Mercer County, Ohio Genealogy

United States

Ohio

Mercer County

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

Ohio Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Celina Organized: January 2, 1824 Parent County(s): Darke Neighboring Counties Van Wert  • Auglaize  • Shelby  • Darke  • Randolph (IN)  • Jay (IN)  • Adams (IN) Courthouse Location Map Adoption This page is available for adoption

County Information

Description

The county was named Hugh Mercer, an officer in the American Revolutionary War. It is located in the West-Central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Mercer County Courthouse
101 N Main St
PO Box 28
Celina, OH 45822
Phone: 419-586-6461
Mercer County Website

Probate Judge has birth and death records 1867-1908,
Marriage records from 1830 and probate records from 1829;
Clerk Court has court records from 1824;
County Recorder has land records.

Mercer County, Ohio 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
1867	1830	1867	1824	1823	1829	1820
Statewide registration for births and deaths started in 1908. General compliance year is unknown.

Record Loss

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

Boundary Changes

Parent Counties: Formed from Darke County 12 February 1820. County Seat: Celina Organization Date: January 2, 1824 Interactive Map of Ohio County Formation History (1790-1897) - animated maps illustrating Ohio county boundary changes Ohio 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
Celina (county seat)
Villages
Burkettsville Chickasaw Coldwater	Fort Recovery Mendon Montezuma	Rockford St. Henry
Unincorporated communities
Carthagena Cassella Chattanooga Cranberry Prairie Erastus Macedon	Maria Stein Mercer Monterey Neptune Padua Philothea	Saint Joseph St. Rose Sebastian Sharpsburg Wabash Wendelin
Townships
Black Creek Butler Center Dublin Franklin	Gibson Granville Hopewell Jefferson Liberty	Marion Recovery Union Washington

Resources

Bible Records

For an extensive list of resources for Bible Records see Ohio Bible Records.

Cemeteries

Cemeteries of Mercer County, Ohio online and in print
Tombstone Transcriptions Online	Find A Grave US GenWeb Interment USGenWeb Tombstone Transcription Project Billion Graves OHGenWeb Tombstone Photo Project Ohio Gravestones
Tombstone Transcriptions in Print (Often more complete)	Family History Library WorldCat
List of Cemeteries in the County	Find A Grave FamilySearch Places
See Ohio Cemeteries for more information.

 

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1820	95	—
1830	1,110	1068.4%
1840	8,277	645.7%
1850	7,712	−6.8%
1860	14,104	82.9%
1870	17,254	22.3%
1880	21,808	26.4%
1890	27,220	24.8%
1900	28,021	2.9%
1910	27,536	−1.7%
1920	26,872	−2.4%
1930	25,096	−6.6%
1940	26,256	4.6%
1950	28,311	7.8%
1960	32,559	15.0%
1970	35,265	8.3%
1980	38,334	8.7%
1990	39,443	2.9%
2000	40,924	3.8%
2010	40,814	−0.3%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

Church Records

Church records and the information they provide vary significantly depending on the denomination and the record keeper. They may contain information about members of the congregation, such as age, date of baptism, christening, or birth; marriage information and maiden names; and death date. For general information about Ohio denominations, see Ohio Church Records.
List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places
  

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 Ohio Land and Property for additional information about early Ohio land grants. After land was transferred to private ownership, subsequent transactions were usually recorded at the county courthouse and where records are currently housed.

Local Histories

Local histories are available for this county. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see Ohio Local Histories.

• Scranton, S.S., History of Mercer County, Ohio and Representative Citizens, (Chicago, Illinois: Biographical Pub. Co., 1907). Digital copy at Google Books, FamilySearch Digital Library
• Gilberg, Bronsart H., History of Mercer County, Ohio, (Fort Wayne, Indiana: Allen County Public Library, 1989). FHL film 1320898 Item 15; book 977.1415 H2g
• Alig, Jocye L., Mercer County, Ohio, History (Celina, Ohio: Mercer County Historical Society, 1980). FHL book 977.1415 H2m

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of Ohio (1788-1940) at MapofUS.org
• Township and Plat Maps at Historic Map Works
• Surrounding County Map (1868-1872) at David Rumsey Maps
• FamilySearch Places: Map of cities and towns in this county - How to Use FS Places

Military Records

• 1888-1919 Ohio Soldier Home Records, 1888-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.

World War I

• 1914-1918 Ohio, World War I, Enrollment Cards, 1914-1918 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1914-1919 Ohio, World War I Statement of Service Cards, 1914-1919 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection
• 1916-1920 Ohio, WWI Index and Return Cards, 1916-1920 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.

Naturalization and Citizenship

Online Naturalization Indexes and Records

• 1800-1977 Ohio, County Naturalization Records, 1800-1977 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.

Newspapers

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

• For more online Ohio newspapers index and images, see Ohio Newspapers.
• 1888-present Minster Post/Community Post at Minister Historical Society - Newspaper covering communities within Auglaize, Shelby, Mercer, and Darke Counties
• 1793-late 1900's Newspapers at Ohio History Connection — Select county.
• 1793-2009 Ohio Newspapers, 1793-2009 at MyHeritage — index & images, ($)
• Early-late 1900's Newspapers at Ohio Memory — sort by County, City, Time Period, and more.
• Community History Archive at Coldwater Public Library
• Newspaper Archive at Minster Historical Society

Probate Records

From 1797 or the creation of the county, probate records were held by the Court of Common Pleas. After 1852, records are held by the Mercer County Probate Court. Records include wills, estates, guardianships, naturalizations, marriage, adoption, and birth and death records (1867-1908 only). The records may give the decedent's date of death, name of spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their place of residence.

See Ohio Probate Records for information about how to use probate records.

Online Probate Indexes and Records

• 1786-1998 Ohio, Wills and Probate Records 1786-1998 at Ancestry ($) — index and images.
• 1789-1996 Ohio Probate Records 1789-1996 at FamilySearch.org — How to Use this Collection.

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

Ohio tax records complement land records and can be used in place of censuses before 1820 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.

Online Tax Indexes and Records

• 1800-1850 Ohio Tax Records, 1800-1850 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1800-1850 Ohio Tax Records, 1800-1850 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Vital Records

Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Marriages were usually recorded from the formation of the county and are held at the office of the County Probate Court. Divorce records are located with the county Clerk of Courts.

Any existing birth and death records from 1867 through December 19, 1908 are located at the County Probate Court. The Ohio Department of Health has birth records filed after December 20, 1908 and death records filed after January 1, 1954, while the Ohio History Connection houses death records from December 20, 1908 through December 31, 1953.

Birth

• 1841-2003 Ohio, County Births, 1841-2003 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1908-1998 Ohio, Birth Index, 1908-1998 at Ancestry ($) — Index
• 1959-1998 Ohio, Birth Index, 1959-1998 at MyHeritage - index ($)

Marriage

• 1789-2013 Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1800-1942 Ohio Marriages, 1800-1942 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1800-1958 Ohio Marriages, 1800-1958 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1970-2003 Ohio, Marriages, 1970 - 2003 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Death

• 1833-1967 Ohio, Church and Civil Deaths, 1833-1967 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection; index
• 1840-2001 Ohio, County Death Records, 1840-2001 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1854-1997 Ohio Deaths and Burials, 1854-1997 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1908-1953 Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection.
• 1908-1932, 1938–1944, and 1958–2007 Ohio Death Index, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, and 1958-2007 at FamilySearch – How to Use this Collection
• 1908-1932, 1938-2018 Ohio, Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2018 at Ancestry ($) — index and images
• 1913-1944, 1954-1963 Ohio Death Index, 1913-1944, 1954-1963 at MyHeritage ($) — index

Divorce

• 1962-2007 Ohio, Divorce Abstracts, 1962-1963, 1967-1971, 1973-2007 at Ancestry ($)

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Mercer County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Ohio 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

• St Marys Ohio Family History Center
• Piqua Public Library - an affiliate library

Libraries

Listed below are libraries in Mercer County. For state-wide library facilities, see Ohio Archives and Libraries.

Coldwater Public Library
305 W Main St
Coldwater, OH 45828-1604
419-678-2431
Website

Fort Recovery Public Library
113 N Wayne St
PO Box 309
Fort Recovery, OH 45846
419-375-2869
Website

Mercer County District Public Library
Main Branch
303 N Main St
Celina, OH 45822-1698
419-586-4442
Website

Rockford Carnegie Library
162 S Main St
PO Box 330
Rockford, OH 45882
419-363-2630
Website

Museums

Mercer County Historical Museum Celina
130 E Market St
Celina, OH 45822
419-586-6065
Website

Fort Recovery State Museum
1 Fort Site St
PO Box 533
Fort Recovery, OH 45846
419-375-4649
800-283-8920
Website

The Shrine of the Holy Relics
2291 St Johns Rd
Maria Stein, OH 45860
419-925-4532
E-mail:info@mariasteinshrine.org
Website

Societies

Listed below are societies in Mercer County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Ohio Societies.

Mercer County Chapter of OGS
PO Box 437
Celina, OH 45822
E-mail:mercerogsonline@gmail.com
Website

Websites

• Local Gov't Records by County at Ohio History Connection — Browse their list; records are not online.
• Custom Browse of Historical Collections at Ohio Memory — Use map or alpha bar to select county or place, then browse search options in left sidebar.
• Ohio Genealogical Society ($) — online databases
• Mercer County OH Genealogy at LDS Genealogy
• USGenWeb project. May have maps, name indexes, history or other information for this county. Select the state, then the county.
• 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.

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