Decatur County GenWeb

by Janet Ketchum Armbrust, Mount Vernon, WA This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The lovely Decatur County courthouse, in the center of town with a landmark tree growing from its tower, contains the County Clerk's office which holds marriage records, probate records, "complete record books," naturalization records, records of civil suits, divorce records, license records, some taxation and school records and more. Many, but not all, of these records were filmed some years ago by the Indiana State Library and are available on microfilm for inter-library loan from that facility in Indianapolis. Some of these microfilmed records are among the holdings of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City and may be available through local Family History Centers.
The courthouse also contains the County Assessor's office which maintains the records of land sales, purchases and mortgages in a lengthy series of deed books. Of particular value are the Grantor Indexes and the Grantee Indexes, which contain alphabetical entries of the grantors (sellers) and the grantees (purchasers) of Decatur County property. Among the deeds of conveyance (actual land sales) may be found an occasional personal property entry reflecting a mortgage contract between two parties. Additionally, the Assessor's office holds original issues of assorted Decatur County newspapers in bound volumes. Like the records of the Clerk's office, most of the information from the Assessor's office has been microfilmed by the Indiana State Library and can be accessed at, or obtained from, the ISL in Indianapolis. Some microfilms of this material are within the collection of the Family History Library as well. An inexpensive, comprehensive map of Decatur County is available at the courthouse. Since the office that keeps such maps may change from time to time, it would be best to inquire at the time of a research visit about the map's availability and place for purchase.

Microfilmed copies of Decatur County newspapers are available in the Local History Room of the public library in Greensburg. Two microfilm reader/printers make copying obituaries and other information from the newspapers possible. The facility also contains compilations of county cemetery records, printed indexes to some county marriage and death records, local genealogies and histories, regional maps and broader spectrum genealogical aids. Library personnel will provide access to this research facility.

South Park Cemetery, the largest burial ground in Decatur County, has an office where a researcher can obtain assistance in finding ancestral burial locations. Having searched probate records and obtained obituary information, a researcher can simply provide the date of death and the name of an ancestor to receive direction to the gravesite. Other county cemeteries may or may not have an office, but all are accessible with the aid of the aforementioned county map obtainable at the courthouse.

Church records are extant in Decatur County in varying degrees of ease of accessibility. In Greensburg, the larger churches such as the United Methodist, Presbyterian and Baptist have excellent original records and fine staff people who can direct a researcher to them. Smaller churches, as well as those in the county, must be approached individually. In some cases the records have not been used for many years, and will have been relegated to an out-of-the-way location within the church or may have been moved to the home of one of the members. Church records are so valuable that it will be to a researcher's advantage to track them down.

County birth and death records may be obtained at the Decatur County Health Department. These records are not available for perusing. A clerk will get an individual record upon request and will, upon payment of the required fee, prepare a certificate (or copy of the original if requested) for the individual in question. Unfortunately, death registrations were not required in the early history of the county, so availibility is limited prior to 1900, at which time the state began recording deaths, and 1907, when the state began recording births.

Last, but by no means least, is my suggestion to use the Decatur County telephone directory. There is every reason to contact people living in the county who bear surnames of interest. It is more usual than not for descendants of pioneer county ancestors to continue to reside in the county. Decatur County citizens are friendly, helpful and wonderful. The "cousins" whom a researcher will find in this special place will become friends for life. Take it from one who knows!