NEW YORK, COUNTY MISCELLANEOUS RECORDS
Miscellaneous Records…What?
The miscellaneous records discussed in this guide, are a record filing category at New York county clerk’s offices. Historically, these records were recorded in dedicated, bound volumes. Nowadays, they are filed electronically. As their name implies, they are variety of record types intermixed in a set of volumes. The kind of records they contain varies from county to county, though there is overlap. State laws may dictate the types of records to be kept in miscellaneous books, and laws may be specific to a particular county. It is important to note that many document types found in miscellaneous records may have dedicated record books.
What might you find?
| Record | Potential Details |
| Adoptions (before records were closed in the late 1930s.) | adoptee’s birth name, birth and adoptive parents’ names, if the child’s name was changed, circumstances that led to the adoption |
| Affidavits | sworn statements often having to do with the settlement of an estate, may name family members and their relationship to the deceased |
| Apprenticeships and indentures (rare) | name of the apprentice, a parents’ name, what skills the child is to learn, the length of the apprenticeship, expected behavior, what money or goods the apprentice should receive at the end of the apprenticeship, the name of the person the child is apprenticed to and what care they are to provide; children bound out from county poorhouses |
| Bankruptcies | |
| Bills of sale | |
| Bonds | monetary agreements, bail bonds |
| Certificate of freedom (rare) | certificate stating an African American is a free person, name, age, place of birth or former residence |
| Commitments (rare) | commitments to mental health facilities, name, date of commitment, place of commitment, doctor, family member names, symptoms exhibited |
| Contracts | |
| Establishments of churches, cemeteries, and organizations | purpose of the organization, date of establishment, names of officers or trustees |
| Establishment of businesses | purpose of business, names of business owners, names of stockholders |
| Estate records | satisfaction of wills (and transcribed wills), legacies |
| Exempt firemen certificates | names of firemen, number of years served, exemptions |
| Government appointments | date of appointment, usual appointments include deputies, jailers, canal inspectors, deputy clerks, committee appointments (20th century) |
| Incorporations of municipalities (rare) | location description, census of inhabitants (head of household named) |
| Judgements | |
| Land records | deeds associated with estates, leases (land, life, oil/gas), dower releases, powers of attorney given to lawyers to sell land/property, annuities paid to Native American tribes, cemetery deeds, canal claims (damage to property especially due to enlargement of canals) |
| Military discharge records | Civil War discharge records often include physical description of the soldier, service details, place and date of birth, occupation, reason for discharge |
| Name changes | former and new name, reason for change, town of foreign birth, family members’ names |
| Naturalizations | foreign place of birth (usually country or region), age, year or date of arrival in the U.S. |
| Professional licenses (rare) | usually medical licenses, ferry licenses |
| Vital records | marriages (rare) usually list bride and groom names as well as the officiant, death certificates may be found related to deceased individuals who were land holders and the transfer of land |
Record Restrictions
Miscellaneous records are usually open to the public. Some information may be redacted on a record, such as a social security number or cause of death. Individual documents may be restricted, for example, 20th century military discharge papers.
In-Person Access
County clerk’s offices generally provide access to print volumes, and libraries may carry miscellaneous records on microfilm. Some counties store miscellaneous record books off site. In these cases, counties may have an archival research center, which can be visited in person or if there is no research center, the books will need to be requested in advance.
Online Access
Some county governments offer digital record portals on their websites. Available images are usually more recent records and access as well as per document download fees are generally required. The inclusion of historical miscellaneous record books is not common, but clerk’s websites are a possible access method.
FamilySearch is the best website for county miscellaneous records. The following is a comprehensive listing of records available.
| County | Record Title and URL |
| Broome County | Miscellaneous Records, Vols. 1-2, 1863-1908 familysearch.org/search/catalog/423065 |
| Cattaraugus County | Miscellaneous Records of Cattaraugus County, New York, 1800-1911 familysearch.org/search/catalog/423061 |
| Chemung County | Miscellaneous Records, 1836-1906 familysearch.org/search/catalog/19736 |
| Chenango County | Miscellaneous Records, Insolvent Discharges, 1799-1895 familysearch.org/search/catalog/235990 Miscellaneous Records: Wills, Mortgage Satisfaction, 1824-1841* familysearch.org/search/catalog/235998 |
| Clinton County | Miscellaneous Civil Records, 1885-1921 familysearch.org/search/catalog/276838 |
| Cortland County | Miscellaneous Record, 1830-1919; Index, 1830-1960 familysearch.org/search/catalog/19728 |
| Erie County | Miscellaneous Records, 1808-1907 familysearch.org/search/catalog/17718 |
| Essex County | Index to Miscellaneous Papers Filed or Recorded Essex County, N. Y. familysearch.org/search/catalog/286435 |
| Genesee County | Assignment of Mortgages, Miscellaneous Records, 1802-1905 familysearch.org/search/catalog/236581 |
| Herkimer County | Miscellaneous Records, 1882-1901 familysearch.org/search/catalog/296329 |
| Jefferson County | Miscellaneous Records, 1857-1903 familysearch.org/search/catalog/87497 |
| Lewis County | Misc. County Records, v. 1-2, 1805-1901 familysearch.org/search/catalog/89877 |
| Monroe County | Miscellaneous Record Index, 1821-1923* familysearch.org/search/catalog/235895 |
| New York County | Miscellaneous Filed Papers Index, 1812-1934 https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/235844 |
| Niagara County | Miscellaneous Records, 1821-1901; Index to Records, 1800-1936 familysearch.org/search/catalog/235760 |
| Onondaga County | Miscellaneous Civil and Church Records of Onondaga Co., New York, 1799-1866 familysearch.org/search/catalog/78097 |
| Ontario County | Miscellaneous Court Records, 1790-1915 familysearch.org/search/catalog/187762 |
| Orleans County | Miscellaneous Records, 1825-1902 familysearch.org/search/catalog/39813 |
| Oswego County | Miscellaneous Records, 1816-1866 familysearch.org/search/catalog/380701 |
| Otsego County | Miscellaneous County Records, 1865-1907 familysearch.org/search/catalog/63992 |
| Saint Lawrence County | Miscellaneous Civil, Court, and Military Records, 1844-1902 familysearch.org/search/catalog/189374 |
| Saratoga County | Miscellaneous Records, 1792-1916 familysearch.org/search/catalog/55445 |
| Schoharie County | Miscellaneous Records, 1851-1901 familysearch.org/search/catalog/39797 |
| Seneca County | Miscellaneous Record, 1804-1924 familysearch.org/search/catalog/73865 |
| Sullivan County | Miscellaneous Records, 1850-1924 familysearch.org/search/catalog/89111 |
| Tioga County | Miscellaneous Records, 1829-1964 familysearch.org/search/catalog/38656 |
| Tompkins County | Miscellaneous Records, 1817-1905 familysearch.org/search/catalog/77668 |
| Warren County | Miscellaneous Records, 1813-1925; Mortgage Tax Record, 1873-1906 familysearch.org/search/catalog/252137 |
| Wyoming County | Miscellaneous Records, 1841-1929 familysearch.org/search/catalog/79571 |
| Yates County | Miscellaneous Records, 1823-1913 familysearch.org/search/catalog/213412 |
| Table Date: February 2, 2024 *It is unclear if this pertains to miscellaneous record books, but records often in miscellaneous books are represented. | |
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