Eighty Books about Kentucky Family Genealogies by Surname

A blank pedigree chart may be scary for new researchers. Many beginning genealogists find it easier to present their Kentucky family history when there is an example available. Some may not consider that a Kentucky ancestor might have already written the family history and presented it in a nicely bound book.

Where do you find these genealogies by surname? Google it, of course!

All kidding aside, Google Books contains the world's most comprehensive index of full-text books. You can search their collection for your surname or your Kentucky ancestor. You might be surprised when your Kentucky family member appears in a book, magazine, or pamphlet. Many of us have found ancestors within these pages, perhaps in an organization list, advertising their business, or as a defendant in a court case.

Finding the Early Families of Kentucky

We did a larger search to find any genealogy books where a Kentuckian or Kentucky was cited. Google did not disappoint. Over eighty books were returned when we did the search in the summer of 2021. [The list is organized by surname below.] These books contain useful information on researching Kentucky's past through family history records, such as census data, birth/death certificates and military service records among others.

In the Genealogy of the Eliot Family book, which was published around 1854, Benjamin Eliot’s daughter, Mary, married the Honorable John J. Crittenden of Kentucky. He later became one of Kentucky’s governors.

Extracted from the Eliot Family book.

Another book, The Seldens of Virginia and Allied Families, provides an entire chapter about the Breckenridge family. Robert Breckenridge had two sons who served in the Revolutionary War and later settled in Louisville, KY. Other family members settled in Bath and Bourbon Counties.

No genealogy listing from Kentucky would be complete without adding a book about The Boone Family. Many Kentuckians claim a blood line to Daniel Boone, who is considered a father of the Kentucky wilderness. Hazel Atterbury Spraker compiled this book in 1922.

In the Preface, she notes that the family line had not been documented prior to her book. She has a long thank you list, which is always nice to see from a researcher. She covers the family through the Civil War and beyond. It is an excellent example of family history.

Reviewing the Family History Examples

Considering many of these books were written before Ancestry or the like was available, these books are rich with information and Kentucky ancestor life stories.

Many of the genealogist explain how they collected the information, the sources, and some include pictures or documents. Many relied on interviews with family members as a source.

Each of us know the considerable work that goes into this research! If you are writing your family history, then you should review several of the books to understand what information was suggested. Plus it is fun to see how proud these authors are!

Listing Genealogies with Kentucky Last Names

The following list contains the surname that is the subject of the book, the year published, and a link to the book title. As far as we know, the books are in the public domain and free to use.

Surname Publish Year Genealogy Resource
Alison, Allison 1893
The History of the Alison, Or Allison Family in Europe and America
Bishop 2009
Pike County Kentucky Bishop Family Genealogical Timeline
Boone 1922
A Genealogical History of the Descendants of George and Mary Boone, who Came to America in
Bowman 1912
Bowman Genealogy: Fragmentary Annals of a Branch of the Bowman Family
Bromwell 1910
The Bromwell Genealogy
Buford 1903
A Genealogy of the Buford Family in America
Buford 1924
History and Genealogy of the Buford Family in America
Calvin 1945
The Calvin Families: Origin and History of the American Calvins, with a Partial Genealogy
Carlock 1929
History of the Carlock Family and Adventures of Pioneers
Chenoweth 1925
History of the Chenoweth Family, Beginning 449 AD
Child 1881
Genealogy of the Child, Childs and Childe Families
Clay, Cecil 2009
Kentucky Clay: Eleven Generations of a Southern Dynasty
Cleveland 1899
The Genealogy of the Cleveland and Cleaveland Families
Cloyd 1912
Genealogy of the Cloyd, Basye and Tapp Families in America
Coombs   ????
Coombs Family History: A surprising and exciting journey
Dameron-Damron 1953
The Dameron-Damron Genealogy
Denny 1886
Genealogy of the Denny Family in England and America
Dodson, Dotson, Lucas, Pyles, Rochester, Allied 1959
Genealogy of the Dodson (Dotson), Lucas, Pyles, Rochester, and Allied Family
Duke 1909
A Genealogy of the Duke-Shepherd-Van Metre Family
Dunlevy 1901
A Genealogical History of the Dunlevy Family
Eliot 1663
Genealogy of the Eliot Family
Fairbanks 1897
Genealogy of the Fairbanks Family in America, 1633-1897
Keyes, North, Cruzen 1914
Genealogy and History of the Related Keyes, North and Cruzen
Ficklin 1912
A Genealogical History of the Ficklin Family
Field 1901
Field Genealogy; Being the Record of All the Field Family in America, Whose Ancestors Were in this Country Prior to 1700
Fishback 1914
Genealogy of the Fishback Family in America
Floyd 1912
Biographical Genealogies of the Virginia-Kentucky Floyd 
Foote 1907
Foote Family
Fouts 2000
Fouts Family of Indiana
Frisian 1893
A Frisian Family: The Banta Genealogy
Gowdy 1919
A Family History Comprising the Surnames of Gade and the Variant Forms
Graffenried 1925
History of the de Graffenried Family from 1191 AD to 1925
Harris 1914
Harris Genealogy
Henry 1915
Henry Genealogy: The Descendants of Samuel Henry of Hadley, Mass
Holtzclaw 1936
The Genealogy of the Holtzclaw Family, 1540-1935
Hord 1898
Genealogy of the Hord Family
Horton 1922
Family History Compiled by Lucy Henderson Horton
Hudson-Mohawk 1911
Hudson-Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs
Hume 1903
History of the Hume Family 
Jennings 1899
A Genealogical History of the Jennings Families in England
Jepson 1917
A History & Genealogy of the Descendants of John Jepson
Kauffman 1940
A Genealogy and History of the Kauffman-Coffman Families of North America, 1584-1937
Keene 1923
Keene Family History and Genealogy
Kemper 1899
Genealogy of the Kemper Family in the United States
Kuykendall 1919
History of the Kuykendall Family Since Its Settlement in Dutch New York
Lawrence 1847
A Genealogical Memoir of the Family of John Lawrence
Lewis 1893
Genealogy of the Lewis Family in America
Lincoln 1923
History of the Lincoln Family: An Account of the Descendants of Samuel Lincoln
Loughry 1924
A Brief Genealogy of the Loughry Family of Pennsylvania
Loveland 1894
Genealogy of the Loveland Family in the United States of America
Marshall 1885
The Marshall Family
Marshall, Green, Huddleston, Armistead, Taylor, Pickett 1911
The Marshall Family
Maxwell, Allen, Bachiler 1916
Maxwell History and Genealogy: Including the Allied Families
McNary 1907
McNary Family with Trees and History- Page 21
Meriwether 1892
The Meriwether and Their Connections: A Family Record
Millers, Simmons 1993
The Miller and Simmons Families: Genealogy and History
Mitchell 1885
The Genealogy of the Mitchell Family of Martinsville, Indiana
Monnett 1911
Monnett Family Genealogy: An Emphasis of a Noble Huguenot Heritage
Montgomery 1863
A Genealogical History of the Family of Montgomery
Pelton 1892
Genealogy of the Pelton Family in America
Pomeroy 1958
History and Genealogy of the Pomeroy Family and Collateral Lines, England, Ireland, America; Comprising the Ancestors and Descendants of George Pomeroy of Pennsylvania
Prentice/Prentiss 1883
The History and Genealogy of the Prentice, Or Prentiss Family, in New England, Etc., from 1631-1883
Rice 1900
Genealogical and Historical Notes on Culpeper County, Virginia
Ricks 1908
History and Genealogy of the Ricks Family of America
Riggs 1901
Genealogy of the Riggs Family
Semple 1888
Genealogical History of the Family Semple from 1214-1888
Scripps 1903
A Genealogical History of the Scripps Family and Its Various Forms
Scruggs, Briscoe, Dial, Dunklin, Leake, Price 1912
Scruggs Genealogy: With a Brief History of the Allied Families Briscoe, Dial, Dunklin, Leake and Price
Seaton 1906
The Seaton Family, with Genealogy and Biographies
Snyder, Schneider 1910
History of the Family of Snyder (Schneider) (Snider)
Tennant 1915
Genealogy of the Tennant Family
Trowbridge 1908
The Trowbridge Genealogy: History of the Trowbridge Family
Tuley 1906
The Tuley Family Memoirs
Tyrrell, Terrell 1909
Further Genealogical Notes on the Tyrrell-Terrell Family
Washington 1900
Genealogy of the Washington Family
Wheeler 1914
The Genealogical and Encyclopedic History of the Wheeler Family
Whittelsey 1898
Genealogy of the Whittelsey-Whittlesey Family
Williams 1847
The Genealogy and History of the Family of Williams
Witherspoon 1910
Genealogy of the Witherspoon Family
Woodsons 1915
Historical Genealogy of the Woodsons and Their Connections
Yale 1850
The Yale Family: Or the Descendants of David Yale

 

Read More of Our Content

Many Europeans developed pathways for early settlers to enter the land of today’s Kentucky.

In the 1700s, many Scots-Irish migrated to North America - but why?