Facts on Local Court Records

[ SEARCH ONLINE COURT RECORDS ] [Search Public Records - FREE Preview Search.] [Court Record Searches] [View Criminal Records Instantly!]

   The first instrument of government formulated in Iowa country is said to be the Miners' Compact, drawn up by the lead miners in 1830. When the Iowa Territory was established in 1838, three district courts were created which continued until statehood in 1846 when the three districts became one. In 1849 this district was divided into northern, middle, and southern divisions.

There was considerable redivision and reorganization through 1907. Holdings at the National Archives/Central Plains Region include files from the District of Iowa, 1845–82; Northern District, 1850–1959; and Southern District, 1842–1959.

At the county level, criminal and civil court records are filed with the county clerks. A few Iowa court records have been, and are being, transferred to the State Archives in Des Moines. A recent acquisition of interest to genealogists is the Supreme Court of Iowa Order Books, beginning with the formation of the Iowa Territory in 1838, in four volumes through 1858. Order Book A contains twenty-one naturalizations between 1840 and 1851.

Naturalizations which are part of the District Court Records at the county level are being microfilmed. Naturalizations for most counties have been filmed, and they are available at both State Historical Society of Iowa research libraries.

Find Iowa Court Record Books at Amazon.com

Back to top

Facts on Local Probate Records

   Matters of probate, including wills, administrator or executor bonds, inventories, and guardianships, are kept by the clerk of the county district court. The Genealogical Society of Utah and the State Historical Society of Iowa are jointly microfilming probate records at the county level. In the case of Scott County, packets of original probate files in addition to the court's record books are included. Full particulars on which counties and which records can be obtained from the research library in Des Moines.

Find Iowa Probate Record Books at Amazon.com

Back to top

Tips for General Court Records

Excerpts From the Book "Family History Made Easy"

   Even today, few people escape mention in court records at some time during their lives as witnesses, litigants, jurors, appointees to office, or as petition signatories. However, Americans of a few generations ago also expected to attend local court proceedings when they were in session.
Arlene H. Eakle, Ph.D. “Research in Court Records”
In The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy

   American court files mirror U.S. history. Buried away in courthouses and archives everywhere are the dreams and frustrations of millions of citizens. The chances are great that your ancestors have left a detailed record of at least some aspects of their lives in court records.

   Most of us don’t think of court records as the rich source of personal history that they are. But America’s English heritage established a tradition of court processes in which the people have a right to participate actively—and we always have. With relative freedom from royal supervision and with court enforcement of religious as well as civil laws, American courts tried many matters that were not subject to court action in other parts of the British empire and that are now considered too minor to warrant criminal action.

   When a person dies, every state has laws that provide for public supervision over the estate that is left, whether or not there is a will. The term “probate records” broadly covers all the records produced by these laws, although, strictly speaking, “probate” applies only when there is a will.

   Family historians use probate case files far more than any other kind of court record. Probate case files are logical sources because they tend to include so much personal data, and because Americans have depended on the courts to settle their estates since North America was colonized. According to Val Greenwood in his Researcher’s Guide to American Genealogy, “All records which relate to the disposition of an estate after its owner’s death are referred to as probate records. These are many and varied in both content and value, but basically, they fall into two main classes: testate and intestate” (page 255). Probate case files generally provide names, addresses, and biographical data for the deceased, but frequently provide the same information for other relatives named in the papers. Relationships, maiden names of wives, married names of daughters, past residences, and place of origin in a native country are just a few of the details that can be discovered in probate files. And probate files can be found in courthouses and archives across the United States.

   When requesting probate information from the county clerk, it is important not to limit yourself by asking for a person’s “will.” The clerk will usually take you at your word and not copy other papers in the probate file that may have equally important information if there is no will.

   Even if your ancestor is not mentioned in a probate case, consider all of the other procedures which might have resulted in him or her appearing in court records:

Back to top