Pender County Genealogy
- Formed 1875
- Parent county / earlier New Hanover
- County seat Burgaw
- Neighbors New Hanover, Onslow, Duplin, Sampson, Bladen, Columbus, Brunswick
Photos & maps
What’s new
- Flagship hub: Burgaw Cape Fear coastal plain.
- Formation 1875 from New Hanover — for pre-formation events, use the parent jurisdiction’s paper (not later Anson-only catalogs).
- Seat: Burgaw · Neighbors: New Hanover, Onslow, Duplin, Sampson, Bladen, Columbus, Brunswick.
- Methods: Start here · Formation · Master guide.
Pender County was formed in 1875 from New Hanover. The county seat is Burgaw. Neighboring counties include New Hanover, Onslow, Duplin, Sampson, Bladen, Columbus, Brunswick.
This hub combines a modern research floor—record matrix, towns, repositories, news—with local history narrative. For events before the county’s formation year, open the parent jurisdiction that owned that year—not a later statewide vital series or Anson-only catalog.
Pender County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population was 41,082. Its county seat is Burgaw. Pender County is part of the Wilmington Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The county was formed in 1875 from New Hanover County. It was named for William Dorsey Pender of Edgecombe County, a Confederate general mortally wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg. It is in the southeastern section of the State and is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean and New Hanover, Brunswick, Columbus, Bladen, Sampson, Duplin and Onslow counties. The present land area is 870.76 square miles (2,255.3 km2) and the 1990 population was 28,855. The county commissioners were ordered to hold their first meeting at Rocky Point. The act provided for the establishment of the town of Cowan as the county seat. In 1877 an act was passed repealing that section of the law relative to the town, and another law was enacted whereby the qualified voters were to vote on the question of moving the county seat to South Washington or any other place which the majority of the voters designated. Whatever place was selected, the town should be called Stanford. In 1879 Stanford was changed to Burgaw, which was by that law incorporated. It is the county seat.
Pender County is divided into the following townships: Burgaw, Canetuck, Caswell, Columbia, Grady, Holly, Long Creek, Rocky Point, Topsail, and Union.
Moores Creek National Battlefield is in Pender County.
Source: Wikipedia.
In-depth topics
Towns & communities
History notes
Pender County (formed 1875 from New Hanover; seat Burgaw) is a distinctive research problem: Burgaw Cape Fear coastal plain. Genealogists who treat every NC county the same will miss how late 1875—new hanover parent shapes the paper trail here—and how wilmington gravity for newspapers changes which record class to open first.
Pin the decade before the courthouse. Record the jurisdiction as cited in the original deed, estate, or church book—then map it to modern hubs. Neighbor FAN clubs frequently spill into New Hanover, Onslow, Duplin, Sampson, Bladen, Columbus, Brunswick.
This county rewards a fixed order: census clusters with neighbors → land and probate in the correct years → church and cemetery substitutes for pre-vital generations → newspapers and directories around Burgaw for 19th–20th century moves. Use the record matrix on this hub as a planning tool, not a catalog.
Session order: write person + year + place as written → formation/parent check → census FAN club → land/probate → church/cemetery → newspapers/directories when town-era → neighbors listed above. Free path: Start here · formation guide · Master NC research guide. Statewide substitutes: State Archives of North Carolina · DigitalNC · NCGenWeb — Pender.
Record availability matrix
| Record type | Coverage | Years (approx.) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Federal census | good | 1875–1950 | Federal schedules for NC; place each household in the correct county for that decade. Before 1875, people will not be labeled Pender—use New Hanover. Parent-jurisdiction notes apply only to pre-formation events—not to post-formation federal census rows. Township and city-ward labels change; re-pin every decade. |
| Birth records | sparse | 1913– | Statewide NC birth registration is late (roughly 1913–1915 for civil strength). Use delayed births, church registers, Bibles, and census for earlier Pender generations—not parent-county “civil vitals.” |
| Marriage records | partial | 1875– | County marriage records improve in the 19th–20th centuries after formation (1875); earlier events often appear in church books, bonds, newspapers, or New Hanover. Confirm event-year jurisdiction vs modern address. |
| Death records | partial | 1913– | Death certificates denser after statewide registration (~1913–1915+). Earlier Pender deaths via obituaries, church burial, probate, and cemeteries. |
| Land & deeds | good | 1875– | Record-loss / thin-series note: Formed 1875 from New Hanover. Pre-1875 land/probate/vitals are New Hanover problems first. Pender deed/Register of Deeds series typically begin near formation (1875); pre-1875 land lives under New Hanover. Colonial grants/plats may predate the county at State Archives of North Carolina. Always verify book/page gaps; abstract witnesses and neighbors. |
| Probate & estates | good | 1875– | Record-loss / thin-series note: Formed 1875 from New Hanover. Pre-1875 land/probate/vitals are New Hanover problems first. Wills, administrations, inventories, and equity are core after 1875; pre-formation estates under New Hanover. Abstract bondsmen, sales, and widows’ petitions for FAN clubs. Pair thin years with newspaper legal notices and Archives microfilm. |
| Church & parish | partial | varies | Church coverage varies by denomination and survival. Baptisms, membership, and burial registers often beat early civil vitals; check local societies and denominational archives. |
| Newspapers | varies | varies | Burgaw and local weeklies, plus larger regional papers for legal notices and obituaries. Verify actual title runs on DigitalNC and Chronicling America before citing continuous coverage—do not invent a “County Herald” without holdings. |
| Military | good | 1775– | Revolutionary through 20th-century service may generate pensions, CMSRs, militia notes, and wartime claims. Pair unit research with Pender place context and neighboring counties when companies recruited across lines. |
| Cemeteries | partial | varies | Published surveys, Find a Grave, churchyards, and family plots. Unmarked burials are common—use obituaries, church books, and land descriptions. |
| Court records | partial | 1875– | Record-loss / thin-series note: Formed 1875 from New Hanover. Pre-1875 land/probate/vitals are New Hanover problems first. Common pleas, sessions, and other court series often begin near formation (1875); equity may sit with or near probate. Pre-1875 under New Hanover. |
| Tax lists | sparse | varies | Tax lists can substitute for missing census years and thin deed decades. Coverage is uneven by locality and year—check State Archives of North Carolina and published abstracts. |
Cemeteries & burial research
- Burgaw / county-seat cemeteries
- Pender County cemeteries (Find a Grave / surveys)
Societies & repositories
Vital records
North Carolina statewide vital registration expanded in the early 20th century. For many Pender County families you will rely on marriage bonds, church registers, Bible records, newspapers, delayed births, and probate—not only a modern certificate.
Research starting points
Courthouse & contacts
The county seat is Burgaw. Confirm current Register of Deeds, Clerk of Superior Court, and library hours before visiting—offices move and digital portals change.
Public library: Pender County Public Library
Record-loss / series note: Formed 1875 from New Hanover. Pre-1875 land/probate/vitals are New Hanover problems first.
If not found here, try…
- Formed 1875
- Parent / earlier jurisdiction New Hanover — check district-era records before this county existed (districts guide).
Neighboring counties (deeds, marriages, newspapers, and kin often cross the line):
Local history & events
- Pender County Museum preserves more than a century of local history inside Burgaw’s oldest brick building - WWAYTV3
- Pender County Museum showcases evolution of healthcare through new exhibit - WWAYTV3
- From Basket Weaving to Oyster Reef Conservation, Gullah Geechee Women Are Preserving a Living Heritage - Smithsonian Magazine
Sources & further reading
- NCpedia — Pender County
- David Leroy Corbitt, The Formation of the North Carolina Counties, 1663–1943
- William S. Powell, The North Carolina Gazetteer
- State Archives of North Carolina
- DigitalNC — Pender County
- Chronicling America (Library of Congress)
- FamilySearch Wiki · NCGenWeb