Where to find the records
- Find Ashe County's official website
We haven't checked this county's website yet, so this opens a web search. Look for an address ending in .gov, then find the register of deeds and the clerk of superior court.
- The register of deeds
Deeds from the county's beginning, marriage licenses from 1868, and copies of births and deaths from 1913, when statewide registration began.
- The clerk of superior court
Wills, estates and court records from 1868 on.
- The State Archives of North Carolina
Many of each county's older records, in the original or on microfilm: wills, estate papers, county court minutes, marriage bonds (1741–1868) and tax lists. Search its catalog by county name.
- State Archives of North Carolina: DOC catalogfree
Search for "Ashe County" to find the county's original records and microfilm at the State Archives in Raleigh.
- FamilySearch Catalogfree
Search by place for "North Carolina, Ashe" to find filmed and digitized records, many viewable free online with a FamilySearch account.
Offices change their hours and access rules; call before you visit.
Boundaries and parent counties
Formed from: Wilkes County
Check the parent county for earlier records: Wilkes County
Later formed partly from Ashe County: Alleghany County, Watauga County
Records stay with the county that created them. If your ancestor lived here before 1799, search the parent county. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.
Research tip
Before 1868, North Carolina's county court (the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions) proved wills and deeds and handled estates, guardians and roads. Its minutes are one of the best places to find an ancestor, even when other records are lost.