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Guide to Adams County Ohio genealogy. Birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Adams County, Ohio
Map
Location in the state of Ohio
Location of Ohio in the U.S.
Courthouse
Address	Adams County Courthouse 110 W. Main St. West Union, Ohio 45693-1347 Adams County Website Phone: 937.544.5547

United States Ohio Adams County

Contents 1 Historical Facts 1.1 Boundary Changes 1.2 Record Loss 2 Resources 2.1 Bible Records 2.2 Biography 2.3 Business Records and Commerce 2.4 Cemeteries 2.5 Census 2.6 Church Records 2.6.1 General 2.7 Court Records 2.8 Emigration and Immigration 2.9 Ethnic, Political, or Religious Groups 2.10 Funeral Homes 2.11 Gazetteers 2.12 Genealogy 2.13 History 2.13.1 Local Histories 2.14 Land and Property 2.15 Maps 2.16 Military 2.16.1 Revolutionary War 2.16.2 War of 1812 2.16.3 Civil War 2.16.4 World War I 2.16.5 World War II 2.17 Naturalization and Citizenship 2.18 Newspapers 2.19 Obituaries 2.20 Periodicals 2.21 Probate Records 2.22 Public Records 2.22.1 Schools 2.23 Repositories 2.23.1 Courthouse 2.23.2 Family History Centers 2.23.3 Libraries 2.23.4 Museums 2.23.5 Societies 2.24  Taxation 2.25 Vital Records 2.25.1 Birth 2.25.2 Marriage 2.25.3 Death 2.25.4 Divorce 3 Web Sites 4 Places 4.1 Populated Places 5 References

Historical Facts

Beginning dates for major county records
Birth	Marriage	Death	Tax	Land	Probate
1888	1910	1888		1797	1849
*For earlier dates, try... Church | Obituaries | Cemeteries

• Parent Counties: Formed from Hamilton and Washington counties in 10 July 1797.^[1]
• County Seat: West Union
  
• Neighboring Counties: Adams County, Ohio residents may also have records in ^[2]Lewis County, Kentucky(south) · Scioto(east) · Pike (northeast) · Brown (west) · Mason County, Kentucky (southwest) · Highland (north)

Boundary Changes

See an interactive map of Adams County boundary changes.

Record Loss

There was a courthouse fire in 1910, resulting in the loss of most of the will books and other probate files, as well as some other records.

Resources

Bible Records

Biography

Adams County Biographies for more information.

Business Records and Commerce

Cemeteries

Burial Information

• The Tombstone Transcription Project (Ohio USGenWeb)
• Digital Images of Adams County, Ohio Gravestones (Search ohiogravestones.org)
  
• Adams County Cemeteries (RootsWeb, some broken links but also some good info)
• Adams County Cemeteries (web content preserved on Archive.org, volunteer transcriptions)
• Cemeteries of Adams County (FindAGrave)
• Cemetery Records for Adams County on FHL Microfilm (See Ordering Microfilm to learn more.)
• Famous Politicians buried in Adams County (PoliticalGraveyard.com)

Cemetery Listings (no burial information)

• GPS Coordinates for Adams County Cemeteries (GenealogyTrails.com)
• List of Adams County Cemeteries (Location information at ePodunk. No burial information.)
  

Cemetery records often reveal birth, marriage, death, relationship, military, and religious information.

Online Grave Transcripts	Published Grave Transcripts	County Cemetery Directories
Findagrave.com	Family History Library	Findagrave.com
Interment.net	WorldCat	Names in Stone
USGenWeb		Billion Graves
Billion Graves		Epodunk
Ohio Gravestones
Names in Stone

See Ohio Cemeteries for more information.

Census

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1800	3,432		—
1810	9,434		174.9%
1820	10,406		10.3%
1830	12,281		18.0%
1840	13,183		7.3%
1850	18,883		43.2%
1860	20,309		7.6%
1870	20,750		2.2%
1880	24,005		15.7%
1890	26,093		8.7%
1900	26,328		0.9%
1910	24,755		−6.0%
1920	22,403		−9.5%
1930	20,381		−9.0%
1940	21,705		6.5%
1950	20,499		−5.6%
1960	19,982		−2.5%
1970	18,957		−5.1%
1980	24,328		28.3%
1990	25,371		4.3%
2000	27,330		7.7%

• Census Index Online
• Census for Adams County
• 1820 United States Federal Census $
• 1830 United States Federal Census $
• 1840 United States Federal Census $
• United States Census 1850
• United States Census Population Schedules, 1850 (FamilySearch Historical Records)
• United States Census 1860
• 1860 United States Federal Census $
• United States Census 1870
• United States Census 1880 (Index only)
• 1880 United States Federal Census $
• United States Census 1900
• 1910 United States Federal Census $
• United States Census 1920
• 1930 United States Federal Census $
• United States Census 1930

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, view the Ohio Church Records wiki page.

General

• Adams County, Ohio Churches
• Topographic Map Church Features in Adams County, Ohio
  

Finding Church Records at Other Repositories

Additional church records can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Adams County, Ohio Church Records in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Family History Library Catalog (For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search).

Court Records

• Adams County Ohio Court Directory
• Many Court and Guardianship Records for Adams County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see topic details.

Emigration and Immigration

Adam County migration records

Ethnic, Political, or Religious Groups

Funeral Homes

• Funeral Homes Near Adams County, Ohio

Gazetteers

Genealogy

History

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

A History of Adams County, Ohio: From Its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time, 1900. (Internet Archive)

Local Histories

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

• A History of Adams County, Ohio From Its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time, including, Character Sketches of the Prominent Persons Identified with the First Century of the County's Growth. By Nelson W. Evans and Emmons B. Stivers.
• Many History Records for Adams County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see topic details.
  
• Adams County Biography (WorldCat)
• Biographical Index
• Adams County, Ohio (WikipediA)
• Historical Collections of Ohio by Henry Howe 1888
• A Book of Clevelanders
• Thompson, Carl N., Thompson's Historical Collections of Adams County, Ohio (West Union, Ohio : Adams County Historical Society (Ohio), c1991) FHL 977.186 H2t

Land and Property

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.

• Many Land Records for Adams County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see topic details.

Finding Land Records at Other Repositories

Additional land records can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Adams County, Ohio Land and Property Records in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Family History Library Catalog(For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search).

Maps

• Adams County, Ohio 1895 U. S. Plat Map
• Adams County, Ohio Map
• Category: Maps of Adams County, Ohio
• Map Showing Adams County, Ohio
• Adams County, Ohio
• Adams County Map
• Many Maps for Adams County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see topic details.

Military

Revolutionary War

• Adams County Military in the Revolutionary War
• Revolutionary Veterans living in Adams County Ohio and Revolutionary Veterans Service Information

War of 1812

War of 1812 Adams County Ohio Veterans

Civil War

• Civl War Research Database $
• Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System
• Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War

World War I

• World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 $

World War II

• U. S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946 $
• U. S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 $
• United States, World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 Collection Description: Images of cards for men, age 45-64 (born 1877-1897), included in the fourth draft conducted on Arpil 27, 1942.

Naturalization and Citizenship

Newspapers

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

To access newspapers, contact public libraries, Ohio Genealogical Society chapters, college or university libraries, the Library of Congress, Google News, or the Ohio Historical Society. The Ohio Genealogical Society Obituary Database is another source of newspaper information.

For more Ohio newspaper information see the Newspaper Guides on the wiki page Ohio Newspapers.

Online Newspapers

• The People's Defender

Online Newspaper Abstracts

• Obituaries and Death Notices

Newspaper Extracts and Abstracts in Book Form
Additional newspapers abstracts can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Adams County, Ohio newspapers in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Do a Adams County, Ohio Place-name search for these and other records in the Family History Library Catalog (For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search).

Obituaries

Periodicals

Probate Records

Probate records created after 1852 are held by the Adams County, Ohio Probate Court. From 1797 or the creation of the county, probate records were held by the Court of Common Pleas. Most counties transferred all records to the Probate Court, but in some circumstances, Court of Common Pleas records should be searched for records prior to 1852. Most records are housed at the Adams County, Ohio Courthouse. Some records are on microfilm at the Ohio Genealogical Society and the Family History Library. For more complete information about the location of county probate records see:

• Carol Willsey Bell, Ohio Wills and Estates to 1850: An Index (1981). ^[3] FamilySearch Books Online - Free online copy.
  

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

Content: Probate Records may give the decedent's date of death, names of his or her spouse, children, parents, siblings, in-laws, neighbors, associates, relatives, and their place of residence.

Record types: Wills, estates, guardianships, naturalizations, marriage, adoption, and birth and death records (1867-1908 only).

• Adams County, Ohio Will Testators
• Adams County Ohio Will Index prior to 1910

• 1790–1967 - Ohio, Probate Records, 1790-1967 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free. This collection consists of probate records and estate files from county courthouses in Ohio. The content and time period varies by county, with more records being added as they become available. This Collection will include records from 1789 to 1996. Currently, (September 2012) the collection is only searchable by browsing the images. A list of Fires that have destroyed records in the courthouses of several counties are listed on the Record Description page.
  

Finding Probate Records at Other Repositories

Additional probate records can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Adams County, Ohio Probate Records in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Family History Library Catalog (For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search).

Public Records

Schools

• Adams County Schools
• School Records
• Many School Records for Adams County have been microfilmed or abstracted. Some of those copies are available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. For a listing of their holdings, see topic details.

Repositories

Courthouse

Adams County Courthouse
110 W. Main St.
West Union, Ohio 45693-1347
Adams County Courthouse (Wikipedia)
Phone: 937–544–5547

Probate Court  has births and deaths 1888-1893, marriages 1803-1853 and from 1910, probate records 1849-1860 and from 1910.

Court Clerk  has divorces and court records from 1910.

County Recorder  has land records from 1797.

Board of Health  has births and deaths from 1908.^[1]

Family History Centers

FamilySearch Centers are branches of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, and are located all over the world. Their goal is to provide resources for family history research.

The main FamilySearch Center for Adams County, Ohio is the Adams Ohio Family History Center. For additional nearby Family History Centers, search online on the FHC directory.

Libraries

• Libraries

Museums

Societies

The Adams County Historical Society
507 N. Cherry St.
West Union, Ohio 45693
Phone: 937-544-8522

• Adams County Genealogy Genealogical Society West Union, Ohio
• Ohio Historical Society

 Taxation

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. For more information see the wiki page Ohio Taxation.

• Index to Tax List of 1810 Adams County
• Tax Records 1816-1838  About this collection

Finding Tax Records at Other Repositories

Additional tax records can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Adams County, Ohio Tax Records in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Family History Library Catalog (For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search).

Vital Records

Vital records consist of birth, death, marriage and divorce records. Although Ohio enacted a statute in 1856 -1857 requiring registration of births, deaths and marriages, many counties did not comply. A second law was written in 1867 but, again, was not always followed. By 1908, the law was more clearly defined and kept. Any existing birth and death records from 1867 through December 19, 1908 are located at the Adams County, Ohio 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 Historical Society houses death records from December 20, 1908 through December 31, 1953.

Original marriage records are held at the office of the Adams County, Ohio Probate Court with divorce records located with the Adams County, Ohio Clerk of Courts.

Birth

Online Birth Indexes and Records

• Recordings of Births The Adams County, OH Courthouse was destroyed by fire on February 25,1910. All official Probate Court Birth Records were destroyed. Births may be found in the "Adams County,OH Probate Court Assessor Books," (1879 thru 1895) and the "Restored Adams County, OH Board of Health Birth Records," (1857 to 1909).
  
• 1800-1962 - Ohio, Births and Christenings Index, 1800-1962 at ancestry.com ($)
• 1821–1962 Ohio, Births and Christenings, 1821-1962 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free. This is an incomplete index of extractions of original records and of patron-submitted records. This index is not complete for any particular place or region. Information may have been previously published in the International Genealogical Index or Vital Records Index collections.
  
• 1856–1909 Ohio, County Births, 1856-1909 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free; Index. The collection includes a name index and images of county birth records in Ohio. The time period and type of record varies by county.
  
• 1908-1964 - Ohio, Birth Index, 1908-1964 at ancestry.com ($)

Original Birth Records on Microfilm

Marriage

Online Marriage Indexes and Records

• 1789–1994 Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-1994 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free; Index. Name index and images of county marriage records acquired from local courthouses.
  
• 1800-1945 - Marriages of Adams County, Ohio and Marriage Data - Adams County Ohio 1800-1945
• 1800–1958 Ohio, Marriages, 1800-1958 at FamilySearch Historical Records – free; Index. Name index to marriage records from the state of Ohio. Microfilm copies of these records are available at the Family History Library and FamilySearch Centers. Due to privacy laws, recent records may not be displayed. The year range represents most of the records. A few records may be earlier or later.
• 1803-1900 - Ohio Marriages, 1803-1900 at ancestry.com ($)
• 1896 - 1896 Marriage License Issued
• 1898-1912 - Ohio Marriages at ancestry.com ($)
• 1970-2007 - Ohio Marriage Index, 1970, 1972-2007 at ancestry.com ($)

Original Marriage Records on Microfilm

Death

Online Death Indexes and Records

• 1889 Adams County Adult Deaths: 1889 Courtesy OhioGenWeb
• 1908-1953 Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953 Free name indexes and images at FamilySearch. Records include such information as birth date of deceased, city, county, and state of death, name of spouse if married, names of parents, maiden name of mother, name of informant, if deceased was single, married, windowed or divorced, occupation of deceased.
• 1908-1932-, 1938-1944, 1958-2002 Ohio Deaths, 1908-1932-, 1938-1944, 1958-2002 - Ancestry ($)
• 1909 Adams County Deaths 1909 Courtesy Genealogy Trails
• 1913-1937 Adams County Death Index 1913-1937 Courtesy OhioGenWeb
• Adams County Social Security Index Rootsweb

Original Death Records on Microfilm

Divorce

Finding Vital Records at Other Repositories

Additional vital records can sometimes be found using search phrases such as Adams County, Ohio Vital Records in online catalogs like:

• WorldCat (For instructions see WorldCat Online Catalog).
• Family History Library Catalog (For instructions see FHL Catalog Place-name Search).

Web Sites

• Ohio Digital Collections statewide database links
  
• Family History Library Catalog
  
• OHGenWeb - Adams County
• UsGenWeb - -Adams County
• Genealogy Trails, Adams County, Ohio
• Ohio Genealogy Express

Places

Populated Places

• Place Names

References

v • d • e Links to Ohio-related articles Topics Search Strategies · Record Selection Table · American Indians · Archives and Libraries · Bible Records · Biography · Cemeteries · Census · Church Records · Court Records · Directories · Emigration and Immigration · Ethnic, Political, or Religious Groups · Gazetteers · Genealogy · History · Land and Property · Maps · Military Records · Naturalization and Citizenship · Newspapers · Obituaries · Online Records · Periodicals · Probate Records · Societies · Taxation · Vital Records · Voting Registers · For Further Reading Counties Adams · Allen · Ashland · Ashtabula · Athens · Auglaize · Belmont · Brown · Butler · Carroll · Champaign · Clark · Clermont · Clinton · Columbiana · Coshocton · Crawford · Cuyahoga · Darke · Defiance · Delaware · Erie · Fairfield · Fayette · Franklin · Fulton · Gallia · Geauga · Greene · Guernsey · Hamilton · Hancock · Hardin · Harrison · Henry · Highland · Hocking · Holmes · Huron · Jackson · Jefferson · Knox · Lake · Lawrence · Licking · Logan · Lorain · Lucas · Madison · Mahoning · Marion · Medina · Meigs · Mercer · Miami · Monroe · Montgomery · Morgan · Morrow · Muskingum · Noble · Ottawa · Paulding · Perry · Pickaway · Pike · Portage · Preble · Putnam · Richland · Ross · Sandusky · Scioto · Seneca · Shelby · Stark · Summit · Trumbull · Tuscarawas · Union · Van Wert · Vinton · Warren · Washington · Wayne · Williams · Wood · Wyandot Extinct Areas Illinois (VA) · United States Military District · Virginia Military District · Connecticut Western Reserve Major Repositories Ohio Historical Society · State Library of Ohio · Ohio Genealogical Society · Western Reserve Historical Society · National Archives Great Lakes Region (Chicago) · Newberry Library  · Allen County Public Library Migration Routes Braddock's Road · Forbes Road · Erie Canal · Great Trail · Kanawha Trail · Lake Erie · Lake Shore Path (or Lake Trail) · Maysville Turnpike · Miami and Erie Canal · Miami Path · National Road (or Cumberland Road) · Ohio and Erie Canal · Ohio River · Pennsylvania and Erie Canal · Scioto Trail · Tennessee, Ohio and Great Lakes Trail · Vincennes-Indianapolis-Detroit Road · Wabash and Erie Canal · Zane's Trace

• This page was last modified on 28 May 2013, at 19:53.
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