Fulton County, Indiana Genealogy

United States

Indiana

Fulton County

Guide to Fulton County, Indiana ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Indiana Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Rochester Organized: February 7, 1835 Parent County(s): Unorganized Territory Neighboring Counties Starke  • Marshall  • Kosciusko  • Wabash  • Miami  • Cass  • Pulaski See County Maps Courthouse Location Map Adoption Adopt-a-wiki page This page adopted by: Indiana Genealogical Society who welcome you to contribute. Adopt a page today

County Information

Description

Fulton County was named in honor of Robert Fulton, inventor of the steamboat. It is located in the north-central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Fulton County Courthouse
815 Main Street
Rochester, IN 46975
Phone: 219-223-2911
County Website

Fulton County Health Department
125 East 9th Street, Suite. 004
Rochester, IN, 46975
Health Officer: David Reyburn, MD
Phone Number: 574-223-2881
Fax: 574-223-2335
Health Department

County Clerk has marriage, divorce, probate and court records from 1836.
County Health Department has birth and death records.
County recorder has land records.

Fulton County, Indiana Record Dates

Information for this chart was taken from various sources, often containing conflicting dates. This information should be taken as a guide and should be verified by contacting the county and/or the state government agency.

Known Beginning Dates for Major County Records
Birth*	Marriage	Death*	Court	Land	Probate	Census
1882	1836	1882	1836	1836	1836	1807
*Statewide registration for births in 1907 and deaths in Oct 1899. General compliance by 1917.

Record Loss

There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county.

Boundary Changes

Parent Counties: Formed February 7, 1835 from unorganized territory (Cass/Elkhart/St. Joseph) County Seat: Rochester Interactive Map of Indiana County Formation History (1790-1897) - animated maps illustrating Indiana county boundary changes Indiana Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library

Populated Places

For a complete list of populated places, including small neighborhoods and suburbs, visit HomeTown Locator. The following are the most historically and genealogically relevant populated places in this county:

Cities
Rochester
Towns
Akron Athens Delong	Fulton Grass Creek Kewanna	Leiters Ford Tiosa
Townships
Aubbeenaubbee Henry Liberty	Newcastle Richland Rochester	Union Wayne

Resources

Biographies

• Indiana Biography Index at Indiana State Library

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Fulton County, Indiana online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find A Grave INGenWeb INGenWeb Archives Tombstone Project Billion Graves
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	Family History Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Findagrave.com FamilySearch Places
See Indiana Cemeteries for more information.

Census Records

For tips on accessing Fulton County census records online, see: Indiana Census.

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1840	1,993	—
1850	5,982	200.2%
1860	9,422	57.5%
1870	12,726	35.1%
1880	14,301	12.4%
1890	16,746	17.1%
1900	17,453	4.2%
1910	16,879	−3.3%
1920	16,478	−2.4%
1930	15,038	−8.7%
1940	15,577	3.6%
1950	16,565	6.3%
1960	16,957	2.4%
1970	16,984	0.2%
1980	19,335	13.8%
1990	18,840	−2.6%
2000	20,511	8.9%
2010	20,836	1.6%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

• Census transcripts (Fulton County Public Library):

• Census 1840
• Census 1850
• Census 1860
• Census 1870
• Census 1880
• Census 1900 Part 1
• Census 1900 Part 2
• Census 1910 Part 1
• Census 1910 Part 2
• Census 1920 Part 1
• Census 1920 Part 2
• Census 1930 Part 1
• Census 1930 Part 2

• Early Settlers of Fulton County at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
• Index to Mortality Schedule (1860) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
• Index to Defective, Dependent & Delinquent Census at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)

Church Records

Most church records are held by individual churches. For contact information, check a phone directory, such as SearchBug or Dex Knows. Some denominations are gathering their records into a central repository. For more information about these major repositories, see Indiana Church Records.
List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places
  

Directories

• Directory of Businesses in Fulton County, Indiana (1858, 1868) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)

Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups

• 28th US Colored Troops, Addition Recruits for Colored Troops

Land and Property Records

Land and property records can place an ancestor in a particular location, provide economic information, and reveal family relationships. Land records include: deeds, abstracts and indexes, mortgages, leases, grants and land patents. See Indiana Land and Property for additional information about early Indiana land grants and patents.

After land was transferred from the government to private ownership, subsequent transactions were recorded at the Fulton County courthouse, where records are currently housed.

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Fulton County. County histories may include biographies; church, school and government histories; and military information. For more information about local histories, see Indiana Local Histories.

• History of Indiana from its Exploration to 1922 : Also an Account of Fulton County from its Organization. 1923. By Henry A. Barnhart, and also Logan Esarey. Dayton, Ohio : Dayton Historical Pub. Co., 1923. Online at: Hathitrust, Google Books; At various libraries (WorldCat). Vol. 3 is the account of Fulton County.

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Historic Indiana Maps at IUPUI University Library
• Old Antique Atlases & Maps of Indiana
• Historic Indiana Atlases for Fulton County at University Library (IUPUI)
• FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

• Military Record Series Index at Indiana Digital Archives
• List of Pensioners on the Roll January 1, 1883 Fulton County, Indiana - Internet Archive

Civil War
Civil War service men from Fulton County served in various regiments. Men often joined a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are companies that were specifically formed in Fulton County

• 5th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry (90th Regiment, Indiana Volunteers), Company I
• 9th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Reorganized Company G
• 26th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company A
• 29th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies D, and H
• 46th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company K
• 87th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies A, D, E, and F
• 128th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company G
• 155th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies A, and G
• 28th US Colored Troops, Addition Recruits for Colored Troops

Civil War Books:

• "Military" Chapter 5 in Barnhart, Henry A. 1981. *Barnhart, Henry A. 1981. History of Indiana from its exploration to 1922. (Rochester, Ind. (700 Pontiac St., Rochester, Ind., 46975): Tombaugh Pub. House. ); also Barnhart, Henry A., and Logan Esarey. 1923. An account of Fulton County: from its organization. (Dayton, Ohio: Dayton Historical Pub. Co.). Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library; 977.287 H2a FHL US/CAN Book FHL Collection.

World War I

• 1917-1918 World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 Fulton County at Ancestry $
• 1919 Indiana, World War I, Enrollment Cards, 1919 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

World War II

• Fulton County, Indiana World War II Casualties - NARA
• Fulton County, Indiana Handbook, Service Men, World War II, 1940-1943. By Wendell C. and John B. Tombaugh. 2001. Rochester, Indiana: Tombaugh House.

Naturalization and Citizenship

• Naturalization Record Series (for this county) at Indiana Digital Archives. Search by names.

Newspapers

Indiana newspapers may contain genealogical value including obituaries, births, marriages, deaths, anniversaries, family gatherings, family travel, achievements, business notices, engagement information, and probate court proceedings.

For more Indiana newspaper information see the wiki page Indiana Newspapers.

• 1800s-1999 U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-1999 at Ancestry - index ($)
• Hoosier State Chronicles

Probate Records

In most counties in Indiana, probate records have been kept by the county clerk of the circuit court. They include wills, fee books, claim registers, legacy records, inheritance records, probate ticklers, and dockets. The records are available at the Fulton County courthouse. For more information, see Indiana Probate Records.

• 1798-1999 Indiana Wills and Probate Records 1798-1999 at Ancestry $

School Records

School Records

• Alumni of Rochester High School, Fulton County, Indiana (1878-1912) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
• Students of Rochester High School, Fulton County, Indiana (1913) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
• Teachers of Rochester High School, Fulton County, Indiana (1913) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)

Social Security Records

• 1935-2014 United States Social Security Death Index at FamilySearch - How to use this collection; index. Also at Ancestry, findmypast, Fold3, GenealogyBank, MyHeritage, and Steve Morse. Click here for more information.
• 1936-2007 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 at Ancestry ($) — index, click here for more information.

Tax Records

Indiana tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses or to supplement the years between censuses. Because only persons who owned taxable property were listed, many residents were not included in tax lists. There may also be gaps of several years in the tax records of some counties. For more information see the wiki page Indiana Taxation.

Vital Records

Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Indiana law in 1882 required registration of births and deaths in counties. The Indiana Department of Health has birth records filed after October 1907 and death records filed after January 1900 for deaths. Copies may be obtained from the county health department or the Indiana State Division of Vital Records.

Marriage

• 1780-1992 Indiana Marriages, 1780-1992 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection; Also at: MyHeritage ($)
• 1800s-2007 Indiana, United States Marriages at Findmypast $
• 1802-1892 Indiana Marriages, 1802-1892 at Ancestry $
• 1811-1959 Indiana, Marriages, 1811-1959 at MyHeritage - index and images, ($)
• 1811-2007 Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Death

• Pre-1882 WEB: Indiana, Deaths, Pre-1882 at Ancestry.com - index, (Free collection)
• 1750-1993 Indiana Deaths and Burials, 1750-1993 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
  
• 1882-1920 Indiana, Death Index, 1882-1920 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
  
• 1899-2011 Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011 at Ancestry ($)

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Fulton County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Indiana Archives and Libraries.

Family History Centers

Family History Center and Affiliate Library Locator map - search for local Family History Centers or Affiliate Libraries

• Family History Centers provide one-on-one assistance, free access to center-only databases, and to premium genealogical websites.
• FamilySearch Affiliate Libraries have access to most center-only databases, but may not always have full services normally provided by a family history center.
  

Local Centers and Affiliate Libraries

• Fort Wayne Indiana Family History Center
• Huntington Indiana Family History Center
• South Bend Indiana Family History Center
• Allen County Public Library - an affiliate library.
• Huntington City - Township Public Library - an affiliate library.
• Pulaski County Public Library - an affiliate library.
• Starke County Public Library - an affiliate library.

Libraries

Listed below are libraries in Fulton County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Indiana Archives and Libraries.

Societies

Listed below are societies in Fulton County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Indiana Societies.

Fulton County Historical Society
37 E 375 N
Rochester, IN 46975
Phone: 574-223-4436
Website

Websites

• Indiana Digital Archives Search by name in all records or specific collections
• Indiana Historical Society Digital Collections Search by county or keyword
• Indiana Memory Click the map or select a statewide collection
• List of indexes and databases at Indiana State Library
• Indiana Genealogical Society Databases Free and Members-only. Select a county
• EveryNameIndex.com for Indiana Free online genealogy indexes for county histories. Select a county.
• USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
• Fulton County, Indiana Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
• FamilySearch Catalog – The FamilySearch catalog contains descriptions and access information for all genealogical materials (including books, online materials, microfilm, microfiche, and publications) in their collection.  Use Historical Records to search for specific individuals in genealogical records.

This website requires a paid subscription for full access.

Family History Library

The collection is free on this subscription website.

FamilySearch affiliate libraries may have access to center-only databases, but do not always have all services normally provided by a family history center.