Delaware County is located in south-central New York and is part of the Catskill Mountain region. The county gets its name from the Delaware River, which constitutes its western border and separates the county from Pennsylvania. The east and west branch of the Delaware run through the center of the county.
Delaware is bordered in the north by Otsego and Schoharie counties, in the east by Greene County, and the south by Ulster and Sullivan counties. Though one of the largest by area, Delaware is one of the less populated counties in New York, with a population of 47,980 (according to the 2010 census.) The county seat lies in central Delaware in the town of Delhi.
When searching for records in Delaware County, a great resource to consider is the Delaware County Historical Association and Suggett House Museum. The association maintains historic buildings, galleries, and a research library and archives. Their holdings include church records, diaries, family Bibles, genealogies, land records, newspapers, school records, town histories, and photographs dating largely from the mid-1900s. They also have holdings related to the Civil War, including letters, diaries, roster sheets, and Grand Army of the Republic Post records. The website contains research guides, as well as a list of several thousand Delaware County Civil War soldiers with unit, census district, age, and biographical notes. You can visit their website here: http://www.dcha-ny.org/
Delaware County is also home to many great local resources and repositories. Colchester Historical Society, for instance, holdings include unique documents, genealogies, and artifacts. They also have an index of family histories (Genealogy Surname files), as well as a gallery of artifacts available on their website: www.colchesterhistoricalsociety.org
NYG&B members have access to all our original county guides on our website. Each guide was created by experts in the field in order to direct researchers to these local, unique resources. To learn more about the benefits of membership, see our membership page on our website HERE.