Ocean County History and Information

Court Records | Vital Records | CENSUS Records | TAX Records | Military Records | Church & Cemetery |
Maps & Atlases | Genealogy Addresses | Genealogy Related Sites |

Ocean County was created on 15 February 1850 and was formed from the southern portion of Monmouth County (Consult the Monmouth County for pre-1850 records.). The County was named for its location on the Atlantic Ocean. The County Seat is Toms River.

Ocean County is located in the Atlantic Coastal Plain in central New Jersey. The County is the second largest in the State in terms of size and one of four New Jersey counties which border the Atlantic Ocean. Toms River, in Dover Township, serves as the County Seat and is centrally located within Ocean County. The County is in close proximity to two of the Nation's largest metropolitan centers, New York City approximately 60 miles to the north and Philadelphia roughly 50 miles to the west. In addition, Atlantic City is located approximately 50 miles to the south of the County Seat. These metropolitan areas are easily accessible to Ocean County via several major highways, as shown on the Regional Location Map.

Although Ocean County has been settled since colonial times, its presence as a separate political entity is of relatively recent origin. The County was created from lands divided from Monmouth County in 1850. For much of its early history, the County was a rural, agricultural and fishing center. During the latter part of the 1800's and through the 1900's, the resort industry of the New Jersey Shore was developed, and the commercial activities associated with seasonal resorts quickly became the County's economic mainstay. See also County History for more historical details.

Counties adjacent to Ocean County are Monmouth County (north), Atlantic County (south), Burlington County (west).

Ocean County Boroughs Include Barnegat Light, Bay Head, Beach Haven, Beachwood, Harvey Cedars, Island Heights, Lakehurst, Lavallette, Mantoloking, Ocean Gate, Pine Beach, Point Pleasant, Point Pleasant Beach, Seaside Heights, Seaside Park, Ship Bottom, South Toms River, Surf City, Tuckerton. Townships Include Barnegat, Berkeley, Brick, Eagleswood, Jackson, Lacey, Lakewood, Little Egg Harbor, Long Beach, Manchester, Ocean, Plumsted, Stafford, Toms River. CDPs and Communities Include Barnegat CDP, Bayville, Beach Haven West, Cedar Glen Lakes, Cedar Glen West, Crestwood Village, Dover Beaches North, Dover Beaches South, Forked River, High Bar Harbor, Holiday City-Berkeley, Holiday City South, Holiday Heights, Lakewood CDP, Leisure Knoll, Leisure Village, Leisure Village East, Leisure Village West-Pine Lake Park, Loveladies, Manahawkin, Mystic Island, New Egypt, North Beach Haven, Ocean Acres, Pine Ridge at Crestwood, Silver Ridge, Toms River CDP, Vista Center, Waretown, Warren Grove, West Creek

Back to top

Records at the County Courthouse

See Also New Jersey Land Records, Marriage Records, Court & Probate Records

Search New Jersey Historical Records - Databases include Court, Land, Wills & Financial Records; Birth, Marriage & Death Records; Voter Lists & Census Records; Immigration & Emigration Records; Obituary Records; Military Records; Family Tree Records; Pictures; Stories, Memories & Histories; Directories & Member Lists and much more....

Researchers often overlook the importance of court records, probate records, and land records as a source of family history information.

PLEASE READ FIRST!!!! 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 Departments below are in the Ocean County Courthouse, 118 Washington Street, Toms River, NJ 08754; (732) 244-2121, unless otherwise noted below. The Official County website is located at http://www.co.ocean.nj.us/.

NOTE: The record dates below are from the earliest date to present time.

Ocean County Clerk has Land Records & Marriage Records from 1850 and is located at the address above. Phone Number: (732) 929-2018, 1-800-722-0291, Fax: (732) 349-4336

New Jersey county clerks are responsiblefor land records, including deeds and mortgages, naturalizations, marriages (usually 1795-1840s), and various county court records. A few original county justice of the peace dockets are at the New Jersey State Archives. Estate matters are handled in the surrogate's and orphans' courts.

Ocean County Surrogate Court / Orphan's Court has Probate Records from 1850 and is located at the courthouse, Room 216, Phone Number: 732-929-2011

By virtue of laws enacted since 1844, the responsibilities of the County Surrogate have been expanded. The County Surrogate now has two major functions:

  1. As Judge and Clerk of the County Surrogate's Court, the Surrogate is responsible for settling the estate of every county resident who dies individually owning any assets in New Jersey--whether or not that resident dies leaving a will. Therefore, the Surrogate reviews and probates wills and appoints Executors, Administrators and guardians of minors. In addition, the Surrogate administers and invests monies (now more than $30 million in Bergen County) primarily for minor children who receive judgments in the courts in Bergen County; and
  2. As Deputy Clerk of the Superior Court, Chancery Division, Probate Part, the Surrogate dockets, reviews and schedules all actions pertaining to will contests, estate matters, accountings, mental incompetencies, guardianships of incompetents and all adoptions occurring in Bergen County. In addition, all documents involved in all County Surrogate Court matters are recorded, stored and maintained by the County Surrogate's Court.

Below is a list of online resources for Ocean County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Ocean County Court Records by clicking the link below:

Back to top

County Vital Records

See Also Vital Records in New Jersey

Birth, marriage, and death records are connected with central life events. They are prime sources for genealogical information.

New Jersey State Department of Health and Senior Services, State Registrar Search Unit, PO Box 370, Trenton, NJ 08625-0370; (609) 292-4087, Fax: (609) 392-4292. It can take up to 4 months to get a vital record from New Jersey.

Vital records from May 1848 - May 1878 may be obtained from the State Archives. The Archives also holds microfilm copies of births from 1878-1923, marriages from 1879-1940 and deaths from 1878-1940. These materials are available for in-person use only.

  • Birth, Marriage & Death Certificates from 1878 to the present.
    • Cost: Initial search and one certified copy or certification of the record or No Record Statement is $25.00 per certificate.
      Additional copies of the same record ordered at the same time are $2 are per copy
      Additional years searched (genealogy records only) are $1 per year.
      Make Check or Money Order payable to Treasurer, State of New Jersey. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep $25.00 for a searching fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
    • Processing Time: 14-16 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
    • Click Here to Search the Social Security Death Index for FREEicon
  • Divorce Certificates: Divorce records for 1900-1989 are kept by the Records Information Center of the State Superior Court. For records after 1989 contact the NJ County Court that issued the divorce decree.New Jersey divorce decrees are available through the Superior Court of New Jersey Records Center. For more information on obtaining a certified copy of a divorce decree, call the Records Center at: 609-777-0092
    • Cost: Include a fee of $10.00 per 10 year search per last name with request. Make check or money order payable to Clerk of the Superior Court. Superior Court of NJ, Public Information Ctr, 171 Jersey Street, CN 967, Trenton, NJ 08625-0967
  • Order Online: You can also order Order Electronically Online to obtain a certified copy of a birth, marriage, death or divorce record with a credit or debit card and get the certificates within 2-5 days by ordering from VitalChek Express Certificate Service.

Below is a list of online resources for Ocean County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Ocean County Vital Records by clicking the link below:

  • VitalChek Express Certificate Service - Some documents are just too important to wait six weeks for. With VitalChek Express Certificate Service you won’t have to. VitalChek is the fast and convenient way to order certified government-issued vital records online. They make it easy for you to purchase the documents to which you are legally entitled. Beware of other online services that do not have relationships directly with the agencies that store your vital records. VitalChek's order process usually takes less than 10 minutes --And you can select express courier service for even faster delivery when time is running out.
  • Click Here to Search the Social Security Death Index for FREEicon - Search over 82 million death records and get genealogical information crucial to your family research. New content added weekly! Most comprehensive SSDI site online!
  • Research Death records In The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of historical New Jersey newspaper articles about deaths. Search for local articles about an old family friend that died many years ago or a celebrity that committed suicide. Historical newspapers contain a wealth of information about the deceased.
  • New Jersey Marriages, 1684-1895: This database update adds marriage records for Salem County, in addition to records for Warren County, Atlantic, Bergen, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Sussex, Hunterdon, and Somerset counties.
  • New Jersey Marriages, Colonial Era, 1665-1800: In addition to the 45,000 names in this database, included is an historical introduction on the early marriage laws of New Jersey ,and the precedents on which they were founded.
  • Ocean County, New Jersey Birth, Marriage & Death Books at Amazon.com
  • Birth, Marriage & Death - Vital records (births, deaths, marriages, and divorces) mark the milestones of our lives and are the foundation of family history research. Vital records, usually kept by a civic authority, can give you a more complete picture of your ancestor, help you distinguish between two people with the same name, and help you find links to a new generation.
Back to top

County Census Records

See Also Research In Census Records & Statewide Records that exist for New Jersey

Few, if any, records reveal as many details about individuals and families as do government census records. Substitute records can be used when the official census is unavailable

Countywide Records: Federal Population Schedules that exist for Ocean County, New Jersey are 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930.

Other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your Family Tree in Ocean County, New Jersey are Industry and Agriculture Schedules availible for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880.

The Mortality Schedules for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. There are free downloadable and printable Census forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms and U.K. Census Extraction Forms.

Below is a list of online resources for Ocean County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Ocean County Census Records by clicking the link below:

  • New Jersey Census, 1772-1890: This collection contains the following indexes: 1772-1822 Tax Lists Index; 1800 Cumberland County Federal Census Index; 1824-1832 Bergen County - Paterson City; 1830 Federal Census Index; 1840 Federal Census Index; 1840 Pensioners List; 1850 Federal Census Index; 1850 Slave Schedule; 1860 Federal Census Index; 1870 Federal Census Index; 1890 Veterans Schedule; Early Census Index.
  • Ocean County, New Jersey Census Books at Amazon.com
  • Census & Voter Lists - A census is an official list of the people in a particular area at a given time, while voter lists show those who were registered to vote in a certain area. The valuable information found on census records helps you to understand your family in their time and place. Voter Lists serve as a confirmation of residence in between the years that the census was taken.
Back to top

County Maps & Atlases

See Also Research In State Map Collections

Genealogy Atlas has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for New Jersey and other states.

You can view rotating animated maps for New Jersey showing all the county boundaries for each census year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at Census Maps

You can view rotating animated maps for New Jersey showing all the county boundary changes for each year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries.

Below is a list of online resources for Ocean County Maps. Email us with websites containing Ocean County Maps by clicking the link below:

Back to top

County Military Records

See Also Military Records in New Jersey

Military and civil service records provide unique facts and insights into the lives of men and women who have served their country at home and abroad.

The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design.

Below is a list of online resources for Ocean County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Ocean County Military Records by clicking the link below:

Back to top

County Tax Records

See Also Research In Tax Records

Because New Jersey's pre-1830 federal censuses have not survived, tax records are quite an important substitute for placing persons and families prior to that time. Tax lists arranged by township are available for 1773-1822. The originals, at the New Jersey State Archives, show heads of households, landowners, and single adult males, with information about their property that was taxable, including land, horses, cattle, slaves, and mills. Only about half of the 1773-4 lists are extant, and for some places, such as Sussex County, coverage is very slight. Microfilms of these records are at the state archives, the New Jersey Historical Society, Rutgers University, and the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. The 1784 tax lists for thirty-eight municipalities (predominantly in southern New Jersey) are the only ones to indicate the size of a household, with a column for number of whites and a column for number of slaves.

Later tax records are found in the counties starting about 1869-70. Tax lists for some extinct New Jersey municipalities are at the state archives.

Below is a list of online resources for Ocean County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Ocean County Tax Records by clicking the link below:

  • Ocean County, New Jersey Tax Books at Amazon.com
Back to top

County Genealogical Addresses

See Also Other Arkansas Genealogical Addresses

The Repositories in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be more generalized and over look the smaller details that local societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy section and may have some resources that are not located at archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All these places are vitally important to the family genealogist and must not be passed over.

Below is a list of online resources for Ocean County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Ocean County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:

  • Ocean County Historical Society Research Library, 26 Hadley Ave. CNN2191, Toms River, NJ 08754-2191; (732) 341-1880
  • Department of State Division of Archives and Records Management
    Bureau of Archives and Records Preservation State Library Bldg, 185 West State Street, CN-307, Trenton, NJ 08625-0307
     The New Jersey State Archives has many of the basic research materials for the state, such as federal and state census records; probate, land, and court records; newspapers; and vital records.
  • New Jersey State Library, State Library Building, 185 West State Street, CN-520, Trenton, NJ 08625-0520
  • Genealogical Society of New Jersey , PO Box 1476, Trenton NJ 08607-1476; The Genealogical Society of New Jersey has published The Genealogical Magazine of New Jersey since 1925. The society houses its collection of genealogical materials, including cemetery transcriptions, family Bibles (over 4,800), military records, notes of genealogists, and so forth, in the A. S. Alexander Library at Rutgers University.
  • The New Jersey Historical Society, 52 Park Pl., Newark, NJ 07102; 973-596-8500 ext 248 or 249
  • Newspapers & Periodicals - The Newspapers & Periodicals Collection lets you discover a wealth of information about your ancestors from many historical newspapers, magazines, and other periodicals. These types of sources can often supplement public records and provide information that is not recorded anywhere else. Here, you can learn more about your ancestor's possible daily activities by placing them in the context of their time.
  • Directories & Member Lists - Directories and member lists are typically compilations of information about people who belonged to various associations and groups or lived within city boundaries. They can be thought of as the predecessors to the modern-day phone book and usually list names, addresses, and sometimes the occupations of your ancestors.
  • New Jersey Genealogical Society Books at Amazon.com
Back to top

County Church & Cemeteries

See Also Church & Cemetery Records in New Jersey

Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.

There are many churches and cemeteries in Ocean County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Ocean County Tombstone Transcription Project.

Many New Jersey church records have been published in state historical and genealogical journals, such as The Genealogical Magazine of New Jersey. Original and transcribed material is to be found at the New Jersey Historical Society (including the DAR collection), Rutgers, the Glouster County Historical Society, and elsewhere, and in New York, Delaware, and Pennsylvania sources and libraries, particularly in the Collections of the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania.

The important work of grave marker transcribing has been the goal of the Genealogical Society of New Jersey, which was originally formed by "Tombstone Hounds." Their core collection is at Rutgers University, where there is a card index by county and name of the cemetery as well as a "master index" arranged alphabetically by surname but only for selected cemeteries. Many of the society's transcriptions have been published in their journal, The Genealogical Magazine of New Jersey. Another large collection of cemetery records is that gathered by the New Jersey DAR chapters, with copies deposited at the New Jersey State Library and the New Jersey Historical Society. Both these places have other cemetery records, as do the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania and the New York Public Library. Some individual books of cemetery inscriptions have been published, and some are found in The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record.

Below is a list of online resources for Ocean County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Ocean County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:

Back to top

Family Trees & Genealogy Tidbits

 

The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.

When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Ocean County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Ocean County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:

Back to top

Extended History

 

In the mid-1800s, Joel Haywood, a Methodist minister and former state assemblyman from West Creek in what is now Eagleswood, believed that the citizens in the southern part of Monmouth County — now Ocean County — were being treated unfairly by the county Board of Freeholders.

Dominated by Democrats, the board seemed to favor the more affluent northern part of the county. As a member of the Whig Party (soon to be succeeded by today’s Republican Party), Haywood and Whig freeholders from lower Monmouth County wanted more funds for public works and other expenses of their towns.
So in 1849, Haywood wrote a letter asking the state Legislature to make the lower part of Monmouth a separate county. Based on his letter, the Assembly passed legislation to create a county extending from the Manasquan Inlet to the southern tip of Long Beach Island.

Introduced in the Senate by William G. Hooper, a friend of Haywood’s and a fellow Whig, the bill passed by one vote. On Feb. 15, 1850, the governor signed the charter creating Ocean County, New Jersey’s 20th county.
Toms River, the largest village in the area, was chosen to be the county seat. Haywood had been elected to the Assembly in 1842, and in 1850, he was elected again to the lower house to represent the new county.
In 1853, Haywood ran for governor and lost by a narrow margin. A founder of the Ocean County Republican Party, he was a delegate to the Republicans’ first national convention in 1856.

Ocean County is located in the Atlantic Coastal Plain in central New Jersey. The County is the second largest in the State in terms of size and one of four New Jersey counties which border the Atlantic Ocean. Toms River, in Dover Township, serves as the County Seat and is centrally located within Ocean County. The County is in close proximity to two of the Nation's largest metropolitan centers, New York City approximately 60 miles to the north and Philadelphia roughly 50 miles to the west. In addition, Atlantic City is located approximately 50 miles to the south of the County Seat. These metropolitan areas are easily accessible to Ocean County via several major highways, as shown on the Regional Location Map.

Although Ocean County has been settled since colonial times, its presence as a separate political entity is of relatively recent origin. The County was created from lands divided from Monmouth County in 1850. For much of its early history, the County was a rural, agricultural and fishing center. During the latter part of the 1800's and through the 1900's, the resort industry of the New Jersey Shore was developed, and the commercial activities associated with seasonal resorts quickly became the County's economic mainstay.

In the early 1950's, there began a nationwide trend towards suburbanization as people moved outward from the older urban centers into previously sparsely populated or rural areas. The opening of the Garden State Parkway in 1954 permitted access to a large amount of undeveloped and inexpensive land within commuting distance of the labor markets of New York and northern New Jersey. The County also became a desired location for people who wanted to retire away from the more industrial areas to the north. A primarily rural County with a population of 37,675 in 1940, the County's population increased to 433,200 persons by 1990. As evidenced by each of the decennial Censuses during this fifty year period, Ocean County was the fastest growing county in the State. Almost all of this growth was due to in- migration, rather than the natural increase of the population.

Development in Ocean County has traditionally occurred along the coastal beaches and in the corridor formed by the Garden State Parkway and US Route 9. Major interchanges along the Garden State Parkway have encouraged development along eastwest corridors, such as County Routes 526 and 528; State Highway 37 and State Highway 72. Interstate 195 is a relatively new highway which is playing an increasing role in the development of the northern portion of the County. The Interstate provides direct access to the major employment areas of Trenton, the State Capitol, to the west and Monmouth County to the northeast.

With the growing year round population, Ocean County's economic base has become increasingly diverse, with a variety of industries now supplementing traditional tourist related businesses. The growth in employment opportunities within Ocean County is now becoming as notable as the population growth was in the recent past. Over the last ten years, Ocean County has had one of the fastest increases in new jobs in the State. The Health Care Industry has been by far the fastest growing employment sector and is now the top employer in the County. Employment projections released by the NJ Department of Labor show that Ocean County will continue to be at the forefront of New Jersey employment growth well into the next decade.

Despite the large growth in population and employment, Ocean County maintains a vast amount of protected open space which will ensure the balanced land use of the area in the future. Much of the area west of the Garden State Parkway contains large tracts of State Parks, Forests and Wildlife Management Areas. In addition, approximately 20,000 acres east of the Parkway are protected under the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. The Barnegat Bay and Little Egg Harbor, which stretch nearly the entire north-south length of the County, were recently added to the US National Estuary Program and will be the subject of continuing environmental protection efforts. In the northwest portion of the County, active farmland is being preserved through the County Farmland Preservation Program. To date, over 1,580 acres of productive farmland have been preserved just outside of New Egypt, in Plumsted Township. In addition, the Ocean County Parks Department maintains an active capital program for parkland acquisition and development to ensure that a variety of recreation opportunities are in close proximity to residents throughout Ocean County. As always, the coastal beaches of Ocean County are foremost among the County's attractions and continue to draw thousands of seasonal visitors to the area each year.

?

Back to top
New Jersey Site Map | | Site Hosted by HostMonster.COM. | Copyright © 2009 Genealogy Inc,