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Jackson County History and Information
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Jackson County Facts

Jackson County was created on January 1, 1816 and was formed from Clark, Jefferson and Washington Counties. Jackson County was the fourteenth to be organized in the Territory of Indiana and was formed form Washington and Jefferson counties, the legislative act having been passed December 18, 1815. The County was named for Andrew Jackson, who defeated the British at the Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812, and later became President.

The County Seat is Brownstown . Brownstown wasn't always the County Seat. The first County Seat was established at Vallonia in June of 1816. The first courts were held in the shade of the old fort in the village. Brownstown established and became the County Seat November 1816; by it 1849 contained a Court House, County Seminary and public offices of brick, seventy dwelling houses and a population of 400. The first settlers were A. C. Craig, Charles Crabb, William Williams, William Congleton, William Crenshaw, John Milroy and John Ketcham. See also County History for more historical details.

Counties adjacent to Jackson County are Brown County (north), Bartholomew County (north), Jennings County (east), Scott County (southeast), Washington County (south), Lawrence County (west), Monroe County (northwest).

Jackson County is divided into 12 Civil Townships as follows: Brownstown, Carr, Driftwood, Grassy Fork, Hamilton, Jackson, Owen, Pershing, Redding, Salt Creek, Vernon and Washington.

Cities, Towns and Communities include Acme, Bobtown, Brownstown, Chestnut Ridge, Clear Spring, Cortland, Crothersville, Dudleytown, Dunham, Ewing, Fleming, Freetown, Kriete Corner, Kurtz, Maumee, Medora, New Elizabethtown, New Farmington, Peters Switch, Reddington, Retreat, Rockford, Seymour, Shields, Sparksville, Spraytown, Surprise, Tampico, Uniontown, Vallonia, Weddleville, and Wegan.

 

There are free downloadable and printable forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms, U.K. Census Extraction Forms, Research Calendar, Ancestral Chart, Research Extract, Correspondence Record , Family Group Sheet , Source Summary Form.

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Records at the Jackson County Courthouse

See Also Indiana Land Records, Marriage Records, Court & Probate Records

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. Courthouse destroyed by Fire in 1872? and 1881?, No records lost

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 Jackson County Courthouse History

   Jackson County Clerk has Marriage Records from 1816 , Probate Records from 1817 and Court Records from 1817 and is located at Courthouse, 111 S. Main Street, Brownstown, IN 47220 ; (812)358-6116
   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.

   Jackson County Recorder has Land Records from 1815 and is located at Courthouse, 111 S. Main Street, Brownstown, IN 47220; (812)358-6113 .
   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.

Search Online Click Here to Search Indiana Court, Land, Wills & Financial Records! - Researchers often overlook the importance of court records, probate records, and land records as a source of family history information.

   Jackson County Health Department has Birth / Death Records from 1882 and is located at 207 North Pine Street, Seymour, IN 47220; (812) 522-6474

Below is a list of online resources for Jackson County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Jackson County Court Records by clicking the link below:

  • Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
  • 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.
  • Jackson County, Indiana Court Books at Amazon.com
  • 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.

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Jackson County Vital Records

See Also Vital Records in Indiana

Search Online 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.

Some documents are just too important to wait 6 weeks for. With VitalChek Express Certificate Service you won’t have to. Birth, Marriage, Divorce & Death Certificates Signed. Sealed. Delivered. Often in as few as three business days!

  • 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
      • Click Here to Search the Social Security Death Index for FREE
  • 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.

Below is a list of online resources for Jackson County Vital Records. Email us with websites containing Jackson County Vital Records by clicking the link below:

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Jackson County Census Records

See Also Research In Census Records

Search Online 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.

  Countywide Records: Federal Population Schedules that exist for Jackson County, Indiana are 1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930. Other Federal Schedules to look at when researching your Family Tree in Jackson County, Indiana are Industry and Agriculture Schedules availible for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. The Mortality Schedules for the years 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880. There are free downloadable and printable Census forms to help with your research. These include U.S. Census Extraction Forms and U.K. Census Extraction Forms.

  See Also Statewide Records that exist for Indiana

Below is a list of online resources for Jackson County Census Records. Email us with websites containing Jackson 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.
  • Jackson County, Indiana Census Books at Amazon.com

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Jackson County Maps & Atlases

   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 Jackson County Maps. Email us with websites containing Jackson County Maps by clicking the link below:

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Jackson County Military Records

See Also Military Records in Indiana

Search Online 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 Jackson County Military Records. Email us with websites containing Jackson County Military Records by clicking the link below:

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Jackson County Tax Records

See Also Research In Tax Records

   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 Jackson County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Jackson County Tax Records by clicking the link below:

  • Jackson County, Indiana Tax Books at Amazon.com

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Jackson County Genealogical Addresses

See Also Other Indiana Genealogical Addresses

   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 Jackson County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Jackson County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:

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Jackson County Church & Cemeteries

See Also Church & Cemetery Records in Indiana

Search Online 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.

   There are many churches and cemeteries in Jackson County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Jackson County Tombstone Transcription Project.

Baptist records are found at Franklin College (in Franklin); Methodist at DePauw University (in Greencastle); Mennonite at Goshen College (in Goshen); Presbyterian at Hanover College (in Hanover); Disciples of Christ at their historical society in Nashville, Tennessee; and French Catholic at Vincennes University in the Byron R. Lewis Collection. There are also Catholic church histories and records at the Catholic Archives, University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana. Quaker records are at Earlham College (at Richmond).

   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 Jackson County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Jackson County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:

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Family Trees & Genealogy Tidbits

Search Online 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 Jackson County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Jackson County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:

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County History

1849 Adams County Retrospect - Based on "Indiana Gazetteer," published by E. Chamberlain

Jackson County, named in honor of General Andrew Jackson, was organized in 1815. It is bounded north by Brown and Bartholomew counties, east by Jennings and Scott, south by Washington, and west by Lawrence and Monroe, and it contains about 500 square miles. It is divided into eleven civil townships, viz: Driftwood, Grassy Fork, Brownstown, Washington, Jackson, Redding, Vernon, Hamilton, Carr, Owen and Salt Creek. The population in 1830 was 4,894, in 1840, 8961, and at this time [1849] about 12,000. A range of hills passes through the center of the county from the northeast to the southwest, and there is another range of hills or knobs in Salt Creek Township, in the northwest part of the county; but the face of the country, for the most part is either level or gently undulating. The bottoms along the different streams are very large and rich, and they compose about one-forth of the whole county. The soil is of every variety, sandy clay, loam, etc., and the timber is of the best quality on the various soils to which it is adapted. The constant increase of the surplus products of the county shows that its agriculture is in an improving condition. Pork, beef, corn, flour, wheat, oats, beans, fruit, cider, potatoes, plank, staves, etc, are taken to the different points on the Ohio River in wagons, or to the southern markets in flat boats, and they, with hogs, cattle, horses and mules exported, yield over $200,000 annually. It is estimated that there are usually 50.000 acres in corn, the product of which is over 2,000,000 bushels. There are in the county eighteen stores, six groceries, eighteen gristmills, sixteen sawmills, two carding machines, six tanneries, four lawyers, fifteen physicians, seventeen preachers, about eighty mechanics of the trades most in demand, and twenty churches for the Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists, Friends and Reformers. The taxable land in Jackson County amounts to 234,000 acres, and about 70,000 acres still belong to the United States. The situation of this county, the soil, water privileges and other advantages it possesses would, if properly improved, rank it among the best counties in the State.

In the northeast corner of the county, in the bed of White River, is a solitary boulder of granite, weighing several tons. No other rock of any kind is found in the vicinity. In the same neighborhood is a large mound, about 200 yards in circumference at the base. On this spot, in 1812, a marauding party of Indians held a council to decide whether they should retreat or fight a party of 30 men, under Captain (afterwards General) Tipton, then in close pursuit on their trail. Resistance was determined on, and they stationed themselves, very advantageously, on an island, since known by the name of Tipton's Island, which was connected to the shore by a drift, and in one place only by a single log. Over this Tipton rushed with his men, and he being so fortunate as to kill the principal Indian, who, at that moment, was taking aim at Major Beem, the rest of the Indians fled with the loss of most of their men, and without doing any injury to the soldiers.

1938 Adams County Retrospect - Based on "Indiana Review," published by the State Legislature

It was in Jackson County, at a place in the northeast section where White River enters and known now as Tipton's Island, that General John Tipton engaged the Indians in 1812 and practically ended Indian warfare in the Indian Territory. It was also in Jackson County that General Wayne signed a treaty with the Indians, at a place three miles west of Seymour. The site is marked with a stone monument.

In addition to White River, which runs through the county, there are a number of other streams. The extensive bottomlands along these waterways are quite fertile and compromise about half the county's area. Although the surface of the county is mostly level, or slightly rolling, there is a range of hills cutting diagonally from northeast to southwest and another in the northwest section.

Jackson County was the fourteenth formed and was originally was part of Washington and Jefferson Counties. Today it is a territory of 518 square miles, divided into twelve townships, located in the south central part of the state.

The incorporated city is Seymour, 7,508; towns: Brownstown, 1,758; Crothersville, 979, and Medora, 654. The county population in 1890 was 24,139; 1900, 26,633; 1910, 24,727; 1920, 24,288; 1930, 23,731.

The chief city is Seymour, which is noted for its points of artistic interest. Among these is the Carnegie Library, outstanding for its art books. Adjoining is the H. Vance Swope Memorial Art Gallery. Swope, a native of the county is a prominent New York artist. The gallery was erected in 1928 by the Seymour Art League, whose collections and exhibits were begun in 1913. One institute in the city, the Farmers' Clubhouse is the only one of its kind in the United States.

One mile south of Seymour, on the M. S. Blish Estate, is a stone marker indicating the site of the first blockhouse for defense against the Indians. The Blish Family erected a monument, four and a half miles northeast of the city, in honor of General John Tipton.

Southwest of Seymour, in Vallonia, a stone monument marks the site of the old French Trading Post. Here also is a marker erected by the Jackson County Historical Society on the site of the old blockade used by General Tipton and his men. Up the river, near the famous Indian Battleground, Tipton Island may be found the old "Treaty Tree." Near here in the bed of the White River is a huge granite boulder weighing several tons. The boulder is an unusual site, for it is the only evidence of rock in the entire vicinity.

Jackson County had a total of 43 manufacturing establishments, according to figures of the 1935 federal census. A total of 2,238 wage earners were employed on payrolls totaling $1,529,370. The value of the manufactured products was $9,306,194.

The county had 2,261 farms with an average of 118.5 acres each. The value of these farms was $10,414,161. A total of 36,842 head of livestock was reported.

Jackson County's tax valuation for 1936 was $20,999,360.

Courthouse History

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