Rockdale

Rockdale County Wills, Estates, Marriages

Conyers is the county seat. Rockdale County was created by the Georgia General Assembly on October 18, 1870, and taken out of Henry and Newton Counties. The new county was named for Rockdale Church which had been named for rock, mostly granite, that ran throughout the county. Conyers is the county seat. Research in Gwinnett, Henry, Newton, and Walton Counties is indicated. Will Book A be lost? The first will book begins in 1914.

Images of Rockdale County Wills, Book A, 1870 to 1880

Testators: Albert, John Sr. ; Albert, Nancy ;Baker, Thomas ;Bryan, Samuel Wesley ;Cooper, James ;Churchill, John ;Dodson, William ;Farmer, Robert ;Giger, Sarah ;Greer, Gilbert; Hudson, W. J. ;Lord, Archibald ;Mann, Moses ;McClung, David ;McCollum, James ;McCollum, John ;Ray, B. H. ;Reagin, Gibson ;Stansell, Joel ;Stephens, Henry; Veal, Anderson ;Veal, Anderson C. ;White, Susan ;Williams, Wesley ;Wilson, James; Wingate, William

Images of Will Bk B 1914-1923

Testators: Allen, Sallie A., Mrs. ; Almond,, J. T.; Almond, John F.; Almond, Robert M.; Asken, Joseph; Bailey, Anna; Baker, W. J.; Belcher, Elisha; Black, James P.; Black, S. T.; Boyd, R. A., Mrs.; Bradford, M. A.; Brooks Margret N. A.; Brooks, T. V.; Brown, R. E.; Butler, Josephine; Camp, William N.; Chandler, Francis M.; Chandler, T. S. ; Christian, Francis Bartow; Cook, E. F.; Cooper, James G. ; Corley, Chaney M.; Cowan, George V. ; Cowan, Mary O.; Creed, Permelia A.; Daniel, Emma King ; Day, John M.; Day, T. J.; Dennard, J. D.; Dennard, Sanford L.; Elbert, William W. J. ; Ellington, J. R. ; Elliott, Thomas A.; Erwin, J. R. ; Farmer, Alex S. Farmer, J. C.; Gleaton, Fannie S., Mrs. ; Graham, B. S.; Granada, B. C. ; Granada, J. S.; Granger, Charity E., Mrs. ; Gunn, H. C.; Hames, Eleon Swanson, Mrs. ; Haralson, Mary A.; Harden, W. T. ; Haynes, Mable, Mrs. ; Hill, G. W. ; Holifield, W. M. Huff, Roland L. ; Hull, G. H., Mrs.; Johnson, James W. ; Johnson, John W. ; King, Annis W. ; King, W. L.; Langford, J. F. ; Love, James S. ; Mann, John G. ; McDaniel, W. F., Mrs.; McDanniel, Fannie, Mrs. ; McElroy, Sarah A.; McElvaney, A. M. ; Miner, E. P. ; Miner, Madera; Mitchell, George C. ; Mize, J. Wesley ; Monroe, Francis M.: Moore, H. A., Mrs. ; Morris, Sarah E., Mrs. ; Newton, Mary Alice; Overbay, Clark McCaller; Owens, W. L., Sr. ; Parker, J. H. ; Patrick, James A. ; Peek, A. H. ; Peek, W. L.; Pittman, Sarah C., Mrs. ; Pressley, Lige ; Quigg, Sarah A., Mrs.; Reagen, Cora Gwinn; Reynolds, Sarah J. ; Rowan, J. Will ; Scarborogh, Robert L.; Sharp, L. A.; Sims, A. T. ; Smith, M. R., Mrs.; Smith, Sarah C. ; Stansell, J. J. ; Stephenson, Josiah; Stewart, Mary Ellis ; Stowers, John; Suddeth, Daniel; Swords, Charles M. ; Thompson, John S. ; Thrasher, T. T. ; Turner, Ellen, Mrs. ; Turner, Malinda ; Underwood, H. L.; Underwood, Sarah A.; Vaughan, Robert B. ; Veal, Cella Merrill, Mrs.; Wade, Annie Lee ; Walker, G. W. ; Wallace, Elizabeth F. ; Wallace, W. U. ; Wallis, John F. ;Weaver, George W. ; White, Hugh L., Mrs.; White, Savannah S. ; Williams Sarah A.; Wood, Emma Riley, Mrs. ; Wood, M. L., Mrs.; Woods, S. H.

Indexes to Probate Records

Will Book A (1870-1880)
Will Book B (1914-1923)
Inventories and Estates 1897 to 1938
Annual Returns, Sales, Vouchers 1876-1883
Annual Returns, Sales, Vouchers 1883-1891
Minute Book 1876-1891

Marriages

Index to Rockdale County Marriages 1876-1909
Marriages from newspapers 1885-1886

Miscellaneous

Estate of Susan Owens
Estate of Vines H. Owens

Finding Marriages that are not at the Court House

Few marriages were recorded at the courthouses in the early days. This fact hinders the genealogist from doubling the generations on the pedigree chart. But there are clues everywhere. One is how children were named. Have you noticed that the names of some people actually contain surnames? This is because parents generally gave the first son the names of their grandparents. For example, one grandparent was Edward and the other one was William. The child would have been named William Edward. Also, other children were given similar names of otherkin. And the names used may have dated further back in time. I had an ancestor (one of 8 children) named Conner Lawson Holland.

As I traced back, I discovered that during the 1600s the Lawson and Conner families not only married Hollands but their children (my cousins two and three generations removed) also carried these names. Family pride has a way of seeping through the years. I was always told that we were related to Senator Howell Cobb of Georgia, but it took 200 years of discovery to learn that yes, it was a very distant relationship because my 3rd great-grandfather was a Cobb of the same lineage. Another source of information is county deed records. People who did not necessarily make a last will and testament distributed land and other items via deeds of gift to their children before they died. Another source is estate records. Look for receipts of the heirs in the distribution and sales. Every purchaser on the sale of the estate should be researched in the existing marriage records to learn whether he was a son-in-law. Likewise, no details should go unnoticed in the names listed in the Annual Returns of the estate. Tombstones are another aspect of research. While one may be searching for specific persons, the whole cemetery should be examined. The reason is that daughters married neighbors and their maiden name frequently appears on tombstones. I have found obelisks that listed every child born to that couple. Think of it like this ” All the neighbors of my ancestors are buried in this cemetery. That includes the in-laws.” Lastly, of course, are bible records. Before it was mandatory to file marriage records at the courthouse, families kept intricate records in the family bible, along with letters and newspaper clippings. The DAR and other organizations gathered old bible records during the 1930s, typed and published them, then presented books to State Archives. Also, many old bibles may be discovered in the catalog as microfilmed materials.