County Resources
Broad River Genealogical Society This repository is located at 1145 County Home Road, Shelby, NC 28152. Hours are limited; be sure to check their website or Facebook page if you plan to visit.
Eugenia H. Young Memorial Library. This library was formerly the Cleveland County Memorial Library. There is a dedicated genealogy room that serves as a repository for numerous local history books, family history books, newspapers on microfilm, as well as hard to find items like old telephone books, city directories and high school yearbooks. The library is located at 104 Howie Street, Shelby, NC.
Cleveland County Register of Deeds. This office is located inside the Cleveland County Administration Building at 311 E. Marion Street, Room 151, Shelby, NC.
Genealogical Society of Old Tryon (Rutherford County, NC) This library is located at 319 Doggett Road, Forest City, NC 28043. If you plan to visit, be sure to read their rules and terms of use prior to your visit.
The Mauney Library. This branch of Cleveland Memorial Public Library is housed in the former home of Dr. Jacob George Van Buren Hord. It is located at 100 S. Piedmont Ave. in Kings Mountain, NC 28086.
Spangler Branch Library. Located at 112 Piedmont Drive, Lawndale, NC 28090
Cleveland County Cemetery Index This link includes cemetery censuses taken in 1939 as part of the Works Progress Administration jobs creation program administered by P. Cleveland Gardner, as well as censuses taken by W. D. Floyd and others of Cleveland County in the 1990s.
Works Progress Administration, Cemetery Census (1939), Records of Cleveland County, North Carolina; transcript by Ann Propst and Derick Hartshorn, 2008; retrieved from http://www.ncgenweb.us/cleveland/ClevelandIndex.htm
Below is a sample transcript.
The pages of the 1850 and 1870 census were rediscovered by P. Cleveland Gardner in 1937 in the basement of the Cleveland County Courthouse. Gardner painstakingly assembled them into bound books where they have been preserved. The 1850 census, taken by Dr. James W. Cabaniss, has recently been digitized and is available for viewing via the Digital Commons @ Gardner-Webb University. The 1870 census, taken by John Aydlott, will also be digitized sometime in 2026. Copies of other censuses have not been preserved at the county level. (Many thanks to Dr. Natalie Bishop for overseeing this project.)
Online Books, Journals, Newspapers, Family Trees
Ancestry.com is a great platform to build out your family tree. It does require a paid membership, but offers discounts throughout the year. Ancestry owns these other subsidiaries: Ancestry DNA, Find a Grave, Fold 3, Newspapers.com, RootsWeb, and We Remember. Some of these sites offer free access usually scheduled around federal holidays.
FamilySearch FamilySearch is an ancestry research organization operated by the Church of Latter Day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. Access to their records is free by creating an account and logging in. It is a great site to see records at no cost. I would advise caution with regard to their “one world tree.” Family trees are built, but can be rebuilt by people with erroneous information. These trees provide leads and may be accurate – but they may be inaccurate.
FamilySearch: Guide to Cleveland County Genealogical Research
Chronicling America is a great free site to read old newspapers.
The Internet Archive. The books available to read include numerous unpublished manuscripts on family histories.
The Internet Archive Wayback Machine. The “Wayback Machine” is a tool whereby one can enter an expired web posting and retrieve it from their archived pages. This is especially helpful for retrieving obituaries published in the 1990s and 2000s, but are no longer available on the newspapers’ site. Not all have been archived, but many have.
Facebook Genealogy/Local History Groups. There are a number of private groups sharing genealogy and local history in our area. If you have a Facebook account, you can ask to join and someone in the group will probably allow access.
Cleveland County, NC Genealogy and Local History
Descendants of James and Martha Puryear Hord
If you grew up in Shelby, NC, then you remember. . .
Gaston County, NC History, and Local History
Lincoln County, North Carolina Genealogy Group
Rutherford County, North Carolina Historical Society. This one is a Facebook page, not a private group.
State Resources
FamilySearch Historical Records Collection – North Carolina
FamilySearch Historical Records Collection – South Carolina
State Archives of North Carolina
State Library of North Carolina
Virginia Memory, Library of Virginia
National/Federal Resources
Chronicling America (Library of Congress)
Daughters of the American Revolution
National Archives and Records Administration
National Park Service, The Civil War
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places; Shelby, NC
FamilySearch provides free access to numerous online records. You do have to create an account, but access is free. This link is to the list of census records for North Carolina. Note: the census of 1890 is mostly blank. This is due to a fire that occurred in 1921 in the basement of the Commerce Building in Washington, DC where it was stored. Sadly, 99% of the 1890 census was lost.
U. S. Federal Census, North Carolina, 1790-1950
U. S. Census, (Mortality Schedule), 1850-1880
U. S. Census, Slave Schedule, 1850 and 1860
Genealogy Research Articles, Books and Tutorials
About Sources. The National Genealogical Society.
About Birth Certificates and Delayed Birth Certificates
About Marriage Banns, Marriage Bonds, Marriage Licenses
Evidence Explained. This is the website of Elizabeth Shown Mills, a leader in the field of genealogy research. She has also developed a citation style, “Evidence Style,” that builds upon Chicago style to provide more detail in the citation.
The National Archives: Resources for Genealogists and Family Historians
The National Genealogical Society
Online Genealogy Services
Ancestry.com is a great platform to build out your family tree. It does require a paid membership, but offers discounts throughout the year. Ancestry owns these other subsidiaries: Ancestry DNA, Find a Grave, Fold 3, Newspapers.com, RootsWeb, and We Remember. Some of these sites offer free access usually scheduled around federal holidays.
FamilySearch FamilySearch is an ancestry research organization operated by the Church of Latter Day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. Access to their records is free by creating an account and logging in. It is a great site to see records at no cost. I would advise caution with regard to their “one world tree.” Family trees are built, but can be rebuilt by people with erroneous information. These trees provide leads and may be accurate – but they may be inaccurate.
FamilySearch: Guide to Cleveland County Genealogical Research
About Headstones
Gravestone Birthday Calculator
Cleveland County History 