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Start Here: Pennsylvania Genealogy Research

Welcome to PA Ancestors. I'm Denyse Allen, and I've spent over a decade helping family historians navigate Pennsylvania's uniquely complex research landscape.

If you've ever searched for a Pennsylvania birth certificate and come up empty, or wondered why your ancestor's records seem to have vanished — you're in the right place. Pennsylvania genealogy is different from almost every other state, and understanding why is the first step to breaking through.

This page will orient you to the site and give you a clear path forward, whether you're brand new to PA research or you've been at it for years and hit a wall.

Why Pennsylvania Research Is Different

Pennsylvania didn't require statewide registration of births and deaths until 1906. Before that, record-keeping was scattered across counties, churches, and local offices. Many of these records remain unindexed, which means they won't show up in a search on Ancestry or FamilySearch.

The good news: the records exist. They're just in different places than you'd expect. That's what this site is built to help you find.

Your First 5 Steps in Pennsylvania Genealogy

Step 1: Understand What Records Exist (and Where)

Pennsylvania has vital records, county courthouse records, church records, tax records, land records, and more — but they're spread across hundreds of repositories. Start by understanding the landscape.

Step 2: Learn the County Courthouse System

In Pennsylvania, the county courthouse is where most of your ancestors' records live — deeds, wills, marriage licenses, court cases, and tax records. Every county operates independently, and each one holds different records.

Step 3: Find the Key Vital Records

Birth, marriage, and death records are the backbone of any family tree. But in Pennsylvania, how you find them depends entirely on when and where your ancestor lived.

Step 4: Use Census and Tax Records to Fill Gaps

When vital records don't exist or are missing, census records and tax records can fill in the gaps. They place your ancestor in a specific location at a specific time — and that's often the key to finding everything else.

Step 5: Make a Research Plan

The biggest mistake new researchers make is jumping between databases without a strategy. A simple plan keeps you focused and prevents you from searching the same records twice.

Explore by Record Type

Once you have the basics, dive deeper into specific record types. Each guide explains what the records contain, where to find them, and how to use them for your research.

Research a Specific Era

Hit a Brick Wall?

If you've been researching for a while and can't get past a particular ancestor, these resources can help:

Books for In-Depth Research

These reference books cover Pennsylvania genealogy research in depth:

Stay Connected

PA Ancestors publishes new research guides regularly. Here's how to keep up:

  • Subscribe — Free email updates when new guides are published (use the Subscribe button on any page)
  • Podcast — Your Pennsylvania Ancestors covers research strategies, archives, and specific record types
  • YouTube — Video guides and research walkthroughs
  • Chronicle Makers — My community for family historians ready to write their ancestor stories using AI tools

© 2019–2026 PA Ancestors L.L.C. and Denyse Allen. All Rights Reserved.

About PA Ancestors: The authoritative resource for Pennsylvania genealogy research — vital records, county courthouses, archives, probate, land records, military records, and immigration research across all 67 Pennsylvania counties. Founded by Denyse Allen, Pennsylvania genealogy researcher and author.

More Pennsylvania Research: paancestors.com