Adams County, Indiana Genealogy
Guide to Adams County, Indiana ancestry, genealogy and family history, birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.
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Contents
- 1 County Information
- 2 Resources
- 2.1 Bible Records
- 2.2 Biographies
- 2.3 Business, Commerce, and Occupations
- 2.4 Cemeteries
- 2.5 Census Records
- 2.6 Church Records
- 2.7 Court Records
- 2.8 Directories
- 2.9 Emigration and Immigration
- 2.10 Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups
- 2.11 Funeral Homes
- 2.12 Genealogies
- 2.13 Guardianship
- 2.14 Land and Property Records
- 2.15 Local Histories
- 2.16 Maps and Gazetteers
- 2.17 Migration
- 2.18 Military Records
- 2.19 Naturalization and Citizenship
- 2.20 Newspapers
- 2.21 Obituaries
- 2.22 Other Records
- 2.23 Periodicals
- 2.24 Probate Records
- 2.25 School Records
- 2.26 Social Security Records
- 2.27 Tax Records
- 2.28 Vital Records
- 3 Research Facilities
- 4 Societies
- 5 Websites
- 6 Research Guides
- 7 References
County Information[edit | edit source]
Description[edit | edit source]
Adams County was named in honor of President John Quincy Adams. It is located in the northeastern area of the state.[1]
County Courthouse[edit | edit source]
Adams County Courthouse
112 S 2nd Street
Decatur, IN 46733
Phone: 219-724-2600
County Website
Adams County Health Department
313 West Jefferson Street
Decatur, IN, 46733
Phone Number: 260-724-5326
Fax: 260-724-5328
Email: hdegitz@co.adams.in.us
Health Department
County Clerk has marriage, divorce, probate and court records. [2]
Health Department has birth records filed and death records filed.
Copies may be obtained from the county health department or the Indiana State Division of Vital Records.
Adams County, Indiana Record Dates[edit | edit source]
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.
| Birth* | Marriage | Death* | Court | Land | Probate | Census |
| 1882 | 1836 | 1882 | 1844 | 1837 | 1838 | 1807 |
Record Loss[edit | edit source]
|
There is no known history of courthouse disasters in this county. |
Boundary Changes[edit | edit source]
|
Populated Places[edit | edit source]
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:[5]
| Cities | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
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| Townships | ||
History Timeline[edit | edit source]
Resources[edit | edit source]
Bible Records[edit | edit source]
Biographies[edit | edit source]
Business, Commerce, and Occupations[edit | edit source]
Cemeteries[edit | edit source]
- The Allen County Public Library's Genealogy Center has numerous transcriptions of Adams County cemeteries on its website.
Census Records[edit | edit source]
For tips on accessing Adams County census records online, see: Indiana Census.
| Historical populations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± |
| 1840 | 2,264 | — |
| 1850 | 5,797 | 156.1% |
| 1860 | 9,252 | 59.6% |
| 1870 | 11,382 | 23.0% |
| 1880 | 15,385 | 35.2% |
| 1890 | 20,181 | 31.2% |
| 1900 | 22,232 | 10.2% |
| 1910 | 21,840 | −1.8% |
| 1920 | 20,503 | −6.1% |
| 1930 | 19,957 | −2.7% |
| 1940 | 21,254 | 6.5% |
| 1950 | 22,393 | 5.4% |
| 1960 | 24,643 | 10.0% |
| 1970 | 26,871 | 9.0% |
| 1980 | 29,619 | 10.2% |
| 1990 | 31,095 | 5.0% |
| 2000 | 33,625 | 8.1% |
| 2010 | 34,387 | 2.3% |
| Source: "Wikipedia.org". | ||
- Index of 1840 Census for Adams County, Indiana at Indiana Genealogical Society
- Index of 1850 Census for Adams County, Indiana at Indiana Genealogical Society
- Index to Mortality Schedule for Adams County, Indiana (1860) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
- Index to Defective, Dependent & Delinquent Census for Adams County, Indiana (1880) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
Church Records[edit | edit source]
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.
Court Records[edit | edit source]
- Old Courthouse Records - INGenWeb
Directories[edit | edit source]
- Adams County, Indiana, index of names of persons and of firms. 1937. Historical Records Survey (Indiana) United States. Works Progress Administration (Indiana). Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library.
- Early Settlers of Adams County at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
Emigration and Immigration[edit | edit source]
Ethnic, Political, and Religious Groups[edit | edit source]
Funeral Homes[edit | edit source]
Genealogies[edit | edit source]
Guardianship[edit | edit source]
Land and Property Records[edit | edit source]
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 Adams County courthouse, where records are currently housed.
Local Histories[edit | edit source]
Local histories are available for Adams County. County histories may include biographies; church, school and government histories; and military information. For more information about local histories, see Indiana Local Histories.
- Biographical and Historical Record of Adams and Wells Counties, Indiana. 1887. Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library Book, Internet Archive; At various libraries (WorldCat).
- Reminiscences of Adams, Jay and Randolph Counties, Indiana. [1896?] By Martha C. M. Lynch. Fort Wayne, Indiana : Lipes, Nelson & Singmaster. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Hathitrust, Internet Archive.
- A Short, Short Story of Adams County, Indiana. 1956. By French Quinn. Berne, Indiana : Economy Printing Concern. Online at: Internet Archive; At various libraries (WorldCat).
- Snow's History of Adams County Indiana. 1907. By J. F. Snow. Indianapolis, Ind. : B.F. Bowen. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library, Internet Archive, Google Books; At various libraries (WorldCat).
- Standard History of Adams and Wells Counties Indiana. 2 Vols. 1918. By John W. Tyndall & Orlo E. Lesh. Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co. Online at: FamilySearch Digital Library (2 volumes in 1), Vol. 1 - Internet Archive, Vol. 2 - Internet Archive; At various libraries (WorldCat).
Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]
for more resources
Migration[edit | edit source]
Military Records[edit | edit source]
Civil War
- Adams County, Indiana List of Pensioners on the Roll January 1, 1883 at Internet Archive
Civil War service men from Adams County served in various regiments. Men often joined a regiment or a company (within a regiment) that originated in their county. Listed below are the military units that were formed in or had many men from Adams County.
- 6th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry, Company B
- 8th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry, Company C
- 11th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry, Company C
- 13th Regiment, Indiana Cavalry, Company G
- 30th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Reorganized Company D
- 47th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company C
- 57th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company D
- 89th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Companies H, I, and K
- 139th Regiment, Indiana Infantry (100 days, 1864), Company I
- 147th Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company F
- 153rd Regiment, Indiana Infantry, Company E
World War I (The Great War), 1914-1918
- World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 Adams County - INGenWeb, Ancestry($)
- Adams County WWI Ancestral Heroes
- 1919 Indiana, World War I, Enrollment Cards, 1919 at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection
World War II, 1941-1945
- Adams County, Indiana World War II Casualties, Army and Army Air Corps - AccessGenealogy
- USGenWeb Archives Adams County Military - USGenWeb
Naturalization and Citizenship[edit | edit source]
- Naturalization Record Series (for this county) at Indiana Digital Archives. Search by names.
Newspapers[edit | edit source]
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.
Obituaries[edit | edit source]
Other Records[edit | edit source]
Periodicals[edit | edit source]
Probate Records[edit | edit source]
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 Adams County courthouse. For more information, see Indiana Probate Records.
- 1798-1999 Indiana Wills and Probate Records 1798-1999 at Ancestry $
School Records[edit | edit source]
- Graduates of Common Schools in Adams County, Indiana (1912) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
- School Enumeration of Union Township, Adams County, Indiana (1853) at Indiana Genealogical Society ($)
- Eighth Grade Commencement, 1938 at Allen County Public Library GenealogyCenter
Social Security Records[edit | edit source]
- 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[edit | edit source]
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[edit | edit source]
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.
Birth[edit | edit source]
- 1882-1920 Index to Birth Records Adams County at INGenWeb
Marriage[edit | edit source]
- 1780-1992 Indiana Marriages, 1780-1992 at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection
- 1800s-2007 Indiana, United States Marriages at FindMyPast $
- 1802-1892 Indiana Marriages, 1802-1892 at Ancestry $
- 1811-2007 Indiana Marriages, 1811-2007 at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection
Death[edit | edit source]
- 1750-1993 Indiana Deaths and Burials, 1750-1993 at FamilySearch- How to Use this Collection
- 1870-2000 Index to Death Record Adams County INGenWeb
- 1882-1920 Indiana Death Index Transcription of WPA Death Index, 1882-1920
- 1882-1920 Indiana, Death Index, 1882-1920 at FamilySearch - Index only - How to Use this Collection
- 1899-2011 Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011 at Ancestry ($)
Divorce[edit | edit source]
Research Facilities[edit | edit source]
Archives[edit | edit source]
Listed below are archives in Adams County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Indiana Archives and Libraries.
Family History Centers[edit | edit source]
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
Libraries[edit | edit source]
Listed below are libraries in Adams County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Indiana Archives and Libraries.
Museums[edit | edit source]
Societies[edit | edit source]
Listed below are societies in Adams County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Indiana Societies.
Adams County Historical Society
420 West Monroe Street /PO Box 262
Decatur, IN 46733
Phone: 260-724-3493
Website Facebook
Adams County Indiana Genealogical Society
PO Box 33
Geneva, IN 46740-0033
Swiss Heritage Society
PO Box 88
Berne, IN 46711-0088
Phone: 260-589-8007
Email: anitamiller@swissheritage.org
Website
Indiana Genealogical Society
P.O. Box 10507
Fort Wayne, Indiana 46852-0507
Website
Websites[edit | edit source]
- 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.
- Adams County, Indiana Genealogy and Family History (Linkpendium)
- GenealogyTrails Adams County, IN
- InGenWeb Adams County Indiana
- 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.
Research Guides[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Adams County," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adams_County,_Indiana accessed 2/27/2017.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Indiana.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Handybook for Genealogists: United States of America, 10th ed. (Draper, Utah: Everton Pub., 2002), Indiana.At various libraries (WorldCat); FHL Book 973 D27e 2002.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Adams County, Indiana" in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adams_County,_Indiana (accessed 10 May 2012).
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Adams County, Indiana," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adams_County%2C_Indiana, accessed 19 November 2019.
