Calhoun County, Michigan Genealogy

United States

Michigan

Calhoun County

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

Michigan Online Genealogy Records

County Facts County seat: Marshall Organized: October 19, 1829 Parent County(s): Potawatomi Land Neighboring Counties Barry  • Branch  • Eaton  • Hillsdale  • Jackson  • Kalamazoo  • St. Joseph See County Maps Courthouse Location Map Adoption This page is available for adoption

County Information

Description

The County was named for John C. Calhoun. The County is located in the south-central area of the state.

County Courthouse

Calhoun County Courthouse
315 W Green St.
Marshall, MI 49068
Phone: 269-781-0730
Fax: 269-781-0720
Calhoun County Website

County Clerk has birth, marriage, death and court records from 1867, burial records from 1952, naturalization records from 1918, military discharge records from 1919 and election records from 1972.
Probate Court has probate records.

Calhoun County, Michigan 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	1867	1867	1867	1833	1835	1820
*Statewide registration started in 1867 for births and deaths. General compliance by 1915.

Record Loss

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

Boundary Changes

1829--Calhoun County, Michigan was created October 19, 1829 from unorganized territory of Potawatomi Native American land. County seat: Marshall Michigan Historical Boundary Changes - list of all boundary changes by county provided by Newberry Library County Evolution In Michigan, 1790-1897 by Richard W. Welch for the development of the counties in the state. Interactive Map of Michigan County Formation History (1790-1897) - animated maps illustrating Michigan county boundary changes

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
Albion Battle Creek	Marshall	Springfield
Villages
Athens Burlington	Homer Tekonsha	Union City
Unincorporated communities
Albion Landing Babcock Beadle Lake Bedford Bentleys Corners Ceresco Charlotte Landing Clarence Center Clarendon Condit Duck Lake East Leroy	Eckford Greenfield Park Joppa Lee Center Maplehurst Marengo Old Mill Gardens Orchard Park Partello Pennfield Pine Creek Pine Creek Indian Reservation	Rice Creek Sonoma Springfield Place Stanley Corners Sunrise Heights Verona Walnut Point Wattles Park West Leroy Wrights Corners
Census-designated places
Brownlee Park	Level Park-Oak Park
Townships
Albion Athens Bedford Charter Burlington Clarence Clarendon Convis	Eckford Emmett Charter Fredonia Homer Lee Leroy Marengo	Marshall Newton Pennfield Charter Sheridan Tekonsha

Resources

Cemeteries

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

 

• 1799-1999 - Michigan, Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), Cemetery Index, 1799-1999 at FamilySearch — index and images

Census Records

Historical populations
Census	Pop.	%±
1840	10,599	—
1850	19,162	80.8%
1860	29,564	54.3%
1870	36,569	23.7%
1880	38,452	5.1%
1890	43,501	13.1%
1900	49,315	13.4%
1910	56,638	14.8%
1920	72,918	28.7%
1930	87,043	19.4%
1940	94,206	8.2%
1950	120,813	28.2%
1960	138,858	14.9%
1970	141,963	2.2%
1980	141,557	−0.3%
1990	135,982	−3.9%
2000	137,985	1.5%
2010	136,146	−1.3%
Source: "Wikipedia.org".

State Census

• 1850-1880 - Michigan Mortality Schedules, 1850-1880 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1894 Michigan Department of State. Census of the State of Michigan, 1894. Vol 3. Lansing, MI: R. Smith & co., state printers, 1896. (Civil War veterans only) Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library

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 Michigan denominations, view the Michigan Church Records wiki page.

• 1819-1991 - Michigan, Church Records, 1819-1991 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Ward and Branch Records of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

• Battle Creek

List of Churches and Church Parishes

• FamilySearch Places
  

Directories

• 1863-1922 Michigan State Gazetteers and Business Directories at Hathi Trust, images – includes business directories for towns across the state
  

Emigration and Immigration

• 1929-1966 Michigan, Crew Lists for various ports, 1929-1966 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

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

Local Histories

Local histories are available for Calhoun County. County histories may include biographies, church, school and government history, and military information. For more information about local histories, see the wiki page section Michigan Local Histories.

Maps and Gazetteers

Click a neighboring county
for more resources

• Maps of Michigan (1790-1897)
• 1863-1922 Michigan State Gazetteers and Business Directories at Hathi Trust, images – includes business directories for towns across the state
  
• FamilySearch Places:Cities and Towns- How to Use FS Places

Military Records

Civil War
Civil War service men from Calhoun 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 Calhoun County.

- 12th Regiment, Michigan Infantry, Companies D and H

• 1876-1945 - Michigan, Grand Army of the Republic Membership Records, 1876-1945 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1894 Michigan Department of State. Census of the State of Michigan, 1894. Vol 3. Lansing, MI: R. Smith & co., state printers, 1896. (Civil War veterans only) Digital version at FamilySearch Digital Library
• Michigan, Civil War Centennial Observance Commission, Committee on Civil War Grave Registration, Burial Records at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

World War I

• 1917-1919 - Michigan, Census of World War I Veterans with Card Index, 1917-1919 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Naturalization and Citizenship

• 1837-1993 - Michigan, Eastern and Western Districts, Naturalization Records, 1837-1993 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Newspapers

• Digital Michigan Newspapers at Central Michigan University

Obituaries

• 1820-2006 Michigan Obituaries, 1820-2006 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Probate Records

In most counties in Michigan, probate records have been kept by the county judge. They include wills, fee books, claim registers, legacy records, inheritance records, probate packets, and dockets. The records are available at the county courthouse.

Online Probate Indexes and Records

• 1784-1980 Michigan Wills and Probate Records 1784-1980 at Ancestry $
• 1797-1973 Michigan Probate Records 1797-1973 at FamilySearch - 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

Michigan tax records complement land records and can be used 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, Michigan Taxation.

Vital Records

• Birth Records and Death Records from 1867 can be obtained from the Michigan Department of Community Health or the County Clerk's office of the county where the event occurred.
• Marriage Records from 1867 and Divorce Records from 1897 can be obtained from the County Clerk.
  

Birth

• 1867-1917 - Michigan, County Births, 1867-1917 at FamilySearch.com - How to Use this Collection
• 1867-1902 - Michigan Births, 1867-1902 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Marriage

• 1585-1945 - Michigan, United States Marriages at FindMyPast $
• 1820-1937 - Michigan, County Marriages Index, 1820-1937 at FamilySearch.com - How to Use this Collection
• 1820-1940 - Michigan, County Marriages, 1820-1940 at FamilySearch.com - How to Use this Collection
• 1822-1995 - Michigan Marriages - FamilySearch Historical Records at FamilySearch.com
• 1868-1925 - Michigan Marriages, 1868-1925 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection

Death

• 1850-1880 - Michigan Mortality Schedules, 1850-1880 at FamilySearch.com - How to Use this Collection
• 1867-1897 - Michigan Deaths, 1867-1897 at FamilySearch - How to Use this Collection
• 1897-1952 - Michigan Death Records at Michiganology - index and images, organized by county and then last name.

Research Facilities

Archives

Listed below are archives in Calhoun County. For state-wide archival repositories, see Michigan 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

• Battle Creek Michigan Family History Center

Libraries

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

Museums

Regional History Museum of Battle Creek
307 West Jackson Street
Battle Creek, MI 49037
Phone: 269-964-0750
website

Societies

Listed below are societies in Calhoun County. For state-wide genealogical societies, see Michigan Societies.
Calhoun County Genealogical Society
PO Box 879
Marshall, MI 49068-0777
E-mail:MichiganCalhounGene@yahoo.com
Website

Athens Area Historical
101-103 South Capital/PO Box 22
Athens, MI 49011
Phone: 269-729-9228
Facebook website

Historical Society Of Battle Creek
165 N. Washington
Battle Creek, MI 49017
Phone: 269-965-2613

Homer Historical Society
505 Grandview/P.O Box 146
Homer, MI 49245
Phone: 517-568-3116
Website

Websites

The usage of "Mormon" and "LDS" on this page is approved according to current policy.

• Calhoun County, MI-Roots Michigan Roots is a member of the PA-Roots family of websites.
• Calhoun County Genealogical Society
• The Calhoun County MIGenWeb Project, an member of The MIGenWeb Project, an affiliate of The USGenWeb Project.
• Calhoun County MI Genealogy (Michigan Genealogy)
• 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.