Genealogy – Buncombe County

The Old Buncombe County Genealogical Society was founded in 1980 as a nonprofit cultural organization. Their purpose is to provide genealogical education through publications, workshops, a library, and research support.

The original Buncombe County included those areas presently known as Buncombe, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Madison, Transylvania and Counties, and the western part of Yancey, McDowell and Polk Counties. Macon, Clay, Cherokee, Graham, & Swain were still Cherokee Indian Lands until 1819 and 1835. For our purposes, however, we consider them a part of Old Buncombe County, as many families moved into these areas before they were officially acquired from the Cherokee. The main area served by Old Buncombe County Genealogical Society encompasses the territory included in the original Buncombe County created by act of the General Assembly of North Carolina at its session of 1791-92 and ratified on January 9, 1792.