Coos County, New Hampshire
History, Records, Facts and Genealogy

County Records

• Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before
  visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information. All other record types not listed here are located in the town in which the event occured. Check NH's Cities & Towns and City & Town Clerks
• Order County Court, Civil or Criminal Records Online
• Probate Court has Probate Records from 1887
  55 School Street, Suite 104, Lancaster, NH 03584; Phone : (603) 788-2001
  Hours : Monday - Friday, 8:00am to 4:00pm
• Register of Deeds has Land Records from 1803
  55 School St. Suite 103, Lancaster, NH. 03584; 788-2392 Fax: 788-4291; HRS: 8:00-4:00
• New Hampshire Vital Records Office [Order Online] [Search the Social Security Death Index] has Births, Death and marriage records after 1883 see also Vital Records Page
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Genealogical Addresses

• New Hampshire Society of Genealogist, P.O. Box 2316 , Concord, NH 3302-2316 (603) 225-3381
• New Hampshire Historical Society , The Tuck Library, 30 Park Street, Concord, NH 03301-6384
  Telephone: 603/228-6688 - Fax: 603/224-0463
• New Hampshire State Library, 20 Park Street , Concord, NH 03301; (603)271-2144 FAX: (603)271-6826

Military Resources

• Organization Index to Pension Files of Veterans Who Served Between 1861 and 1900 from the State of New Hampshire (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Pension applications for service in the U.S. Army between 1861 and 1917, grouped according to the units in which the veterans served.
• Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 from the State of New Hampshire (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
• Compiled Service Records of Soldiers Who Served in the American Army During the Revolutionary War from the State of New Hampshire (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
• Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files from the State of New Hampshire (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, from NARA publication M804.

County History

Coös County, named for the Indian word for pines, cohos, encompasses the entire northern section of the state, covering 1,804 square miles, 20% of the land area of the state of New Hampshire. The Abnaki word, also spelled cowass, cohoss, and coo-ash, was used to identify inhabitants of the region. Those living in the area were customarily know as "Coo-ashe-aukes", or "dwellers in the pine tree place."

The first reference to the area is found in the 1704 records of New Hampshire, which names the area "Cohoss – a large and valuable tract of land along the Connecticut River." Over 90% of the land is forested, 24% of which is either State or National Forest. The area is well known as an outstanding area for recreational ski areas, campsites, picnic grounds, snowmobiling, fishing, and hunting. More than half of the moose population (2,600 out of 5,000) and the bear population (13,500 out of 25,000) are in Coös County. The twenty towns and one city are chiefly located along the Connecticut and Androscoggin Rivers Valleys.

The first white settlers of the area arrived in 1763. Once a pathless wilderness claimed only by wild animals and the Indians of the Abnaki tribes, the population had swelled to 3,000 when the county was established in 1803. Growth in the North Country during the 19th century was quite rapid, at least 3 times that of the state as a whole. Although the population reached 39,000 by 1930, it has since diminished to less than 35,000.

It includes the following cities and towns: Appalachia, Berlin, Bowman, Bretton Woods, Bungy, Carroll, Clarksville, Colebrook, Columbia [formerly Cockburn 1770-1811], Crystal, Cushman, Dalton, Dixville Notch, Dummer, Errol, Fabyan, Glen House, Gorham, Groveton, Hazens, Jefferson, Kidderville, Lancaster, Mapleton, Meadows, Milan, Millsfield, Northumberland, Paris, Percy, Pittsburg, Randolph, Riverton, Scott, Shelburne, South Lancaster, Stark, Starr King, Stewartstown, Stratford, Twin Mountain, Upper Kidderville, Wentworths Location, West Stewartstown, and Whitefield. See City & Town Clerks for more

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• Nichols and Related Families of Alabama, Arkansas,Georgia, New Hampshire, Coosucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virgina.
  Surnames include:
  • Nichols Family of Arkansas, Mississippi, Georgia and North Carolina. Related Families: Albright, Anderson, Austin, Black, Brooks, Bruce, Campbell, Cook, Davenport, Finlayson, Garrett, Gladney, Graves, Hankins, Hawthorne, Hildreth, Henderson, Ingram, Johnson, Kerr, Keller, Lea, McCreight, Noe, Oliver, Prewitt, Rice, Rollins, Rich, Sharp, Smith, Sharp, Sinclair, Threadgill, Tolbert, Trefoe, Thomas, Wilson, Williams, Wright, Wyatt
  • Bedwell Family of Alabama, Mississippi, and New Hampshire. Related Families: Atwood, Adams, Bishop, Byrd, Downs, Faver, Farrill, Fowler, Hames, Howe, Kimberly, Knight, Krugg, Lawton, Martin, Moore, Morrison, Moseley, Ogles, Sherman, Taliaferro, Tratman, Turner, West, Wheadon, Wilson, Wood, Wortham
  • Bundrum Family of Georgia and Alabama. Related Families: Aderhold, Ayres, Bundrum, Butts, Chancey, Hamilton, Laird, Mixon, Presley, Spruil, Weldon
  • Reaves Family of Alabama, Georgia and North Carolina. Related Families: Avery, Browning, Bullock, Buchanan, Buttram, Franks, French, Hayes, Henderson, Hunter, Kates, Lumpkin, Mayfield, Morrison, Patterson, Pence, Reaves, Richards, Schneider, Smith, Witcher
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