Adams County was created on March 1, 1836 and was formed from Adams New Purchase. The Adams New Purchase: Begun in 1827, Adams was the new name for the Delaware New Purchase. The Adams Purchase existed until 1844, when it became the counties of Adams, Clinton, Grant, Huntington, Jay, and Wells, and portions of the counties of Boone, Carroll, Tipton, and Wabash. The County was named for U.S. President John Quincy Adams, Sixth President of the United States.
Decatur is the County Seat. Samuel Johnson offered as an inducement to have the county seat located on his land, the sum of $3,100, four church lots, half an acre for a public square, one acre for a seminary and two acres for a cemetery. He further agreed to pay the expenses of the locating commissioners, and furnish a house to hold court in until suitable buildings could be erected. The county commissioners promptly accepted the offer "and proceeded to the aforesaid town site, and marked a white oak tree with blazes on four sides, on each of which they individually inscribed their names." Decatur was probably named in honor of Commodore Stephen Decatur and in 1849 it had seventy houses (three of which were brick, twenty-one frame and the remainder of logs) with a population of about 400. See also County History for more historical details.
Adams County is divided into 12 Civil Townships as follows: Blue Creek, French, Hartford, Jefferson, Kirkland, Monroe, Preble, Root, St. Marys, Union, Wabash and Washington. Cities, Towns and Communities include Berne, Coppess Corner, Decatur, Elm Tree Crossroads, Geneva, Honduras, Linn Grove, Magley, Monmouth, Monroe, Perryville, Peterson, Pleasant Mills, Preble, Rivare, and Salem.
Indiana Newspaper Holdings for Adams County: The county newspaper holdings are under regular revision, as new microfilm holdings are added. These files are not up to date; there are continuous updates and corrections.
PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information.
NOTE: The date listed for each category of record is the earliest record known to exist in that county. It does not indicate that there are numerous records for that year and certainly does not indicate that all such events that year were actually registered. See also the Adams County Courthouse History
Adams County Clerk has Marriage Records from 1836, Probate Records from 1838 and Court Records from ? and is located at 112 South 2nd, Decatur, IN 46733; (260)724-2600 The Clerk of the Circuit Court is a ministerial officer who is the custodian of the Clerk's record and seal, issues process, accepts filings of commencement of actions in litigation, enters judgments and orders of the court, receives money in his official capacity, makes certified copies of record, issues many miscellaneous licenses, and keeps a record of all wills and matters of trust in probate proceedings.
Adams County Recorder has Land Records from 1837 and is located at 313 West Jefferson Street, Decatur, IN 46733; (260)724-2600. The county recorder's function is to maintain permanent public records involving a wide variety of instruments. These documents detail transactions involving real estate, mining, personal property, mortgages, liens, leases, subdivision plats, military discharges, personal bonds, etc. Generally, all of these instruments are recorded either for giving legal public notice of their existence or for safekeeping and future reference. The recorder maintains and preserves all legal documents affecting title to real property.
Adams County Health Department has Birth / Death Records from 1882 and is located at 313 West Jefferson Room 314, Decatur IN 46733-1672; Phone (260) 742-3106, Fax (260) 724-2708
Below is a list of online resources for Adams County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Adams County Court Records by clicking the link below:
Indianapolis Newspaper Index, 1848-1991: Select articles from 1848-1888 Indianapolis daily newspapers; heavily focused on deaths and marriages. Select articles from 1898-1991 about people, places, events, and topics in Indianapolis and the state of Indiana. Extremely limited for deaths; no coverage of marriages. Card file also available in the Microforms Area, second floor.
Reference & Government Services CD Collection: Database to allow searching of the hundreds of CDs from the federal government and other sources, part of the collections of the Reference & Government Services Division.
Indiana Immigration & Emigration Records - Immigration records help the family historian to understand the movements of their ancestry as they relocated to different parts of the world.
Click Here to Search Indiana Birth, Marriage & Death Records! - Birth, marriage, and death records are connected with central life events. They are prime sources for genealogical information. Look also for baptism, christening, and burial records in this collection.
Birth Certificates:
The Division of Vital Records and Statistics maintains birth records that occur in Indiana since Oct 1907 to the present.
Prior to October 1907, records of birth are filed only with the local health department in the county where the birth actually occurred.
Cost: Initial search and one certified copy or certification of the record or No Record Statement is $10.00 and $4.00 for each additional copy.
Make your check or money order payable to "Indiana State Department of Health". Enclose a business-size self-addressed envelope. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep check amount for a searching fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
In Person:
The ISDH Vital Records office is located at 6 West Washington Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46204. The office is open for walk-in requests from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., E.S.T., Monday through Friday (excluding official State Holidays). The cost for the first certificate is $10.00 and $4.00 for each additional copy. Average wait time is less than an hour.
Processing Time: 5 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
Death Certificates: The Division of Vital Records and Statistics maintains death records that occur in Indiana since 1900 to the present. Prior to 1900, records of death are filed only with the local health department in the county where the death actually occurred.
For deaths occurring from 1900 to 1917, the city and/or county of death is required in order to locate the record.
Cost: Initial search and one certified copy or certification of the record or No Record Statement is $8.00 and $4.00 for each additional copy.
Make your check or money order payable to "Indiana State Department of Health". Enclose a business-size self-addressed envelope. If no record is found or no copy is made, state law requires that we keep check amount for a searching fee. Please do not send cash in the mail.
In Person:
The ISDH Vital Records office is located at 6 West Washington Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46204. The office is open for walk-in requests from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., E.S.T., Monday through Friday (excluding official State Holidays). The cost for the first certificate is $8.00 and $4.00 for each additional copy. Average wait Time is less than an hour.
Processing Time: 5 weeks when ordered by MAIL or 2-5 Days when you order ELECTRONICALLY
Marriage Certificates: Certified copies of marriage certificates are not available from the State Health Department. They are available from the Clerks of the Circuit Court in the county where the marriage was granted. Fees vary.
Divorce Certificates: Certified copies of divorce certificates are not available from the State Health Department. They are available from the County Clerk in the county where the divorce was granted. Fees vary.
Order Online: You can also order Order Electronically and get the certificates within 2-5 days by ordering below
Below is a list of online resources for Adams County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Adams County Vital Records by clicking the link below:
Search the Social Security Death Index for FREE - Search over 82 million death records and get genealogical information crucial to your family research. New content added weekly! Most comprehensive SSDI site online!
Research Death records In The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of historical Indiana newspaper articles about deaths. Search for local articles about an old family friend that died many years ago or a celebrity that committed suicide. Historical newspapers contain a wealth of information about the deceased.
Click Here to Search Indiana Voter Lists & Census Records! - Few, if any, records reveal as many details about individuals and families as do government census records. Substitute records can be used when the official census is unavailable.
Below is a list of online resources for Adams County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Adams County Census Records by clicking the link below:
Indiana Census, 1790-1890: This collection contains the following indexes: 1790 (Northwest Territory) Federal Census Index; 1807 State Census Index; 1810 Wayne County Census Index; 1812 Census Index; 1820 Federal Census Index; 1830 Federal Census Index; 1840 Federal Census Index; 1840 Pensioners List; 1850 Federal Census Index; 1860 Federal Census Index; 1870 Federal Census Index; 1890 Veterans Schedule.
Genealogy Atlas has images of old American atlases during the years 1795, 1814, 1822, 1823, 1836, 1838, 1845, 1856, 1866, 1879 and 1897 for Ohio and other states.
You can view rotating animated maps for Indiana showing all the county boundaries for each census year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at Census Maps
You can view rotating animated maps for Indiana showing all the county boundary changes for each year overlayed with past and present maps so you can see the changes in county boundaries. You can view a list of maps for other states at County Maps
Below is a list of online resources for Adams County Maps. Email us with websites containing Adams County Maps by clicking the link below:
Click Here to Search Indiana Military Records! - Military and civil service records provide unique facts and insights into the lives of men and women who have served their country at home and abroad.
The uses and value of military records in genealogical research for ancestors who were veterans are obvious, but military records can also be important to re-searchers whose direct ancestors were not soldiers in any war. The fathers, grandfathers, brothers, and other close relatives of an ancestor may have served in a war, and their service or pension records could contain information that will assist in further identifying the family of primary interest. Due to the amount of genealogical information contained in some military pension files, they should never be overlooked during the research process. Those records not containing specific genealogical information are of historic value and should be included in any overall research design.
Below is a list of online resources for Adams County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Adams County Military Records by clicking the link below:
Southern Claims Commission from the State of Indiana (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents In the 1870s, southerners claimed compensation from the U.S. government for items used by the Union Army, ranging from corn and horses, to trees and church buildings.
Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 (The National Archives): View, Print Copy & Save Original Documents in NARA publication M246 include muster rolls, payrolls, strength returns, and other miscellaneous personnel, pay, and supply records of American Army units, 1775-83.
Indiana World War II Servicemen: Database to locate information about Indiana men and women who served in World War II who were mentioned in one of the Indianapolis daily newspapers during the war.
Records of county taxes were kept as early at 1842, although most were discarded. Remaining ones would be at the county courthouse. National Archives-Great Lakes Region has records of the Internal Revenue Service for Indiana for 1867 to 1873. These are tax assessment records, arranged by district and then chronologically.
Below is a list of online resources for Adams County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Adams County Tax Records by clicking the link below:
The Repositories
in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical
and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical
Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly,
quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies
should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are
usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived
materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be
more generalized and over look the smaller details that local
societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to
look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy
section and may have some resources that are not located at
archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums
in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years
gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All
these places are vitally important to the family genealogist
and must not be passed over.
Below is a list of online resources for Adams County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Adams County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:
Indiana State Library,
Attn: (Division or Staff Name),
140 North Senate Avenue,
Indianapolis, IN 46204-2296
Loan Desk and General Inquiries: 317-232-3675,
ind@statelib.lib.in.us
Genealogy Division: 317-232-3689,
genealogy@statelib.lib.in.us
Indiana Newspapers & Periodicals Records - Newspapers and periodicals are the diaries of local communities. They are excellent sources of family history details - often recorded nowhere else. Look for obituaries, marriages, legal notices, and more found in our Historical Newspaper Archives.
Click Here to Search Indiana Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.
The commissioner's office of each Indiana county may have burial records for soldiers, sailors, and marines. If available, the records should include name, age, date of enlistment, discharge date, and death date. Records begin about 1862.
The Indiana State Library holds records of inscriptions from some Indiana cemeteries. The "Indiana Cemetery Locator File," compiled by the Genealogy Division, is an alphabetical listing of cemeteries, indicating the location in the state and the designation in the Genealogy Division of the Indiana State Library where inscriptions may be found.
Below is a list of online resources for Adams County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Adams County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:
Find Obituaries in The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of Indiana obituaries to help you research your family history. Search for a Indiana newspaper obituary about your ancestor or a celebrity. Begin your search today and find death notices and funeral announcements printed in newspapers from Indiana.
Click Here to Search Indiana Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.
When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Adams County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Adams County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:
Genealogy Encyclopedia: General Abbreviations, Early Illnesses, Nickname Meanings, Worldwide Epidemics, Early Occupations, Common Terms, Censuses Explained, Free Genealogical Forms
Nichols and Related Families of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virgina.
Indiana Family & Local History Records - The Family & Local Histories Collection lets you read journals, memoirs, and other first-hand historical narratives right on your computer. Gathered from some of the world's finest libraries, these materials may provide hard-to-find town, county, and state information; tax records and wills; military, church, and court records; as well as photographs, stories, and maps.
1849 Adams County Retrospect -
Based on "Indiana Gazetteer," published by E. Chamberlain
Adams County is bounded on the east by the State of Ohio, on the south by Jay County, on the west by Wells, and on the north by Allen County. It is twenty-four miles in length, from north to south, and fourteen in breadth, and contains 336 square miles. The population of Adams County, in 1840, was 2,284; at this time [1849] it is near 5,600. The face of the county is generally level. Near the St. Mary's and Wabash, it is undulating, but not hilly. There are no barrens in the county, and not exceeding ten sections of prairie, all wet, and twenty-five or thirty of river bottoms. The residue is upland, heavily timbered. The wet prairies form the sources of the creeks, and from several of them water runs into the St. Lawrence, and also the Mississippi. The most of them show traces of beaver dams. The soil is clay mixed with marl, and apparently becomes more fertile the longer it is cultivated. The timber is oak, hickory, buckeye, ash, beech, elm, lynn, walnut, sycamore, poplar and cotton wood. The surplus products consist of wheat, corn and hay, and horses, cattle and hogs, in considerable numbers, are raised for exportation. The county is divided into twelve townships, Preble, Root and Union in the north' next, St. Mary's Washington and Kirkland; then French, Monroe and Blue Creek; and in the south, Jefferson, Wabash and Hartford.
There are in Adams County, three Lawyers, five Physicians, six Ministers of the Gospel, five stores, three groceries, six warehouses, one merchant mill, one oil mill, one ashery, one tannery, two saddlers, ten shoemakers, seven blacksmiths, two tailors, five cabinet makers and twenty carpenters.
The principal streams are the St. Mary's and Wabash rivers, which are about equal in size, and their average width is about 160 feet. The former was frequently navigated with keel and flat boats; but navigation in now obstructed by mill dams. The public buildings in the county consist of a Courthouse and Jail, both of wood, fire-proof offices for the Clerk, Recorder, Auditor and Treasurer, and one Presbyterian, one Methodist and one Roman Catholic Church. The common school districts are generally organized and support schools from three to ten months in the year. The county of Adams, when properly improved, will be a first rate farming region.
Decatur, the County Seat of Adams County, on the west side of St. Mary's River, in Washington Township, was first settled in 1837, by Jacob Huffer, Samuel L. Rugg and John Reynolds. There are in Decatur [in 1849] seventy houses, of which three are brick, twenty-one frame, and the residue of logs, with a population of about 400. This town in twenty-four miles southeast from Fort Wayne, twenty-eight miles north of Portland, ten miles west of Willshire, Ohio, and 110 northeast of Indianapolis.
1938 Adams County Retrospect -
Based on "Indiana Review," published by the State Legislature
click and zoom to Our Neighbors MapAdams County is located in the northeastern part of Indiana and is bounded on the east by the State of Ohio and on the north by Allen County. Its twelve townships cover an area of 337 square miles. It is supposed the county took its name in honor of John Quincy Adams, who was President within the decade prior to formal organization.
In the southern part of this county is the "Limberlost" region, immortalized by Gene Stratton Porter. Road 27, known as the Limberlost Trail, passes within sight of Limberlost Cabin, where Mrs. Porter wrote her first ten novels.
The total population in 1890 was 20,181; 1900, 22,232; 1910, 21,840; 1920, 29,503; and in 1930, 19,957. The incorporated city is Decatur, 5,156; towns: Bern, 1,883; Geneva, 895, and Monroe, 322.
Decatur is located twenty-two miles southeast of Fort Wayne and is served by three railroads. In 1937, there were some twenty-six industries, according to an unofficial report. Those industries included meat-packing, foundry operation, sugar refining and the manufacture of hoops, staves, brick, cement blocks, electric motors, ladders and egg case fillers.
On the Courthouse lawn in Decatur is a Soldiers Memorial Monument built of Bedford stone and a bronze tablet to Gene Stratton porter, dedicated by the county's school children. Outstanding among Decatur's buildings are the Elks' Home, of Georgian style architecture; the Public Library, of Greek classic style; several churches, and the Adams County Hospital. A monument to the memory of Samuel L. Rugg, pioneer settler, statesman, benefactor and educator, is located in the Decatur Cemetery. Memorial Park in the city is named in his honor. Among Decatur's notable residences is the C. A. Dugan house of Greek classic style. Other old homes are distinguished for their coverlets, pioneer needlework, and portraits by early artists. In one is a painting by Francisco Denoti, done in 1792.
Scattered throughout Adams County are many historical trails formerly used by the Indians. Chief among them are Harmar Trail, Godfrey Trail and the Old Wayne Trace. Sixteen hundred acres are covered by the Old Rivare Indian Reservation, which is more than one hundred years old and contains an Indian burial ground.
At Bern, in the southern part of the county, is a Mennonite Church regarded as an unusual example of architecture for a small community, and one of the largest Protestant churches in the state.
The flat land of Adams county is well adapted to agriculture. According to 1935 federal census figures the county had 2,150 farms averaging 95.4 acres each, with a total value of $11,745,466. A total of 68,395 head of livestock was reported.
There were thirty-three industrial establishments employing 1,280 wage earners on pay rolls of $966,956. The value of the products was $8,934,490.
The Adams County total tax valuation for 1936 was $22,955,127.
Courthouse History
In 1872 architect J.C. Johnson completed the third and present courthouse for Adams County. Johnson utilized the hallmark mansard roof and tower on his Second Empire style designs for courthouses in Adams and Randolph counties. Both buildings experienced maintenance problems involving their towers, and in the 1950s Randolph County completely removed its tower.
By the late nineteenth century the swaying of the damaged Adams County Courthouse tower caused the courtroom ceiling below to crack. In 1900, Adams County Commissioners hired Fort Wayne architects Wing and Mahurin to design a new tower and dismantle the original one. For added stability, the architects relocated the new tower above the building’s main entrance. Once workers demolished the old tower, they removed the damaged plaster and lowered the courtroom ceiling. All of the original ceiling murals were lost, excepting a small portion under a beam that supports the bell tower.
Decorative sandstone quoins, incised with an irregular honeycomb pattern, known as vermiculated work, offset the red brick body of the Adams County Courthouse. Patterned slate and dormer windows highlight the steep slope of the distinctive mansard roof. A 1970s renovation closed off all but two of the original doorways that graced each side of the building. In an attempt to create more space, the 1970s renovations also added asecond story loft to the clerk’s and recorder’s offices, lowered ceilings, and replaced the original front doors with double airlock doors.
In 1995 the county expanded its governmental space by converting the former Bellmont Junior High School into the Adams County Service Complex, thus saving the historic school from the wrecking ball and creating a circuit court courthouse annex.
In 2005 the clerk’s office in the old courthouse expanded into the area once housing the recorder. To create one large office, workers removed the 1970s loft addition and several brick dividing walls. Because of the load bearing function of the walls, their removal necessitated construction of a new support system for the courtroom located above.
The Adams County Courthouse is located on a Shelbyville Square plan ringed by commercial businesses. Unlike most courthouse squares decorated with war memorials, Adams County honors its battle heroes with a Peace Monument, designed by Charles Mulligan and dedicated in 1913. The large limestone monument features a stylized female figure symbolizing peace on the front, and on the back, a carved relief honoring battlefield nurses.
