Kent County
Michigan GenWeb Project

Kent County Courthouse

 

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Welcome to Kent County in Southwestern Michigan.
 
It became a county in 1831. 
On March 22, 1842, the legislature changed the name of the town from Kent to Grand Rapids.  It is the county seat.
Settlers from the east began arriving in the 1820's and the area became the furniture manufacturing capital of
America by the turn of the century. The current Grand Rapids area population is about 500,000,
making it the second largest city in the state. 
 


This photo is my Great Aunt Floy Hoffmaster and Class. On the back of the photo says “ Photograph by Evelyn R. Zeek, Grand Rapids, Michigan Oct. 11, 1960. We do not know what School this is. Can you identify it?

Submitted by Pamela Whitehead
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Answers to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): Researchers

Queries, Biographies, Obituaries, etc. - Message Board

Resources:
 
Adoption Biographies Births Books Online
Businesses Cemeteries Census Churches
County Clerk Communities
(Place Names)
Deaths Diaries
and Letters
Directories Ethnic Funeral Records Furniture
Genealogies Grand Rapids Historical and
Genealogical Societies
Histories
Immigration/
Naturalization
Kent County Land Links
Lookups Mailing Lists Maps - Plat Maps Marriages
Medical Memorial Reports Message Board  
Michigan Military Newspapers Obituaries
Organizations Other Online Sources Pensioners-1883 Pioneer
New Publications Old Queries Requests Researchers
Schools Search Engines Towns Townships 
Veterans Home  Volunteers  Lost/Found Items Administration
What's New      

Historical and Biographical Books
 

   Dillenback's 1870 History & Directory
 

Tuttle's 1874 History of Grand Rapids
 

Memorials of the Grand River Valley by Franklin Everett, 1878 
   

Chapman's 1881 History of Kent County
 

Baxter's 1891 History of Kent County
 

  Index to Biographical Sketches, Bowen's History of Grand Rapids & Kent County, 1900 
 

Index to Goss' 1906 History of Grand Rapids and Its Industries 
 

Etten's 1926 Citizens' History 
 

Personal Sketches-History of Kent County, Ed. Arthur S. White, 1924
 

The Catholic Church in the Grand River Valley by Father McGee, 1833-1950  

 

Kent County Coordinator: Jan Cortez - janacortez@charter.net
  Michigan State Coordinator: Jan Cortez   <
janacortez@charter.net>

  • Please note that the county coordinator's main role is to maintain this website not to do research.  
    Please carefully check the resources above.  If you don't find an answer, then contact me and I may be able to direct you to additional resources.

  • Looking for a relative?
    Please review the links and use the appropriate query pages or resources.
    We also have a  Researchers and Visitors' FAQ

  • Interested in helping out with our project?
    Visit our Volunteers    and Contributors' FAQ for more information.

  • Any other questions?
    Contact the County Coordinator: janacortez@charter.net

  • NOTE: The GenWeb "Community Guidelines" for Message Board posting:
    We do not post commercial messages, fee-for-service postings, advertising or related links, etc.

 

WHAT's NEW?    
       

Archived Announcements:
1999 - 2000 - 2001 - 2002  -  2003 - 2004
- 2005   2006  2007  2008  2009  2010   2011   2012   2013   2014 
 

 


!!WANTED!!
Old Records Pertaining to Kent County
To Be Placed on this GenWeb.

  • BOOKS/BOOKLETS: such as old school yearbooks, church anniversary books, women's and men's organizations that give listings of members.

  • TOWNSHIP RECORDS:  Old voter registrations, early marriage and death records, school records, etc. 

  • PHOTOS: Pictures of schoolhouses or classes, sports teams, etc. with their names and years.

  • OTHER: Old family letters, local businesses, and more.
    These would need to be the early years until about 1940 time period.  Birth Records, if they are family records, are fine.  If they are from official records, then they need to be 100 years old.  Death and Marriage Records to the present.  If you send photocopies or scanned photos and articles, we would appreciate them.  
    OR if you have material that you would loan us to scan or transcribe to put on the website, please let us know.
            Jan Cortez  - new email address:  janacortez@charter.net

    A big "Thank You" to those who have responded. 
    Everyone working together can make this website even better.


GenWeb Resources

 


Copyright © 2013-2017 by Jan Cortez
2001-2013 by Evelyn Sawyer
Copyright © 1999-2001 by Jennifer Godwin, Ronnie Aungst and a merry band of volunteers.
Copyright © 1997-1999 by Mary del Rivette.