Chatham County Probate Records

Chatham County was established in 1771 from Orange County, having been named for William Pitt in 1759, the first Earl of Chatham. It was Pitt who served as the British Prime Minister from 1766 to 1768 and opposed harsh colonial policies. The earliest known settlers were Quakers from England who settled along the Haw and Eno rivers. In 1907, parts of Chatham County and Moore County were combined to form Lee County. The county seat is in Pittsboro, North Carolina and Chatham County is part of the Durham-Chapel Hill area.

Among the first settlers were the families of Armistead, Alston, Dodd, Kemp, Edwards, Womack, Brewer, Lambeth, Taylor, Fooshee, Waddell, and Patrick.