Marengo County
Alabama Genealogy & History Network

Welcome to Marengo County ALGHN

Welcome to the Marengo County Alabama Genealogy & History Network website providing free information to genealogical and historical researchers.

To share your Marengo County, Alabama genealogy or history information, send an email to alghn@outlook.com - we will be pleased to include it here. If you have information to share for other Alabama Counties, visit the Alabama Genealogy & History Network state website and choose the appropriate county.

About Marengo County, Alabama...

Marengo County was created by the Alabama Territorial General Assembly on February 6, 1818, preceding Alabama's statehood by almost two years. The land was acquired from the Choctaw Indians under the 1816 Treaty of Fort St. Stephens. In 1817, a group of French immigrants, a few of whom served with Napoleon Bonaparte, traveled up the Tombigbee River to establish a colony dedicated to growing wine grapes and olives. The immigrants were granted four townships of land by an act of Congress on March 3, 1817. The county's name was suggested by Judge Abner Lipscomb to commemorate these settlers and Napoleon Bonaparte's victory at Marengo, Italy, over Austrian forces on June 14, 1800.

The settlers of the Vine and Olive Colony, as it came to be known, founded several towns, including Demopolis. When the area was officially opened to settlers in 1818, pioneers came mostly from Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia. Later settlers traveled from Kentucky and Tennessee via the Federal Road. The first towns in the area that would become Marengo County were Linden, Demopolis, Myrtlewood, and Sweet Water.

The county seat was originally known as the Town of Marengo. Its name was changed in 1823 to Linden, a shortened version of "Hohenlinden," which was the scene of another French victory in Bavaria in 1800.

In 1820, the county constructed a two-room log courthouse in the Old Town part of Linden. This courthouse was replaced in 1825 with a larger, two-story log courthouse that burned in 1848. In the 1850s, a two-story Federal-style courthouse was constructed and remains the oldest Greek Revival courthouse in Alabama. This courthouse was used continuously until 1902, except for a brief period during Reconstruction when the county seat was located in Demopolis. In 1903, a new Gothic-style courthouse was constructed; it burned in 1965 and was replaced in 1968 by the current courthouse.

The county has a total area of 983 square miles, of which 977 square miles is land and 6 square mile (0.6%) is water. The population recorded in the 1820 Federal Census was 2,933. The 2010 census recorded 21,027 residents in the county.

Neighboring counties are Hale County (north), Perry County (northeast), Dallas County (east), Wilcox County (southeast), Clarke County (south), Choctaw County (southwest), Sumter County (northwest), and Greene County (north-northwest).

Communities in the county include Demopolis, Linden, Dayton, Faunsdale, Myrtlewood, Providence, Sweet Water, Thomaston, Aimwell, Alfalfa, Clayhill, Consul, Coxheath, Dixons Mills, Exmoor, Half Acre, Half Chance, Hampden, Hoboken, Hugo, Jefferson, Lasca, McKinley, Magnolia, Marengo, Moores Valley, Moscow, Nanafalia, Nicholsville, Octagon, Old Spring Hill, Pin Hook, Pope, Putnam, Rembert, Salt Well, Shiloh, Siddonsville, Surginer, Vangale, Vineland, Wayne and Aigleville.

Marengo County, Alabama Records

Alabama Genealogy & History Network has much information on our county websites - cemetery listings, community data, etc. Please visit the county or counties of interest to you.

Birth Records - The Alabama Department of Public Health maintains records of births from 1908 to present. This was the year Alabama began keeping official birth records. You can obtain official copies of birth certificates by visiting the birth record page on their website and following the instructions. Since there are no official birth records before 1908 for births prior to that date you will need to determine birth information from census records, bible records, baptismal records, cemetery tombstones, etc.

Death Records - The Alabama Department of Public Health maintains death records after 1908 on file. This was the year Alabama began keeping official death records. You can obtain official copies of death certificates by visiting the death record page on their website and following the instructions. Since there are no official death records before 1908 for deaths prior to that date you will need to determine death information from census records, bible records, funeral home records, cemetery tombstones, etc.

Marriage Records - The Alabama Department of Public Health can provide you with information for marriages that took place from 1936 to present by by visiting the marriage record page on their website and following the instructions.

All existing county marriage records for any date not listed above (and for the dates listed above for that matter) may be obtained from the county's Probate Office in which the marriage was held.

Divorce Records - The Alabama Department of Public Health maintains divorce records from 1950 to present. You can obtain official copies of devorce records by visiting the divorce record page on their website and following the instructions. Records for divorces occuring before 1950 may be obtained from the Circuit Clerk in the county where the divorce took place.