Benton County, Washington Records

Benton County, Washington (Map It) was created on March 08, 1905 from Yakima County and Klickitat County. The county was named in honor of Thomas Hart Benton (1782–1858), a Missouri U.S. Senator. Early wagon roads from Walla Walla to Puget Sound also traversed the county. In the 1880s the coming of railroads brought settlers to the region and the irrigation projects of the 1890s created a rich agricultural economy. Today the county enjoys a diversified economy based on agriculture, wood products, food production and government installations. .

Benton County is bordered by Grant County (north), Franklin County (northeast), Walla Walla County (east), Umatilla County, Oregon (south), Morrow County, Oregon (south), Klickitat County (west), Yakima County (west).

Benton County Cities and Towns include Benton City (2,624), Finley (5,770), Highland (3,388), Kennewick (67,180), Prosser (4,838), Richland (38,708), West Richland (8,385).

A Map of Benton County, Washington contains detailed information about roads and boundaries, these maps may include rural communities, churches, and cemeteries.

Benton County, Washington Courthouse Records

The Benton County Courthouse is located in Prosser, Washington. Learn More About State of Washington Court, Tax, Land and Probate Records.

The Clerk's Office DOES NOT DO RESEARCH. Most staff will assist people in finding the materials, but it is up to the individual to do the research. Although originally held in the county seat, many county land, probate, and court records have been transferred to the state archive's regional branches.

The Benton County record dates below are from the earliest date to present time. They may include records of land, estates, taxes, vital records, divorces, naturalizations, voter registration, court records, and so forth.

• Benton County Auditor has Birth and Death Records from 1905 to 1907, Marriage Records from 1905 and Land Records from 1885 . The County Auditor has many responsibilities which include the recording of real property documents such as deeds and other recorded documents, issuing various licenses such as marriage liscense.
• Benton County Clerk has Court Records from 1884 and Probate Records from 1884 . The County Clerk is the administrator of the Superior Court Clerk's Office. The Clerk's Office is responsible for keeping the permanent records of all cases filed in Superior Court. The type of cases filed are felony criminal cases, civil lawsuits, petitions for protection from domestic violence, family law matters (dissolutions 3rd Party Custody, parenting plans, modifications) probates, guardianships, Last Will & Testaments, paternities, adoptions and mental commitments. For judicial purposes, many of the Washington counties were attached to other counties.
• Benton County Treasurer is the property tax collector for the County. Property Taxes are levied on the property by the various taxing authorities based on the valuation and current property usage as set by the Assessor's Office.
• The Benton-Franklin Health District can issue Birth, Marriage and Death certificates while you wait.

Benton County, Washington Census Records

• Learn More: State of Washington Census Records
• U.S. Federal Population Schedules: 1910, 1920, 1930, 1940

Benton County, Washington Vital Records

• Learn More: State of Washington Vital Records
• Birth and Death Records: from July 1, 1907 to present.
• Marriage and Divorce Records: from January 1, 1968 to present
• Locations: Washington Department of Health
• Vital Records Online: USAVital or Social Security Death Index
• Vital Records by Mail:  Birth / Death Certificate or the Marriage / Divorce Certificate Applications.
• In Person:  Center for Health Statistics, Department of Health, 101 Israel Road SE, Tumwater, WA 98501

Benton County, Washington Resources

• Central Regional Branch
• Benton County Historical Society, Inc.
• East Benton County Historical Society
• Tri-city Genealogical Society
• Washington State University Tri-Cities Library, Max E. Benitz Library
• Benton/Franklin County Law Library, Columbia Basin College Library, 2600 N 20th Ave, Pasco, WA; 99301. Phone 509-547-0511 ext. 2290.
• Kennewick Family History Center
• Prosser Family History Center
• Richland Family History Center, 1314 Goethals, Richland, WA 99352. Phone 509-946-6637.
• Tri-City Herald Library, PO Box 2608, Tri Cities, WA 99302. Not generally open to the public.
• Mid-Columbia Library, 4101 E Lattin Rd, West Richland, WA 99353. Phone 509-627-0285. Fax 509-545-2054. The following are branches of this library system:
  • Benton City Branch, 708 Ninth St, Box 369, Benton City, WA 99320. Phone 509-588-6471.
  • Kennewick Branch, 405 S Dayton, Kennewick, WA 99336-5690. Phone 509-586-3156.
  • West Benton Branch, 614 Sixth St, Prosser, WA 99350. Phone 509-786-3777. Fax 509-786-3777.
  • West Richland Branch, 3803 W Van Giesen, West Richland, WA 99353. Phone 509-967-3191.
• Prosser Public Library, 902 7th St, Prosser, WA 99350-1454. Phone 509-786-2533. Collection includes northwest history materials and microfilm of local newspapers back to 1903.
• Richland Public Library, 955 Northgate, Richland, WA 99352-3539. Phone 509-942-7450.
• Benton County, Washington Message Boards
• Benton County, Washington Genealogy Forum
• Washington State Digital Archives

Benton County, Washington External Links

• Washington Historical Newspapers - Newspapers.com
• Historical Newspapers from Washington (1890 - 1984)
• Benton County, Washington Books - Amazon
• Inventory of the county archives of Washington, no. 3. Benton County (Prosser)
• Benton Co., Washington - FindaGrave
• Benton County, Washington Links - Cyndi's List
• Benton Co. WAGenweb
• Benton County, Washington Ancestry Database Collections
• Benton County, Washington Military Records
• Washington, Postmaster Indexes, Prior to 1965
• Washington gazetteer and business directory : 1901-1902.