A Brief History of the Delaware County Genealogical Society

P.O. Box 1126, Delaware, OH 43015
740-369-4375

In September 1984, Maxine Marshall, the OGS representative, gathered a group of people interested in genealogy at a meeting at the Delaware County District Library. It was decided to form a new genealogy club. The following officers were named:

Maxson Greene	President	Alice Baker	Vice President
Ann Houser	Treasurer	Betty Wells	Recording Secretary
Eleanor Worley	Corresponding Secretary

George and Marilyn Cryder and Betty Wells were on a committee to draw up a constitution that was then approved at the October meeting. Members of the Delaware County Historical Society offered their facility at 157 E. William St, in Delaware, and it was agreed that future meetings would be held there.

The purpose of the society is to encourage individual research, support the objectives of the Ohio Genealogical Society, collect and preserve genealogical & historical records, and to publish such records if advisable. Membership is open to anyone who has interest in genealogy.

May 18, 1985, the Ohio Genealogical Society granted a charter to Delaware County as a chapter of the OGS. In addition to the officers previously named, our first trustees, Larry Helton, Judith Freed, and W. Harold Nutt signed the charter.

There were 83 charter members:

In January 2010, we were welcomed into the Local History/Genealogy Room of the Delaware County District Library, 84 E. Winter St. in Delaware. We have closed stacks of genealogy resources such as Common Pleas and Probate cases and many books and family histories on the shelves in the room that are available to researchers. We staff the History and Harness rooms on Thursdays 10:00am-4:30pm and Saturdays 10:00am-1:00pm. Appointments can be made for other days and times.

As an offshoot of the Delaware County Genealogical Society, the Delaware County Pioneers (DCP) began in 1988 to recognize the early residents of Delaware County. Descendants must prove their lineage back to an ancestor residing here before December 31, 1850 to become a Silver Member, or to an ancestor who resided here before December 31, 1830 to become a Gold Member. The first annual DCP banquet was held in October 1988 at the Methodist Theological School In Ohio. Jana Freed, daughter of James & Judi Freed, designed a pin to be presented to each incoming Pioneer along with their certificate.

Through the years, our volunteers have abstracted various courthouse records to make them available to researchers. In the 1990’s, they walked the cemeteries of Delaware County to record inscriptions on markers, and published township books of those cemetery readings. Our volunteers have also indexed Delaware County Probate and Common Pleas Court records; these indexes are available at the library and at the Delaware County Record Center. We welcome volunteers who are either interested in genealogy or who just want to give some time to a non-profit organization.

We have created note cards and published a cookbook, Recipes & Remembrances of Family & Friends, two books of photographs of Delaware through the generosity of the late Richard Browning and his wife, Linda, as well several other books.