Lancaster County—known as America’s Garden Spot or Pennsylvania Dutch Country—was one of the earliest settled areas of Pennsylvania. Founded officially in 1729, parts of it were settled as early as 1710. It’s original boundaries included the present-day counties of Berks, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lebanon, Northumberland, and York. The original settlers included Germans, Scotch-Irish, French traders, as well as the English.
Land was wealth to our ancestors. As a record of the transfer of land, a deed can be genealogical goldmine to the family historian. Not only does a deed put a person in a specific place at a specific time, but it can inform us of relationships between buyer, seller, and sometimes previous even owners; name spouses, occupations, and neighbors; and provide clues as to the affluence—or lack thereof—of those involved.
Digital images of Lancaster County deeds from 1729 through 1986 are available online through the county’s Recorder of Deeds. However, only those from 1981 onwards are searchable. This book provides a full-name index to buyer (grantor) and seller (grantee) for deed books A through D, covering the period from 1729 through 1760. Each listing includes the names of grantor and grantee, the book, the date the deed was written, the date it was recorded, and both page number and image number for easy access to the correct online file.
