland Trail Oregon Trail
Oregon Mining Maps
'Ghost Towns in Oregon' ~ The Volcanoes of Oregon
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

"The Family of George Wise & Sarah Tong"
Wise-Tong Pioneers of Clackamas, OR
by:
Arthur D Coleman, 1965
The TOC is here.The book may be downloaded from the FS Catalog

Early Oregonians:1800-1860

"Oregon Native Son"
Publication with Bio's and Sketches
1899-1900 Index
The Books can be read online or downloaded [Archive.org]

"The Centennial History of Oregon 1811 - 1912"
The S J Clark Publishing Company
Chicago, 1912
Clackamas Folk on this Linked Chart~ Read Online or Download

"An Illustrated History of the State of Oregon"
H. K. Hines, Author; Chicago, 1893
There is an index here, but it does not break down by County.
Search the Book using "Clackamas" as the search parameter

There are more bios in the USGenWeb Archives.
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

"What's New"
"History of the Great Northwest and it's Men of Progress"
Pub: The Minneapolis Journal - The Index is Here
Read Online or Download

USGenWeb® Archives Access: Tables of Contents
This Link is a searchable pdf file which contains all the links to the Archives.
Each link is fully functional and will access the section for your use.
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Miscellaneous Database Indexes: Oregon
~ Catagories ~
Books, Odds, Cemeteries, Funeral Homes, Coroner Records
Obituaries, Military Records,
Passenger Lists, Employment Records, Prison & Crime
Vital Records
All of the Directories can be found here on my IceDrive
The Information was gleaned from Family Search

Military ~ Vital Records ~ Obituaries

Military Records

United States military records, 1824-1956: Family Search
Includes state summary of war casualties of each state, deaths in the World War, official registers, Navy and Marine Corps registers, National Guard registers, army registers, and etc.

Records contain: Name, Rank, Parents, Street Address
List below contains records for other States where I host Counties
Records for the States of & Film #s
California, 4218631 ~ Colorado, 4218641 ~ Michigan, 4218677
Minnesota, 4218681 ~ Missouri, 4218687 ~ Oregon, 4218720
Pennsylvania, 4218725 ~ Wisconsin, 4218725
For Access: Log into your FS Account, enter Film # in Fiche/Film Slot.
Explanation of the Records: Please Use This Link

Oregon in the Civil War ~ Oregon Military Units ~ Civil War Archive
United States Civil War and Later Pension Index, 1861-1917
Military Headstones - Civil War Veterans & Military Headstone Applications
[FS has Headstone Applications: Use this Link [1925-1949]
The National Archives has CW Headstone Information: Use this Link
1890 Veteran's Schedule
FS: Draft Registrations for both WWI & WWII
"Soldiers of the Great War" ~ Oregon

"Reports of Civil War [Union Army] Generals"
Source: Gale Primary Sources [Online Library]
"Archives Unbound"
[Mid-Continent Library - Subscription Site]

This file has a listing of the Information, Types, etc
followed by an Index of the Generals - Explanation.

I am happy to do lookups, some of the information [Bio images of the Generals in the list]
may be found by doing Google Searches,
but it will not be the handwritten reports. Martha
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Military Gleanings and Other Resources
Military Databases [Ice Drive] Please use this Link
From the States of:
Alabama, Arkansas. California, Delaware, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington

Search the DAR ~ Search the GAR ~ Search the SAR
Soldiers & Sailors [Civil War]
 
State of Oregon: Military Records
Historic Land Grants: Veterans / Canada
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

 Vital Records
B ~ M ~ D's
The 'obvious locations' for online vital record indexes and imaged documents will be included here as general links.
The created indexes are from Family Search
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Family Search: Births, Marriages, Deaths
B - M - D's, are recorded in Archival Newspapers:/font Lookups
Chronicling America ~ Google Archived Newspapers
Historic Oregon Newspaper Collection ~ HHistoric Oregon Newspapers
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Marriage Records
Family Search ~ Marriage Records for 'Oregon Neighboring States':
California
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1949339
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1674735
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1804002

Idaho
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1662500
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1674817
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/2106101
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/2549611

Nevada
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1943751
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1949338

Washington
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/2761120
https://www.familysearch.org/search/collection/1534448
Sign into your FS Account, then use the above links

Marriages: Born in Clackamas County, Married Elsewhere  
[FS Mulitple Databases]
Marriage records, 1850-1935 ; Marriage indexes,
1850-1920 (Clackamas Co., OR)
[Above: Digitized Film
Available at a local Family History Center]
Montana County Marriages: 1865 - 1950
[Born in OR gives this result]

The FS Catalog has a nice set of books for
Yamhill Co. Marriages:
1844 > 1862 ~ 1891 > 1895 ~ 1896 > 1900
1901 > 1906 ~ 1907 > 1912
Sign into your FS Acct, Search, Catalog, Books

Family Search ~ Michigan Marriages
This link is for folks born in Oregon and who married in Michigan: 1868 - 1925
[Available Info: Full Name, Place of Marriage, Residence, Place of Birth, Age, Occupation, Officiant, Witnesses]
Sign into your FS Account, then use the above link.

Marriages: Databases [Ice Drive] Please use this Link
Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Canada
Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachussetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New York City,
Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, SLO, CA, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin
  (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Death Records
Deaths: Born in Clackamas County, Died Elsewhere
[FS Multiple Databases]
California Death Index: 1940 > 1997 B: Oregon,
D: San Luis Obispo Co., CA
Lookups: Possible Obits from local Newspapers
or Death Certificates

FYI
From LDS Film 857013 [Bottom of Image 83]
"Clackamas County deaths were not recorded until 1907.
1907 - 1915 - Deaths recorded in the County Clerk's Office
1915-1921 - Deaths recorded in the Health Office
111921 - Present - County Clerk's Office and State Health Office"

Gleanings: Family Search
FS Death Records: Databases [Ice Drive] Please use this Link
Alabama, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Idabo, Illinois, Michigan, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New York City, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Wisconsin
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Funeral Home's, Coroner Records
Family Search: Gleans 
for example...
CA, San Francisco County Records, 1824 - 1997
[Coroner Records-FS]

Note, some images and abstracts may be found here.
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Vital records for the Klamath, Modoc and Paiute Indians
at Klamath Agency, Klamath, Oregon, 1930...
[FS Films]
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

From the FS Catalog:
Clackamas Divorces
LDS Film 857034: 1846-1854
The Oregon Spectator
There is one Page [35], Image 714: Please use this link.
Here is the link for the Oregon Historical Newspapers
There appear to be copies of The Oregon Spectator

Obituaries
Obituaries: Heritage Hub
January 1923 - 31 December 2022
Heritage Hub is a new compilation of Digital Archival Newspapers which also includes NewsBank.
It is a Subscription Site.
I am happy to do lookups from the this Index
or from information that you wish to find.
Please use this link for Contact: Martha

There were 467 obits found in the old Clackamas County Files.
They have been reformatted for easier searching.
Most of them have the name and date of the newspaper.
A > E ~ F > K ~ L > R ~ S S > Z
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

"Oregon Only" Records are Here
Family Search has a lot of obits from various locales.
American Historical Society of Germans from Russia, 1899 - 2012
California, Fresno and Napa Counties, Obituaries,
1974 - 1997 [ID & OR]CA, Oakland, Alameda Co., Newspaper Record Coll.,
1985 - 2011 and more...

Family Search: Multiple Databases,
'Born in Clackamas County, OR'
Grants Pass Obituaries: Daily Courier, 2007 - Index
Lookups Available or Download from Family Search
Obits: Archival News Databases
1980 - June 2014 & 202014 - December 2020

Family Search: Gleans
Obituaries: Databases [Ice Drive]
Obituaries from the States of:
Grants Pass, OR, Kaui, HI, Idaho, Illinois, Minnesota, Crawford, OH, Pennsylvania, Payson, AZ

Here is a series of booklets published in Wyoming:
1912 > 2006 in the FS Catalog:
"Tidbits from the Big Piney Examiner of Sublette Co., WY"
Compiler: Anna Lee Woffinden
Catagories:
Engagements, Marriages, Deaths, News Articles & Obituaries for Oregon.
Read Online or Download: Use this Link
Each Booklet has an index at the back
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

'Found' in the old Clackamas Files: The data is from local Newspapers
Birth, Marriage & Anniversaries
Family Search ~ Cemeteries ~ Newspapers & Lookups

Family Search: Historical images
Records that are not available with the traditional FS Search
The Types of Information: Military, Cemetery, Deaths & DC's, Native American Census, Deaths & DC's, Divorces, Estate Records, Funeral Cards, Genealogical, Homestead, Land [Certificates, Sales, Patents], Obituaries Locations & Time Frame: Mollala, Lewis & Oregon City / 1844 - 1942

For Access: Log into your FS Account, Search, Catalog, and plug in the DGS Film number of interest
from the Charts in the 'Fiche-Film' slot.
Use the chart linked here for the Film # Here is a link for 'Neighbors of Clackamas'
Vitals, etc - Hood River, Marion, Multnomah, Wasco, Washington & Yamhill Counties
NoNote: Draft Registrations & Federal Census Records were not included
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))

Cemeteries of Clackamas County
With the increased interest in documenting Cemeteries, it is in the best interest of all,
that old as well as new resources are recognized.

USGW Archive Indexes. Find~A~Grave  Search all of F~A~G
or
Billion Graves on FS ~ InInterment.net
Sandy Cemetery [from old DAR Records]
Milwaukie Cemetery [LDS # 857035-DAR-jpeg's] Recorded by the DAR, 1962]

 More Cemetery Records
Copied by members of the L. D. S. Church
in the United States

Typed by members and the Genealogical Society
Salt Lake City, Utah
[Most of these were done in the 1950's and 1960's]
There are quite a few Cemeteries for Clackamas in this collection:
Cliffside Cemetery,
Part 1 and Part 2: Vols 4 & 12
Pendleton and Trullinger, Volume 45
Revenue Cemetery, Volume 8
Sandy Pioneer Cemetery, Volume 4
Each File is a searchable pdf

Cemeteries: Old Transcriptions done by the DAR
LDS Film: FS Catalog for Access to the images:
Use the Chart below for Film # and Image Ranges
LDS/FS Film - 8960096 / 857013
Clackamas Cemeteries. DAR

Volume I: Copied in 1936-1937 by Susannah Lee, Barlow Chapter, DAR
VoVolume II: Copied by Susannah Lee, Barlow Chapter, DAR
This Linked Chart is for Film # 857013

Film 857034: Clackamas Cemetery: Images are Here
Above link will give you some idea of the type of information recorded

Cemetery Book & Oregon Burial Guide Cemeteries of Clackamas County
This little booklet was found in the FS Catalog
Please use this Link

"Oregon Burial Site Guide"
Compiled by: Dean H Bryd
Co-Compiled by Stanley R Clarke & Janice M Healy
Binford & Mort Publishing, Portland Oregon, 2001
Permission to use on the ORGenWeb given by:
Mr Stanley R Clarke.
The Introduction and key can be found here. / Indexes Here
Clackamas County Pages can be found here. [PDF's]
 (((<^☺^>)))<V<☺>V>(((<^☺^>)))
 
Newspapers [Free] ~ Lookups ~ Odds
Chronicling America
Historic Oregon Newspaper Collection
and
Google Archived Newspapers
Purdue University ~ "ThoughtCo"
Century Past ~ Elephind
and...
Non Subscription Web Sites
National Archives
The Internet Archives has a nice assortment of books on Oregon History:
A search gives these

California Digital Newspapers This Site has a great collection of CA Newspapers,
but many of them have articles from other States including Oregon.
A search using 'Clackamas County, Oregon results with articles starting with 1840 - 1849 ~ Use this Link

RAOGK: Volunteers for Local Lookups

Lookups: Archival Newspapers: Subscription Sites
I have access to the following Databases
[Library Editions] ~ Newspapers.com ~ HeritageHub [Includes NewsBank]
Fold3 ~ Historic Map Works ~ Heritage Quest ~ My Heritage
Reports of Civil War [Union Army] Generals
Source: Gale Primary Sources [Online Library] ~ "Archives Unbound" Contact: Martha

Odds
USGW Archives ~ SOS Archival Records
School Lists were found in the old Clackamas County Files.



"The Fine Print"
The ORGenWeb Administrative Team
State Coordinator: Bob Jenkins
Assistant State Coordinator: Martha A Crosley Graham
Clackamas County Coordinator: Martha A Crosley Graham

Please see our ORGenWeb Copyright Disclaimer and other important information. If in doubt about the copyright rules,
please refer to Understanding Copyright Links to web sites that are not part of the USGenWeb ® Project are provided for your convenience and do not imply any endorsement of the web sites or their contents by The USGenWeb® Project

External Links are provided as clues and possible resources.
Hosted By:

Site Updated: 19 February 2023
Back to Top