Welcome to Bedford County Pennsylvania
History and Genealogy

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Short History

Robert MacRay opened the first trading post in Raystown (which is now Bedford) on the land that is now Bedford County in 1750. The settlers had a difficult time dealing with raids from Indians and the fighting between the French and the British.

In 1759, after the capture of Fort Duquesne in Allegheny County, a road was built between the fort (which was renamed to Fort Pitt) to the newly built Fort Bedford in Raystown. The road turned from Indian trails, into "Forbes Road", and still later into the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Bedford County was created on March 9, 1771 from part of Cumberland County and named in honor of the Fort Bedford.

The area quickly increased in population once safety became more established. The land with its lush farmland and woodland became an attractive site. It also formed an important center on the way to Pittsburgh and farther west of Pennsylvania. George Washington stayed in the county in response to the Whiskey Rebellion in 1794.

The Bedford Springs Hotel became an important site for the wealthy. Under President James Buchanan, the hotel became the summer White House. The U.S. Supreme Court met at the hotel once. It was the only time that the high court met outside of the Capital.

The 19th century featured a population boom in the county with the population doubling in size between 1870 and 1890. Railroads passing through the town connected the county with the mining industry. -- Wikipedia.com

Bedford County Data Online

COURT RECORDS

• Land Deeds and Transfers  

  • John Dicken and Heirs of Brice Blair Indenture; SAMUEL D. COULTER to JAMES McCOY; THOMAS DICKEN and CATHERINE his wife to and SAMUEL ELLIOTT - Contributed by Margaret Gagliardi

• County Court Records  

• Probate Records for Edward Perrin Bedford Co. PA - Contributed by Sharon Ashcraft

•  Petition by James Elder to secure a deed - Contributed by Sharon Ashcraft

DEATHS

• UPDATED!!  Obituaries and Death Notices  

• Deaths 1806 to Oct 1808 and 1834 to Jan 1835  [Source: Bedford County and Huntingdon County newspapers. Unknown author, 1900]

• 1843 History of Bedford County  (Source: Historical Collections of the State of Pennsylvania, by Sherman Day, 1843)


• Bedford Springs in 1811 (Taken from The Centinel, Gettysburg, PA)

• Marriage Notices and Wedding Announcements  1899 Marriage License: Wendle - Shaffer, Homan-Horton, 1899 Marriages: Brightbill-Burket, Smith-Zimmers


• Marriages 1806 to Oct 1808 and 1834 to Jan 1835  [Source: Bedford County and Huntingdon County newspapers. Unknown author, 1900]

• Korean and Vietnam War Casualties - Transcribed by Tammy Clark

• World War II Honor List of Dead and Missing Army and Army Air Forces Personnel - Transcribed by Tammy Clark

• Civil War Three Months' Service Soldiers - Transcribed by Tammy Clark

NEWS

• Miscellaneous News Articles  
  

• Crime News

• Disasters 
  

Townships